This arrived today, and I couldn't help taking a quick look at it. Well, from the start I knew it was going to be special, and it was blindingly obvious why people talk about Kleiber's conducting of this. The orchestral playing is like quicksilver. It leaps, it swoops, it flows, it trills, it bubbles, and it tears at heartstrings. Really, the orchestral playing is a wonderful component of this recording. So my 'quick look' turned into watching a large chunk of Act 1; and it was so good - so very, very good, that I couldn't resist doing a sneak preview of the Presentation of the Rose, and the final trio and duet, just to see what they were like (I'd seen them on Youtube, but in poor quality).
(Gaston - to cut a long story short: just get one. OK?)
Fassbaender is a fantastic Octavian. Boyish, with a certain sandpaperiness to her voice which is quite perfect for the role. Her acting is superb. When she passes over the rose and sees Sophie, the look on her face, the arm movements, her stance, all show her amazement at what's happening to her (him, that is). In Act 1, the play between her and the Marschallin just bubbles with delight. Gwyneth Jones is a stunning Marschallin - utterly convincing - playful with Octavian at the beginning, and nobly, quietly, tragic at the end. Lucia Popp sings Sophie so beautifully that I could fall in love with her myself. Physically, she's not so lovely as Barbara Bonney (in the Kiri/Howells/Bonney production), but that's hardly grounds for criticism.
Both the Presentation of the Rose, and the finale, had me in tears. I can't fault it, truly I can't. And all the time, this magical orchestral playing is sweeping, probing, embellishing, and enlivening the action. Oh and I haven't mentioned the sets - they are lovely.
Is it better than Kiri/Howells/Bonney? I've no idea. It's different, and certainly no less wonderful. I think it's just necessary to have both.
Some youtubes (poor sound quality, and don't do it justice, not at all):
Presentation of rose
End of Act 3 (Watch Gwyneth Jones's quiet but quick departure - the flickering of changing expressions on her face as she decides to leave, and turns ... and have the tissues ready)