Rienzi

Wagner (Artist), Schreier (Artist), Kollo (Artist), Hollreiser (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 8, 1991)
• Number of Discs: 3
• Label: Angel Records
• ASIN: B000002S2J
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #314,395 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Ouverture - Staatskapelle Dresden/Heinrich Hollreiser

2. Act 1, Scene 1: Hier ist's, hier ist's - Theo Adam/Siv Wennberg/Chor/Janis Martin/Siegfried Vogel

3. Act 1, Scene 1: Dies ist eu'r Handwerk - Rene Kollo/Chor/Theo Adam/Nikolaus Hillebrand/Peter Schreier

4. Act 1, Scene 1: Doch horet ihr der Trompete Ruf - Rene Kollo/Siegfried Vogel/Peter Schreier/Gunther Leib/Chor

5. Act 1, Scene 2: O Schwester, sprich - Staatskapelle Dresden/Heinrich Hollreiser

6. Act 1, Scene 2: Rienzi, du bist furchterlich - Rene Kollo/Siv Wennberg/Janis Martin

See all 14 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Act 2: Ich will denn ein Verrater sein.. - Janis Martin/Chor/Horst Nuemann/Rene Kollo/Peter Schreier

2. Act 2, Scene 3: Im Namen Roms seid mir gegrußt! - Rene Kollo/Chor/Theo Adam/Nikolaus Hillebrand/Janis Martin

3. Act 2, Scene 3: Ballet (1)Introduction (2)Armed Dance (3)Fight of the Gladiators.... - Staatskapelle Dresden/Heinrich Hollreiser

4. Act 2, Scene 3: Rienzi! Auf! Schutzt den Tribun! - Chor/Horst Nuemann/Rene Kollo/Peter Schreier/Nikolaus Hillebrand...

5. Act 2, Scene 3: O laßt der Gnade Himmelslicht - Rene Kollo/Chor/Siv Wennberg/Janis Martin/Peter Schreier...

6. Act 2, Scene 3: Euch Edlen, dieses Volk verzeiht - Rene Kollo/Chor/Siv Wennberg/Janis Martin/Peter Schreier...

See all 10 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. Act 3: Der Tag ist da - Rene Kollo/Chor/Janis Martin/Siv Wennberg

2. Act 3: Heil, Roma, dir! - Rene Kollo/Chor/Horst Nuemann/Peter Schreier/Janis Martin

3. Act 3: Geschieden sind wir denn fortan - Janis Martin/Rene Kollo/Chor

4. Act 4, Introduction; Scene 1: ..Wer war's, der euch hierher beschied? - Staatskapelle Dresden/Heinrich Hollreiser/Peter Schreier/Chor/Horst Nuemann/Gunther Leib/Janis Marti

5. Act 4, Scene 2: Procession - Staatskapelle Dresden/Heinrich Hollreiser

6. Act 4, Scene 2: Ihr nicht beim Feste? - Rene Kollo/Janis Martin/Chor

See all 10 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The EMI Rienzi was the first big label attempt to capture the work that put Wagner on the musical map of Europe in 1837. Each of Wagner's first three works finds the composer imitating one of Europe's major musical lights of the first part of the 19th century, with Rienzi being his de facto tribute to the grandiose style of Meyerbeer. Little of the mature of Wagner is apparent in the set-piece arias and conventional five-act structure of this behemoth. However, there are memorable arias (particularly Rienzi's prayer) and orchestral passages, which explain the attraction of the work to the audiences of the last century. Kollo sounds young in this '70s-era recording, though his cabaret-style delivery is not quite as well suited to Rienzi as to Tannhäuser. Hollreiser uses the Dresden forces in an appropriately bombastic manner, providing the listener with a glimpse of the heroic style of opera in vogue during the first part of the last century. --Christian C. Rix

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Turn up the volume for this sonic spectacular!, February 7, 2011

By 

pyramidcvv "pyramidcvv" (Western US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rienzi (Audio CD)

If you're like me, you probably became acquainted with the Overture to Rienzi long before you ever heard the opera itself. For Wagner lovers interested in hearing one of the composer's more obscure works, I highly recommend this recording.

Wagner modeled Rienzi after French grand opera, so strictly speaking Rienzi is not "representative" Wagner. Yet the work itself is a joy to listen to, filled with grand choruses, melodramatic exchanges, and stirring marches and processions.

In addition, the engineered sound of this 1974 recording is simply sublime. I have old stereo equipment, but I was totally bowled over by the fantastic sonics of this CD.

Where there's Wagner, there's big voices, and this recording features several. Rene Kollo (Rienzi), Siv Wennberg (Irene), and Janis Martin (Adriano) show off their voluminous voices in page after page of this stirring score. Theo Adam and Nikolaus Hillebrand make the most of their roles as bad guys Orsini and Colonna. Even the small parts are well cast vocally: famed lieder artist Peter Schreier has a small part as Baroncelli, and Siegfried Vogel sounds grand as Cardinal Raimondo.

Grand opera is all about spectacle, and that means lots of big chorus numbers. No longer relegated as mere window dressing for soloists, the chorus in Rienzi is instead front-and-center: they sing almost as much as the soloists. This recording makes the most of Wagner's lavish choral writing by using the combined forces of two outstanding singing groups, the Leipziger Rundfunkchor and the Chor der Staatsoper Dresden. Their combined power literally sweeps you away in an ocean of sound. Add the impeccable sound engineering, and you will find it hard to resist turning up the volume.

Rienzi contains many orchestral set pieces, and they are performed to perfection by the Staatskapelle Dresden conducted by Heinrich Hollreiser. The strings are virtuosic, and the brass...well, let's just say they obviously look forward to playing Wagner! The Dresden forces give a rousing rendition of the famous overture, and also shine in the Ballet and the processional marches.

This 3-CD set comes with a complete German-English libretto, an invaluable aid given that most people hearing this rarely recorded work are probably hearing it for the first time.

For listeners who have heard the 1950 recording conducted by Winfried Zillig, this version is nearly an hour longer: 217" versus 167". However, having heard both, I prefer this longer version as the added music greatly enhances the drama of the piece.

This 1991 EMI release was reissued in 1999 with different cover art.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good recording of a very underappreciated work, October 15, 1999

By 

Adam Kubik (Buffalo, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rienzi (Audio CD)

Wagner's third opera "Rienzi" has been trashed and spat upon by most 20th century Wagner commentators as bombastic, undramatic, and musically uninteresting. They obviously didn't hear this recording! Although the opera is not in Wagner's mature style, when one appreciates it for what it is, grand opera, it is a very enjoyable work; with its sparkling choral scenes, rousing marches, and the tense drama of the last act, it has a little something for everyone. Although the vocal work in this recording is of very high quality, (particularly the Irene of Wennberg, which I find spectacular, in the few moments she has to show her stuff, particularly the last act) I was a little disappointed by some of the orchestral passages, especially the overture, where I think Hollreiser fails to get enough bite out of the brass. On the whole though, a very enjoyable work at a good price!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Performance of Dramatic Opera (Revised Review), April 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Rienzi (Audio CD)

Revision of previously submitted review. I did not give proper credit to the key solo performers, wish to clarify my comments on this.

A music fan from Northern Virginia , April 9, 1999 (Review revised from March 24 submission).

Outstanding performance of great dramatic opera

Rienzi has great orchestral music, but the best parts are the wonderful choral passages which leave the listener humming for hours. The key soloists (Rene Kollo, Siv Wennberg) take a highly dramatic approach using their rather unique vocal styles, for an overall highly effective impact. The acoustics are modern throughout, and the "presence" of the recording is excellent. I didn't expect to like this recording much, but I have listened to it about once per month since buying it; and I have given it as a gift to seven other opera lovers. As the only full performance available, it is a MUST HAVE for every lover of Wagnerian opera, especially at the budget price (for 3 CDs). Wish it were available as a video, but sadly, no video of Rienzi is currently available (HINT, HINT to opera recording companies).

If you like this Rienzi, you will also like Kollo's performance of Wagner's Tannhauser, conducted by Georg Solti. Recorded 5 years before Rienzi, Kollo's singing in Tannhauser reflects noticeably greater vocal quality. The Amazon.com professional review of this Tannhauser gave it raves, but after listening back-to-back to Rienzi and Tannhauser with Kollo singing, it was difficult to chose between the "sleeper" gem Rienzi and the better-known Tannhauser. In the end, I gave the nod to Tannhauser because of the incredible performance of Christa Ludwig in her absolute vocal prime singing the role of Venus. Even so, both recordings are "must haves" for Wagner lovers. Thank, you, amazon.com, for allowing opera lovers to keep each other informed about these great recordings.

One last thought, the thrill of hearing the opening four chords of the Tannhauser overture following an extended absence away from the opera is a very special treat, the same type of unique musical signature as the opening of Beethoven's fifth symphony.