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Tristan und Isolde
I first encountered this performance nearly 20 years ago, but my anticipation quickly turned to frustration when the discs I received were riddled with skips. After years of searching, a clean copy has finally surfaced—and it was well worth the wait. In 1971, at the age of 53, Birgit Nilsson still possessed the radiant sheen of her earlier years, now enriched by a deeper, burnished tone that added new dimensions to her Isolde. Jess Thomas, whose lyric heldentenor would later show signs of strain from Wagner's punishing demands, is caught here in resplendent voice, delivering a performance that balances heroic power with surprising sensitivity. Josephine Veasey, Donald McIntyre, and David Ward provide luxurious support as Brangäne, Kurwenal, and Marke, respectively, each rising to the high standard set by the leads. Georg Solti takes his time with the score, but his deliberate pacing allows the drama to breathe, drawing out both vocal beauty and emotional nuance in a way that is deeply rewarding.
Track List
Act I
1. Vorspiel
2. Westwärts schweift der Blick
3. Mir erkoren, mir verloren
4. Hab acht, Tristan! Botschaft von Isolde.
5. Weh, ach wehe! Dies zu dulden!
6. Wie lachend sie mir Lieder singen
7. Welcher Wahn! Welch eitles Zürnen!
8. Auf! Auf! Ihr Frauen!
9. Begehrt, Herrin, was Ihr wünscht
10. War Morold dir so wert
2. Westwärts schweift der Blick
3. Mir erkoren, mir verloren
4. Hab acht, Tristan! Botschaft von Isolde.
5. Weh, ach wehe! Dies zu dulden!
6. Wie lachend sie mir Lieder singen
7. Welcher Wahn! Welch eitles Zürnen!
8. Auf! Auf! Ihr Frauen!
9. Begehrt, Herrin, was Ihr wünscht
10. War Morold dir so wert
Act II
11. Tristan!... Isolde!... Treuloser Holder!
12. Hörst du sie noch?
13. Nicht Hörnerschall tönt so hold
14. Isolde!... Tristan!... Geliebter!
15. In deiner Hand den süssen Tod
16. O sink hernieder, Nacht der Liebe
17. Einsam wachend in der Nacht
12. Hörst du sie noch?
13. Nicht Hörnerschall tönt so hold
14. Isolde!... Tristan!... Geliebter!
15. In deiner Hand den süssen Tod
16. O sink hernieder, Nacht der Liebe
17. Einsam wachend in der Nacht
Act III
18. Vorspiel
19. Kurwenal! He! Sag, Kurwenal!
20. Die alte Weise; was weckt sie mich?
21. Dünkt dich das?
22. Noch ist kein Schiff zu sehn!
23. Nein! Ach nein! So heisst sie nicht!
24. Und drauf Isolde, wie sie winkt
25. O diese Sonne
26. Ha! Ich bin's, ich bin's
27. Kurwenal! Hör'! Ein zweites Schiff.
28. Sie wacht! Sie lebt!
29. Mild und leise
30. Doch unsre Liebe, heisst sie nicht Tristan und Isolde?
31. Soll ich lauschen?
32. Tatest du's wirklich?
33. O König, das kann ich dir nicht sagen
19. Kurwenal! He! Sag, Kurwenal!
20. Die alte Weise; was weckt sie mich?
21. Dünkt dich das?
22. Noch ist kein Schiff zu sehn!
23. Nein! Ach nein! So heisst sie nicht!
24. Und drauf Isolde, wie sie winkt
25. O diese Sonne
26. Ha! Ich bin's, ich bin's
27. Kurwenal! Hör'! Ein zweites Schiff.
28. Sie wacht! Sie lebt!
29. Mild und leise
30. Doch unsre Liebe, heisst sie nicht Tristan und Isolde?
31. Soll ich lauschen?
32. Tatest du's wirklich?
33. O König, das kann ich dir nicht sagen
Customer Reviews
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4.0
Based on 4 reviews
✓ Top Reviewer
United Kingdom
✓ Top Reviewer
United States
Update to Review Below:
Andy sent me another copy of disc 4 and it does not have the file corruption (clicking) that I noted in my previous review. Thank you, Opera Depot, for making this fine performance available to all of us at a very reasonable price!
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✓ Top Reviewer
United States
Great Performance, Good Sound!
I have heard Solti and Nilsson do many performances together including their famous Decca studio recording of this opera and they always made an incendiary team. The great Swedish diva was 53 by the time of this performance and if her voice shows a little hardness here and there she is still a miracle of strength and beauty. Her years of experience are particularly telling in her use of the text: a classic portrayal.Thomas does not have the sheer voice of Melchior, but he has imagination and sensitivity to spare. He is superb in his long third act monologue. Veasey, in a role initially meant for Shirley Verrett (who never ended up singing the role), is a terrific Brangäne, McIntyre is a heartbreaking Kurvenal, full of love for Tristan, and Ward a superb Marke, full of detail and nobility. John Dobson was a fine character tenor who sounds very underpowered as Melot though he dies well (was he substituting for another singer?); a young Ermanno Mauro is the young sailor. Solti leads an uncut performance, notable for its passion and expert pacing. The sound is good enough, but it should be mentioned that there is a ghost of another performance that can be heard in stretches of Acts One and Two. Two very short bits of Isolde's role are missing, possibly because of a tape turn. My copy was afflicted with file corruption (clicking) in the last five minutes of the opera. For fans of the opera and/or singers.
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✓ Verified Buyer
United Kingdom
An incandescent Tristan
One reviewer of this performance, Solti's last as Musical Director of the Royal Opera, described it at the time as "sublime, intoxicating and torrential." He wasn't wrong. "Jess Thomas did not flag, sang most movingly in the third act.... The unsinkable Birgit Nilsson, cool, imperious and seraphic, rose to every climax.... But superlatives fail. What an Isolde!" He wasn't wrong. An incandescent Tristan in warm, vivid mono sound. A real treasure.
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