Listen to a Sample:

Pros:

• Siegfried Jerusalem brings youthful lyricism to the title role.
• Hans Sotin basically owned the role of Gurnemanz from the 1970s to the 1990s, and this recording shows why. He brings poised elegance to the role without even a hint of the "Bayreuth-bark" so many of his colleagues resorted to.
• Franz Mazura's Klingsor is terrifying, however he manages to create more than a one-dimensional stock villain. You even find yourself sympathizing with him as he describes being ostracized by the holy order of knights.

Cons:

• My only quibble with Jerusalem is that when the music gets dramatic he tends to push in a way that obfuscates the lyrical quality of his instrument. One wonders how he would have fared if he just gave a little less.

In Stereo

OD 11805-4