Crossing genres is rarely successful.
Viajero
Special Edition: Der fliegende Holländer - Finale - Titus, Studer, Silvasti
On a day like today in 1843 in Dresden, Richard Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer received its world premiere. We celebrate with a live, audio-only recording of the rousing finale, rousingly sung, from the 1999 Bayreuth Festival.
With her large, powerful, luminous and distinctive instrument, Cheryl Studer, as Senta, delivers a sustained, live-coil ardor and intensity that, in my opinion, matches or even surpasses darling Leonie Rysanek’s. The other principals, too, are the stuff of dream casting. No one ever talks about the fine Dutchman of Alan Titus nor the equally fine Erik of Jorma Silvasti and one wonders why but comes up empty. No less important is the direction of Peter Schneider, a conductor in the great German tradition. No one talks about him either. And the late, exceptional Norbert Balatsch shaped the Bayreuth chorus to match the intensity of the principals which helped raise the already scorching-hot musical temperature to a level we no longer experience.
With her large, powerful, luminous and distinctive instrument, Cheryl Studer, as Senta, delivers a sustained, live-coil ardor and intensity that, in my opinion, matches or even surpasses darling Leonie Rysanek’s. The other principals, too, are the stuff of dream casting. No one ever talks about the fine Dutchman of Alan Titus nor the equally fine Erik of Jorma Silvasti and one wonders why but comes up empty. No less important is the direction of Peter Schneider, a conductor in the great German tradition. No one talks about him either. And the late, exceptional Norbert Balatsch shaped the Bayreuth chorus to match the intensity of the principals which helped raise the already scorching-hot musical temperature to a level we no longer experience.
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Viajero
Unless you're Eileen Farrell...
I hadn’t noticed this thread before but I can only assume ALT was having a little jest with us as regards the vocal talent on show in his/her excerpt. Studer was not great and I assume we no longer hear of Mr Silvasti because he is pretty grim. Wagner was clearly not his strong suit. 1999 - the year that Bayreuth forgot!😏😎
What's shocking about this? Singers love to sing this. If you want a shock listen to Birgit Nilsson sing it with a Swedish accent! It's all in good fun.I was never a Studer fan but seeing this really shocked me. What was she thinking?
@Tsaraslondon wrote about this in the Showtunes Sing-Off for "I Could Have Danced All Night" -What's shocking about this? Singers love to sing this. If you want a shock listen to Birgit Nilsson sing it with a Swedish accent! It's all in good fun.
"PS I know the Nilsson was all in fun, and originally issued as part of Karajan's Decca Gala Die Fledermaus, in which several Decca artists got up and gave us their party piece (Simionato and Bastianini doing Anything You Can Do is hilariously awful), but it doesn't repay repeated listening. It's very heavy handed and her intonation often a bit suspect."
What's shocking about the Studer has nothing to do with the singing.What's shocking about this? Singers love to sing this. If you want a shock listen to Birgit Nilsson sing it with a Swedish accent! It's all in good fun.
OK...What's shocking about the Studer has nothing to do with the singing.
21 - 27 of 27 Posts
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