I know it isn't usual to begin a review of this opera discussing the Hagen, but Gerd Nienstedt is one of the best exponents of the role I've heard. There are other basses who've had darker voices, but few have Nienstedt' s beauty of tone and moment to moment specificity. I don't know that he sang the role often; his voice may have been too small for it in a big house, but here in a radio performance he is ideal. Kniplova is probably best as the Gotterdammerung Brunnhilde. She is in excellent voice, has no trouble with any of the notes, and delivers a wonderful Immolation scene, helped no doubt by Sawallisch's propulsive conducting.Cox is very good as Siegfried. He makes it to that top C in Act Three and is very moving in his death scene. Tipton and Kirschstein are great as the Gibichung siblings. Dalis is an impressive Waltraute with especially resonant low notes. The three Norns begin the opera very well and the Rhinemaidens are first-rate (though I'm not sure Fassbaender sings Flosshilde - another source lists a different singer and it doesn't sound like her). The sound is very good.Though this is ostensibly the most difficult of the Ring operas to bring off it gets a great performance here.