Customer Reviews

The Art of Meta Seinemeyer

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Meta Seinemeyer remains one of the legends of not only German opera, but all of opera. She recorded for only a short time during the twenties, dying very young under tragic circumstances. Her repetoire was essentially that of the lyric soprano, but she added a great deal of intensity through a tightly controlled vibrato. "Seinemeyer Nights" as her appearances in late 1920's Berlin came to be called were among the highlights of that brief exalted creative epoch, the period right before the Nazi takeover when an unparalleled number of major artists in music and the visual arts appeared.
This set, released by Preiser of Austria, offers a full measure of Seinemeyer's art. One hears a singer who achieves a remarkable balance between melody and passion. In some selections, such as the over-familiar Visse d'arte from Puccini's Tosca, she wrings out as much passion as any of her contemporary Italian verisomo peers. Yet Seinemeyer always holds to the long line and brings out the classical elements in even the most fiery works. Her voice itself was rich yet tremulous, that vibrato again, and she exploited it with an uncanny sense of just where to push and where to relax. She is, with Muzio, the greatest dramatic lyric of the twenties, and should be known by far more opera-lovers.
Many of her recordings are in German, but not all. Frequently she sings duets with lesser partners, but in the aggravate there is nothing but glory here.
I find it amazing that no one has reviewed this CD set. This is an important issue.

Nearly four years ago, the lone, prior reviewer here (Doug - Haydn Fan) remarked that he was amazed that noone had reviewed this release. Since that time, his review remains the only one. Sadly so.

Substance wise, I cannot hope to add to much to the actual content of this release. It is Wagner. It is historic, old-school, legendary performances. It is, quite literally, a treasure trove of near priceless material. The physical release of this item is approximately $71 and comprises, I believe, four compact discs. The cost of the MP3 download, at this time, is $7.99 - a mere pittance and, quite frankly, an absolute steal for the wealth of material, performances and peformers you get here.

I cannot recommend this set highly enough. Yes, some selections sound their age and the pop, hiss and crackle of the original, source material/acetate/etc. is quite evident. But it adds an irreplaceable magic and beauty to these recordings. As I have said in my review of the MP3 download for Wagner: Lohengrin, I cherish historic recordings such as these and thank God that labels such as Preiser are making such efforts to preserve and offer these products. These are to be cherished and rightly deserving of far more attention and respect than they, apparently, receive. You will be hard-pressed to find a better offering of fantastic, traditional Wagner, than is offered here.

Highly recommended.