[Seattleoperafan]

 

[Bonetan]

I'm going with Frantz. His diction is stellar, every word crystal clear, and I find his sound most God-like of the three. There's a fogginess to Hotter's recording that contrasts starkly with the clarity of Frantz's which gives Hotter little chance here imo. As for London, I've always found his sound to be more Ogre than God, but there's much to be said about his instantly recognizable voice.

 

[MAS]

I’m not sure I like London’s grainy voice and I find that it lacks glamour.
Hotter’s voice has richness and a noble tone, but in certain registers it acquires a very un-godlike wobble, though his delivery is commanding.
Franz has a seemingly lighter tone, but he has authority and grandeur and the required gravitas to play the God. I also like his conductor, Moralt, who complements Franz’s singing.
Franz for me.

 

[Woodduck]

I've always been a George London fan, at least in Wagner's heldenbariton parts. His timbre is distinctive, his diction exemplary, he sounds like a Wotan to me, and he's in fine voice here. Ferdinand Frantz is probably too little remembered now, but he's fine too. This recording is from 1948 and he sounds in prime vocal estate; his best known recordings are his Sachs, from 1952 (I think) and the complete Furtwangler Walkure from 1954, where his voice has become heavier and more opaque. I prefer the tonal steadiness of both of these singers to the more vibrato-ridden Hotter, and I find it hard to choose. I think I'll take Frantz, who sounds better here than his later recordings (which are still good) led me to expect.

 

[Reichstag aus LICHT]

I went for Frantz, but it was a tough call between him and London. I've always found Hotter's more melancholic, world-weary tone more suitable for Walküre and (especially) Siegfried, so I'm not surprised I had him in 3rd place here. All three were, of course, magnificent Wotans in their different ways.

 

[Tsaraslondon]

Frantz appealed to me most, Hotter the least.

 

[Seattleoperafan]

I'd never heard of Frantz before but he had the most beautiful voice to me.

 

[ColdGenius]

London sounds like Alberich or Hagen, not Wotan. But Wotan is a very special God, with troubled past, possessed by passions more than his Olympic fellow-gods, so it's controversial.
Franz is my choice here, but Hotter is close.

 

[JGolden]

I think London may have had the best voice of these three, and he certainly sounded commanding the way a god should, but the recording dragged -- to be fair, that may not be his fault -- and the characterization seemed off. So, I went with Franz. None of these were especially compelling to me, but Wotan is a tough part, to be sure.

 

[The Conte]

London has the sound of a commanding God, but I felt he could have given a more nuanced interpretation. Hotter suffers from his usual nasal twang and the voice isn't as steady at this point as it was in earlier seasons at Bayreuth. However, I like the way he distinguishes between Wotan's exterior and interior thoughts. Frantz is my favourite vocally, he has as much gravitas as Hotter without the shortcomings. Whilst Hotter wins on interpretation, Frantz is a close second and totally outpaces him vocally. Frantz it is.

I'm hoping we get to hear Tomlinson and Schorr in this one.

N.

 

[Becca]

...and Bailey

 

[wkasimer]

And Nissen and Schwarz!