[Reichstag aus LICHT]

He once went to sleep on stage after his 'death' and Flagstad had to kick him as he was snoring during the final scene!

Mild und leise
wie er schnarchet
Wie sein Nasenloch er öffnet.
Höre, Freunde! Hört ihr's nicht
wie ein Schwein sein Atem sich grunzet?

 

[DavidA]

Do I alone hear
this melody
so wondrously
and gently
sounding from within him?

I've read that Melchior was bored stiff by the whole Wagner thing

 

[amfortas]

I've read that Melchior was bored stiff by the whole Wagner thing

I think that's an occupational hazard of any performer doing the same limited repertoire for decades.

 

[interestedin]

We might even have had Melchior as Tristan - but then, he was still in fine voice even in 1952, and EMI could have paired him with Flagstad. I'm under the impression that Furtwangler didn't want to work with him. Does anyone have information on that?

Flagstad and Melchior never sang together after the war. I don't really remember the details but they probably didn't have the best relationship after Flagstad got little or no support from Melchior (and his wife?) when the lies about her being a Nazi were spread in America after the war....

 

[Woodduck]

I think that's an occupational hazard of any performer doing the same limited repertoire for decades.

He would have happily sung Otello and Pagliacci, among other things, but the Met management typecast him. Evenings with him and Flagstad were the house's biggest box office draw.

 

[DavidA]

Flagstad and Melchior never sang together after the war. I don't really remember the details but they probably didn't have the best relationship after Flagstad got little or no support from Melchior (and his wife?) when the lies about her being a Nazi were spread in America after the war....

Whatever the truth about Flagstad and her husband's relationship with the Nazis, it is foolish to blame Melchior after a Nazi-inspired war in which fifty million people had lost their lives. People tended to think rather differently then not having the luxury of a 70 year time lapse.

 

[Granate]

Wagner Challenge update - Favourite MONO TUI - I

Winner

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90
Ludwig Suthaus
Kirsten Flagstad
Blanche Thebom
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
Josef Greindl
Rudolf Schock
Edgar Evans

Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
Philharmonia Orchestra
Wilhelm Furtwängler
Warner Classics (1952/2001 Remastered Edition)

Runner-up

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Rudolf Lustig
Gertrud Grob-Prandl
Georgine von Milinkovič
Toni Blankenheim
Kurt Böhme
Hugo Meyer-Welfing
Hans Braun

Chor und Orchester der Wiener Staatsoper
André Cluytens
Walhall (1956/2008 Remastered Edition)

3rd position

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Ramón Vinay
Martha Mödl
Ira Malaniuk
Hans Hotter
Ludwig Weber
Gerhard Unger
Hermann Uhde

Chor und Orchester der Bayreuther Festspiele
Herbert von Karajan
Orfeo/Walhall (1952, Remastered Edition)

4th position

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Wolfgang Windgassen
Birgit Nilsson
Grace Hoffman
Hans Hotter
Arnold van Mill
Hermann Winkler
Fritz Uhl

Chor und Orchester der Bayreuther Festspiele
Wolfgang Sawallisch
Walhall (1957/2008 Remastered Edition)

Followed by Sawallisch Bayreuth 1958 (5th position). Almost no difference.

 

[Granate]

Wagner Challenge update - Favourite MONO TUI - II

Honourable mentions:

6th position

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Max Lorenz
Paula Buchner
Margarete Klose
Jaro Prohaska
Ludwig Hofmann
Erich Zimmermann
Eugen Fuchs

Männerchor der Staatsoper Berlin
Staatskapelle Berlin
Robert Heger
Preiser (1943/1995 Issue Edition)

7th position

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Lauritz Melchior
Kirsten Flagstad
Kerstin Thorborg
Julius Huehn
Ludwig Hofmann
Hans Clemens
Arnold Gabor

Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra
Artur Bodanzky
Walhall (1937/2005 Remastered Edition)

8th position

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Set Svanholm
Astrid Varnay
Blanche Thebom
Josef Metternich
Jerome Hines
Paul Franke
James McCracken

Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra
Rudolf Kempe
Walhall (1955/2005 Remastered Edition)

9th position

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Wolfgang Windgassen
Birgit Nilsson
Hilde Rössel-Majdan
Gustav Neidlinger
Hans Hotter
Anton Dermota
Claude Heater

Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala
Herbert von Karajan
Myto (1959/2010 Remastered Edition)

10th position

Wagner
TRISTAN UND ISOLDE WWV 90 Live recording
Ramón Vinay
Astrid Varnay
Ira Malaniuk
Gustav Neidlinger
Ludwig Weber
Gerhard Stolze
Hasso Eschert

Chor und Orchester der Bayreuther Festspiele
Eugen Jochum
Andromeda (1953/2010 Remastered Edition)

Top 11-22
11: Leinsdorf Met 41
12: Mehta RAI 72
13: Knappertsbusch BaySO 50
14: Reiner Met 50
15: Böhm WPO 67
16: Böhm BFO 62
17: Furtwängler SKB 47
18: Karajan BPO Salzburg 72
19: Reiner ROH CG 36
20: Kleiber (E) BaySO 52
21: Beecham ROH CG 37
22: Sabata Scala 51

Although being a long opera, many TUI performances from the 30s felt even more rushed than a Lohengrin. To take advantage, I also dropped a few OperaDepot in stereo from 1972 like Mehta in Rome and Karajan in the Salzburg premiere of his later acclaimed production with Vickers and Dernesh. However, these weren't really brilliant vocally and the sound quality of this broadcast was annoying. I can only be thankful for the Mehta free download because the sound is pristine and with no cuts. Every detail of the orchestration is there. The problem is that the famous Böhm 67 recording with DG exists and shows almost the same.

This time there were a lot of recordings to rate: 22. And, especially through the various Nilsson-Windgassen recordings, it felt really tiring. For the bottom 10, we could go by decades:

1930s: Flagstad and Melchior are the protagonists. This is troubling because all Markes and Brangänes are mere furniture. They never shine. There are two Covent Garden recordings, the Reiner 1936 for HMV and now remastered by Naxos that is recorded in various live sessions in close microphones, so there is no sense of space or representation. However, there are ways to overcome this issue and Bodanzky in the 1937 matinée broadcast finally does it. The Andromeda remaster of the Covent Garden Beecham recording in that same year feels more natural, but this time I end up missing the clearer voices instead of so much white noise. The culmination of so many duets Flagstad-Melchior is the Erich Leinsdorf broadcast from the Metropolitan in 1941, with more mature singers and better soundscape that enables to appreciate the conducting layers. There are two negative remarks. Leinsdorf's conducting and a bored (not boring) Melchior. This whole recording lacks excitement in Acts II and III but totally works out in Act I, imposing all the dark layers for Isolde that were missing in the Bodanzky broadcast.

1940s: This decade is a mixed bag in the years that Flagstad and Melchior stopped singing. More than in the cast, there are more issues in the sound. The Robert Heger 1943 performance in Berlin is the exception. The secondary casts are more able to play a major role. In Berlin 1947, Furtwängler could have given us a great recording, but we'll never know because to have the proper context in the recording we need Act I. His live recording doesn't have it. Terrific Act II overture though. Very close in this decade, I needed to skip the 1951 Scala broadcast of Victor de Sabata because it reminded me of those Covent Garden recordings in the 30s.

1950s: Outside Bayreuth, there are many worthy recordings. However, some of them have something special that only makes me focus in the other flows. The Bayerischen Staatsoper 1950 production with Hans Knappertsbusch is a TUI with Hans Knappertsbusch. Barely anything else. He is the one who lifts everything despite a bland, thin cast. In the same place in 1952, Erich Kleiber is one more of the quite decent team behind this recording. Nothing competitive can come out here. Even stylistically it's questionable in the singers. The Reiner Metropolitan broadcast in 1950 is quite ordinary with a fine Ramón Vinay, who would later become one of the best Tristans of the decade, probably even above Windgassen. I think that many of his performances are really accurate in the voice tone and strength. We don't talk now about the extraordinary Wiener Staatsoper broadcast in 1956. Later, later.
In Bayreuth there are memorable performances, both in the top 10: Karajan and Jochum 52 & 53. In the final reviews there are more details.

1957-72: The reign of Birgit Nilsson leaves many broadcasts orphan, especially 1959 and 1962 of the commercial releases and some like the two OperaDepot in Vienna 67 and Rome 72. The Vienna recording has Jess Thomas as Tristan and honestly he is the main interest of the recording. The disadvantage of this reign was that once I had listened to the 1957 Bayreuth premiere, with that voice, nothing could go better even if I hoped to.

[HR][/HR]
Now that the decade sum-up is done, let's dive into my top 10:

10th: Eugen Jochum, Bayreuth, 1953

This recording is not the best one can hope about these singers. The problem I have is essentially that it feels like an eternity. However, Andromeda deserves props for the remaster. The monaural sound helps Jochum. From 1952 we still have Malaniuk's Brangäne and Vinay's Tristan, who signs an excellent Act III. Unfortunately, Jochum doesn't add up anything, and Varnay has a much better performance two years later in the Metropolitan led by Rudolf Kempe.

9th: Herbert von Karajan, Teatro alla Scala, 1959

Because this was rejected for the better-recorded Bayreuth premieres, I felt pity for this broadcast. I would say that this sounds like Heavy Metal. I love when the loud parts burst the microphones and make everything explode. It reminds me of Furtwängler. It's like vintage, emotional, historical.
The singers are quite similar in quality to Sawallisch 57. I still do not see Hans Hotter at any role in this opera, not even King Marke. And Neidlinger and Windgassen boost up Act III and generally the performance. Never a first choice, but a pleasure to listen.

8th: Rudolf Kempe, Metropolitan Opera, 1955

Varnay as Isolde Part II, and the triumphant. Compared to other rivals it's not of my taste, but she delivers the best she can. Act I is lifted up by her unique voice. Almost no one else can do it. Svanholm's Tristan is suitable for the Isolde but generally under her shade, quite fine in Act II but whiny in Act III. Nice.

7th: Artur Bodanzky, Metropolitan Opera, 1937

Easily my pick for Flagstad-Melchior. Their most tender performance without boredom. The noise floor exists but it is bearable. This is a matinee Broadcast so the voices are clear, but the most shocking feature is Bodanzky's fast, intense, never rushed conducting that speeds up the love-making of Act II and creates passion. The secondary cast, Kerstin Thorborg (Brangäne), Julius Huehn (Kurwenal) and Ludwig Hofmann (Marke) have a spot with their great voices. A thrilling, mesmerizing recording from the 30s with fine sound for the age.

6th: Robert Heger, Berlin, 1943

I have mixed feelings. I agree with a TC member that Max Lorenz starts to sing it out like he would never perform again and his Tristan is in full suicide mode. It's beautifully scary. Probably the pitch is too high and the singers, especially Isolde, seem too histrionic. The orchestral sound is exceptional for 1943, with a thrilling Act III overture. Jaro Prohaska also creates a great Kurwenal. Margarete Klose is good as Brangäne, but Paula Buchner's Isolde seems a bit lost without Lorenz. Act I is generally quite good and Act II is spectacular in the love duet. Not to talk about mentioned suicidal-mode in a mind-blowing Act III. The duet and Tristan's act III are the highlights. Worth having and very few flaws.

Greatest recordings:

5th & 4th: Wolfgang Sawallisch, Bayreuth, 1957 & 1958 (I pick 57)

Two strikingly similar recordings despite their differences in the secondary cast. I would have thanked a different Kurwenal (Saedén) in 1958, but Hans Hotter strangely fit in the performance and did nicely. I could do without 1958 because Nilsson's Isolde is slightly more refined and less intense. With 1958 out, let's discuss the (second) performance of the 1957 premiere by Wolfgang Wagner.

The sound is not what I would expect in 1957. There is a lot less clarity than in the Andromeda Jochum 53. I needed to visit all the Nilsson-Windgassen performances between 1957 and 1967 to find out that this performance is unique, irreplaceable. Two young singers bringing freshness to two big roles. Remember when I said in the studio 1960 recording by Solti that Nilsson sung like in an atonal opera? This time it was slightly the same story. The first Isolde lines are usually annoying, but this young Nilsson magnifies the effect. Eek. Nilsson grows in the opera and from Act II Scene I she is faultless. Incredibly intense. Windgassen is very good as a young Tristan although it can seem that the role is too big for him then. The combination cannot be better and that energy is used by Windgassen in Act III. And Nilsson becomes herself in the Liebestod. Not my pick for the couple, considering mono and stereo competitors, but a worthy listen.

3rd: Herbert von Karajan, Bayreuth, 1952

I listened to this from Orfeo, and unfortunately the sound is not ideal. My complaint is that it wasn't as exciting as many had told. Failed expectations. Also… what is Hans Hotter doing as Kurwenal? I didn't like at all. However, the conducting and singing has top quality.
Except for Kurwenal, this recording is not only flawless. This one and Furtwängler are the only two ones that share a sense of art in the product. Vinay is really suitable for Tristan, London for a mourning King Marke, and Malaniuk for a silky and fearlul Brangäne. Mödl has a special quality, she is the star.

2nd: André Cluytens, Wiener Staatsoper, 1956

The biggest surprise of the challenge. Except for the decent Rudolf Lustig Tristan, this could not be better sung. The sound quality is beyond words. It sounds better than any recording here, saving Furtwängler in Studio. A lot of string weight, incredible cleanness, wow. This is the Isolde of the long name: Gertrud Grob-Prandl, so I could say GGP, who strangely had a similar voice with Milinkovič's Brangäne. They both sound like Gundula Janowitz. GGP is amazing and lifts Act I above anything imaginable except my two favourite stereo recordings. In comparison with her, it seems that Rudolf Lustig is saving energy, but Act III shows that it is just a shortcoming. He can only cope with the level in Act III when he is not competing with Isolde. They have a relaxed love duet in Act II and we are delighted with Kurt Böhme's Marke. All of this, remember, in pristine mono sound. Cluytens should be also congratulated for his conducting, especially during Act III's overture.

1st: Wilhelm Furtwängler, Philharmonia Orchestra, 1952

A recording that Sergiu Celibidache would sign. 4h15m. The concept of an extremely long recording is mesmerizing thanks to Furtwängler and the cast. But my complaint is that he seems more enthusiastic in tasting every note of the score than sharing emotions. It sometimes seems like an eternity, especially Act II.

The sound is way better than Karajan 52, and benefits the Brangäne solo in Act II. They share the uniqueness of the voices and conducting, in very different styles. Here, the cast cannot be beaten. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau as a youthful heldenbariton Kurwenal is decisive (remember an elderly Hotter in the same year). He sings like a youthful and imposing, never a soulful Wolfram.

For the lovers: Flagstad sounds adult, but never matronly. Her voice is suited for Isolde and achieves an intensity that only Nilsson can equal. She is only a bit drowned in Act II and the liebestod is spectacular. And Suthaus leaves apart the Siegfried character and sings in Act III serenely, a term that Lauritz Melchior seemed to ignore in his vocabulary. Suthaus manages to forget boredom in Act III and delivers a contemplative Tristan, flowing with the slow pace. This has never been repeated.

[HR][/HR]
I think only Furtwängler can make me doubt if my favourite Tristan is Barenboim or Karajan 72. These three, plus Cluytens Vienna and Karajan 52 would be my other two purchases. Those complete my overall top five for this opera.

I advanced in HWR that I would move forward the Parsifal episode and leave Meistersinger and the Ring for later. I'm currently through my third Parsifal finishing Act I.

 

[DarkAngel]

1st: Wilhelm Furtwängler, Philharmonia Orchestra, 1952

A recording that Sergiu Celibidache would sign. 4h15m. The concept of an extremely long recording is mesmerizing thanks to Furtwängler and the cast. But my complaint is that he seems more enthusiastic in tasting every note of the score than sharing emotions. It sometimes seems like an eternity, especially Act II.

The sound is way better than Karajan 52, and benefits the Brangäne solo in Act II. They share the uniqueness of the voices and conducting, in very different styles. Here, the cast cannot be beaten. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau as a youthful heldenbariton Kurwenal is decisive (remember an elderly Hotter in the same year). He sings like a youthful and imposing, never a soulful Wolfram.

Did I read somewhere that you have a subscription currently for Pristine XR website, did you compare Pristine to the stock EMI/Warner release? Are you a fan of Pristine XR......

How many hours a day do you listen to music, that is insane amount of material to cover so fast......

BTW you have come to the correct conclusion, enter the mighty hall of fallen heroes my son

 

[Granate]

Did I read somewhere that you have a subscription currently for Pristine XR website, did you compare Pristine to the stock EMI/Warner release? Are you a fan of Pristine XR?

I don't have it yet. I've been posting several times my intention to pay for one month of Pristine Classical Streaming so I can review the Furtwängler and Krauss Rings, plus the Kempe and Jochum meistersingers. I would have done it in a week, but it happens that I will be more busy within these two weeks for an exhibition I'm organising at University. Because time flies, I cannot allow myself to waste days of a monthly subscritpion. That's why I moved forward Parsifal, because they have a lot of releases and when the exhibition is done I will probably be about to finish that episode too.

How many hours a day do you listen to music, that is insane amount of material to cover so fast.

An insane amount of time. It can be quite boring to listen to two TUIs every day while drawing on cardboard and cutting shapes. The Nilsson-Windgassen series was testing my patience.

 

[DavidA]

There was always an interesting combative relationship between Karajan and Nilsson although they worked together int the theatre on Tristan and Isolde. Christa Ludwig once said that the actually sound Nilsson made ('not particularly rounded') was not Karajan's tipple. And she added: "And as she [Nilsson] had quite a mouth on her, it was never going to be a marriage made in heaven!" Unfortunately John Culshaw chose the (then) inexperienced Solti rather than Karajan to conduct the Decca Tristan with Nilsson.

 

[Granate]

O don't think the superb (to my ears) Vickers/Dernesch recording would have happened had Karajan been appointed to a Nilsson Isolde + random Tristan in Decca contract. Anyway, not only Fritz Uhl deserved criticism in that frustrated try.

That was a sweet vengeance by EMI on Decca. My three favourite Tristan und Isoldes interestingly belong to the Warner Classics catalogue (Furtwängler, Karajan and Barenboim).

In terms of my favourites of the giant rivals, Warner vs Universal, their catalogues are quite balanced:

DFH (Universal; not even Klemperer EMI)
Tannhäuser (Warner & Universal)
Lohengrin (Warner)
Tristan und Isolde (Warner; Böhm DG is nice enough)
Meistersinger (Warner + BR)
Der Ring (Universal; not even Barenboim Teldec; Furtwängler RAI still not rated)
Parsifal (Universal; I don't get Barenboim Teldec; EMI never really cared)

 

[DavidA]

O don't think the superb (to my ears) Vickers/Dernesch recording would have happened had Karajan been appointed to a Nilsson Isolde + random Tristan in Decca contract. Anyway, not only Fritz Uhl deserved criticism in that frustrated try.

I think HvK probably would have re-recorded it. He did most of his operas for EMI

 

[Granate]

If Tristan was your key character in Tristan und Isolde, which would be your favourite interpretation of the character on CD? Would it be balanced with other great singers?

I recall plenty of great Isoldes on record, and the two ones I own (W. Meier and M Mödl) are near-definitive, but I sometimes doubt if their strength eclipses their male counterparts (I think 1952 was Vinay's neatest and most intense Tristan, but I missed a bit of energy in the studio with Jerusalem). Also, I sometimes find Vickers odd before Act III, and I don't remember Suthaus' voice at all. Melchior has two favourite recordings of mine: one with energy and very poor sound in 1937 and one with very nice sound and a lot of tireness by his part in 1941. I wish Windgassen ever performed the role with an Isolde different than Brünnilsson, but his 1958 Act III left a great mark on me...

 

[Barbebleu]

Thanks to Granate's recommended top ten I've added the '37 Bodansky and the '56 Cluytens to my ever expanding list of Tristans. Thanks for that. See you in the madhouse!!

Btw, I love the idea of Brünnilsson!!

 

[wkasimer]

If Tristan was your key character in Tristan und Isolde, which would be your favourite interpretation of the character on CD?

It'd probably be Melchior, in one of the live broadcasts with Flagstad.

I don't remember Suthaus' voice at all

.
He really wasn't at his best for the Furtwangler recording. He was seriously overworked after WW2 - I'm guessing that he might have been just about the only legitimate Wagnerian tenor not tainted by association with the Nazi party (according to Wikipedia, he refused to join), unlike, for example, Max Lorenz. Suthaus was in much better voice in a live broadcast (of a concert performance, I think) in Berlin under Furtwangler in 1947. Unfortunately, it's not complete (no Act 1 at all). He's also in pretty good shape on a 1950 recording conducted by Konwitschny, but the rest of the cast isn't particularly good (with the exception of Gottlob Frick's tremendous King Mark). That was the Tristan recording that I imprinted on in high school, since that's the only one that the local library had on the shelf.

 

[Barbebleu]

It'd probably be Melchior, in one of the live broadcasts with Flagstad.

.
He really wasn't at his best for the Furtwangler recording. He was seriously overworked after WW2 - I'm guessing that he might have been just about the only legitimate Wagnerian tenor not tainted by association with the Nazi party (according to Wikipedia, he refused to join), unlike, for example, Max Lorenz. Suthaus was in much better voice in a live broadcast (of a concert performance, I think) in Berlin under Furtwangler in 1947. Unfortunately, it's not complete (no Act 1 at all). He's also in pretty good shape on a 1950 recording conducted by Konwitschny, but the rest of the cast isn't particularly good (with the exception of Gottlob Frick's tremendous King Mark). That was the Tristan recording that I imprinted on in high school, since that's the only one that the local library had on the shelf.

Lorenz, of course, had a Jewish wife, so perhaps self-preservation for himself and his wife may have had some bearing on his lifestyle choices in that horribly challenging time.

 

[howlingfantods]

Lorenz, of course, had a Jewish wife, so perhaps self-preservation for himself and his wife may have had some bearing on his lifestyle choices in that horribly challenging time.

He was also gay--it's actually a testament to how respected he was as an artist that he survived as the premier heldentenor during the Third Reich considering his sexuality and his attachment to his wife.

 

[DavidA]

If Tristan was your key character in Tristan und Isolde, which would be your favourite interpretation of the character on CD? Would it be balanced with other great singers?

I think Both the Tristans on Karajan's very different recordings are really fine - Vickers and Vinay. Modl opposite Vinay strains the ear a bit but is great on characterisation. I just wish Denersch hadn't been ill when she recorded it for Karajan as it might have been even better. As it is she is my favourite Isolde.
Just a mention of Domingo. Of course he never sung it on stage but I have a recording of the love duet Wagner made for concert opposite Voigt. People have cavilled at his German but he sings mighty fine!

 

[Barbebleu]

Now that I would love to have seen, Wagner singing the love duet opposite Voigt!!:lol: Although I would have thought his German would have been ok, even for a Saxon.