Strauss: Salome

Birgit Nilsson (Artist), Grace Hoffmann (Artist), Gerhard Stolze (Artist), Waldemar Kmentt (Artist), Eberhard Wächter (Artist), Tom Krause (Artist), Nigel Douglas (Artist), Richard Strauss (Composer), Sir Georg Solti (Conductor), Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
• Conductor: Sir Georg Solti
• Composer: Richard Strauss
• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Decca
• ASIN: B0000041QA
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #112,930 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #7 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Divas > Nilsson, Birgit

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Razor-Sharp and Bloodthirsty, October 15, 1999

By 

Ricky Pinyan ([e-mail]) (U. S. A.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Strauss: Salome (Audio CD)

When I first heard this recording it practically blew me away. Sir Georg Solti and the Viennese give an absolutley WONDERFUL performance. Musically this 'Salome' captures all the violence, action, and near-insanity that pervade this work. As to the singers I don't think they could be matched. Nilsson sounds young enough, and she is wonderful. (her 'Jochanaan! Ich bin verleibt in deinen Leib, Jochanaan!/Jochanaan! I am desirous of thy body, Jochanaan!' is wonderfully innocent, sweet, and so sexual all at the same time. From there to the cold, heartless demands of 'Ich verlange von dir kopf des Jochanaan/I ask of you the head of Jochannan' she is truly wonderful, totally acting as well as singing the role, a habit to often neglected in the studio recordings) Many complain of Gerhard Stolze's performance, that it is too 'over the top'. I have to disagree. Stolze portrays Herod for what he is - a drunken lecherous weak-willed neurotic king. Eberhard Wachter's Jochanaan(John the Baptist in greek) is a godsend too. His glorious voice portrays the fanatical and self-righteous character of the prophet who is too wrapped up in the messiah to care for the pleasures of the world. Grace Hoffman sings the role of Herodias, much better than most who portray her as basically a shrew. Hoffman's Herodias is calculating, cold and regal, but isecure at heart, her cries to silence the prophet sound not so much annoyed, as actually afraid of the truth which he is proclaiming. The minor roles are also sung well. As a final note: The crowning achievement in this recording is the end. After Herod has ordered the guests inside and the moon is obscured by clouds Nilsson's voice just seems to rise out of nowhere; gently and sweetly half-whispering to that severed head those terrific lines: Ah! ich habe deinen Mund gekusst, Jochanaan!/Ah! I have now kissed your mouth Jochanaan! this scene is hair raising, in its intensity that Nilsson brings and the sinuous, dark playing of the Viennese. Turn off the lights and listen to it in the dark and you'll know what I mean.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent recording, July 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Strauss: Salome (Audio CD)

This is a great recording of Strauss's intriguing opera. I've heard many versions of this work, and in this one uniquely I found the kind of "blazing Oriental sun" that Strauss was apparently after, thanks to Solti's mesmerizing conducting. As for the soloists, Birgit Nilsson is astounding. At this point in her career, her voice actually was somewhat girlish in timbre, and she is more dramatically alive here than I expected. Her final "Ah, ich habe deinen Mund gekußt, etc." is wonderful, and everything else is sung effortlessly. Eberhard Wächter is a perfect prophet; he uses his beautiful voice exceedingly well and is completely believeable. Gerhard Stolze sometimes overdoes Herod's ranting, but he is always right there dramatically. Grace Hoffman has an interesting voice that can sound alternatingly girlish and womanly, and does a good deal with the role. Finally, Waldemar Kmentt and Josephine Veasey are perfect as Narraboth and the Page. Altogether, a great recording, if perhaps not the last word on the opera.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Night in Hell - or - Who's Afraid of Birgit Nilsson?, July 15, 2000

By 

Jim Player (Rochester, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Strauss: Salome (Audio CD)

The London/Solti Salome is simply one of the greatest performances on record. Solti delves with relish into to the exotic nervousness of the score, in total command from the first quivering notes right through to the final gut-wrenching climax. The cast is near ideal... Birgit Nilsson may not win you over at once with her somewhat steely timbre, but she gives a performance of a lifetime. Her singing is intense and well focused, slick and silvery in true Straussian fashion. The scene with the Executioner going into the cistern is truly amazing...breathless and genuinely intense. Stolze, so often criticized for his exaggerations is in the perfect role for him. You will NEVER be likely to hear such a complete conception of Herod as you will find here, from intoxicated bravado to the pathetic deflating realizition that he has been a mere pawn of the object of his lust (and how lusty he is!) All other Herods are pale and bland compared to him. Wächter has been criticized as being too light for the role...but the more you hear him, the more ideal he becomes. Has he really ever sung poorly? Kmennt has never been a favorite singer of mine, and this recording doesn't do much to change that. The five Jews are tremendous, a well rounded group of veterens, and Tom Krause as the First Nazarene shines. This is definitely one of producer John Culshaw's finer moments - equal in stature to anything in the Ring, yet minus the obtrusive sound effects that are so distractive to the music. Balance between the orchestra and singers is ideal, and some acoustical "gimmicks", such as with Nilsson as she waits for the severed head of Jochanaan work to perfection, adding tension to the scene. Sorry all you Solti detractors....this Salome is here to stay!