Flagstad may no longer have been in her vocal prime by 1948, but you'd never guess it from this performance. The voice remains steady, strong, and beautiful. Her only concession to Time is that she ducks the second top C at the beginning of the Love Duet in Act Two (I don't know why; the first one pops out with no trouble at all). The Norwegian soprano is also on top of the role dramatically in a way she sometimes wasn't earlier in her career.Svanholm is an excellent Tristan, his voice also steady and secure. Hotter is a distinctive Kurvenal and Weber a majestic Marke who sings his (uncut) Act Two monologue with beauty and grace. Ursuleac sings well as Brangäne too though her tone isn't always as steady as one might like. Kleiber is on fire from the first notes of the Prelude. Listen to the excitement he brings to the lovers' ecstatic meeting in Act Two or the fervor he brings to Isolde's arrival in Act Three. He makes the traditional cut in the Love Duet and makes several snips in Tristan's delirium in Act Three, but plays the first act complete. The sound is very good for the time; there are some noisy parts in Acts Two and Three, but they don't last long nor do they disrupt the listening experience. The pitch of the tape is also correct throughout the performance. Highly recommended!

Andrew is absolutely right although I don't enterely agree with him.This is indeed one of the greatest Tristan in the discography. It can sit without shame next to that conducted by Beecham 1937, Kleiber (Carlos) Bayreuth 1974, Keiber (Erich- already) Buenos Aires 1938.Tristan is definitely a Kleiber ‘s family « business» . Erich Kleiber is the big winner of this recording. He confirms that he was the greatest German conductor of the 20th century. Far ahead of Furwangler…Hans Hotter and Ludwig Weber are transcended, invested and much better than in the Karajan’s performance (Bayreuth 1951).Set Svanholm is a very great Tristan and rises to the Kirsten Flagstad ‘s level without problem. His vocal and dramatic investment is total. One of the great testimonies of this artist.Regarding Kirsten Flagstad, to hear what this artist was, just listen to the Tristan conducted by Beecham in London in 1937, with an exceptional sound that does justice to all aspects of this immense artist: immensity, color, flexibility, capacity for projection, power of the voice ; mastery of technique placed at the service of total dramatic investment.In 1947, Kirsten Flagstad was not at her prime, but in the middle of her career. His voice no longer has as many of the qualities mentioned above. But it doesn't have the heaviness of Furwangler's recording. Kirsten Flagstad's voice and artistry are simply coming of age. Always great art!The sound is much worse than that Beecham 10 years before ...