Customer Reviews

Wagner: Lohengrin

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I own six recordings of Lohengrin, and eagerly awaited this recording, having heard Heppner sing the role at the Met. On first listen I was very impressed with the overall recording, but immediately noticed the obvious flaws. Let me start out by saying that Ben Heppner is a perfect Lohengrin, as other reviewers have said the role is tailor made for him. It lies in the best part of his voice and allows him to showcase all of his many talents. Sharon Sweet is likewise a wonderful Elsa, maybe the best around, although I'd love to hear Deborah Voigt give it a try. She has a marvelous understanding of the role and ample voice to bring it to life. This recording is worth it just to hear these two. However, once Act II starts the obvious flaws of this set becomes readily apparant, sometimes painfully so. The Teleramund and Ortrud on this set are just awful, Sergei Leiferkus sounds very unconvincing, his metallic, slavic tone is all wrong for a German lord, and he butchers the language. Eva Marton, simply butchers the listeners ears; she shrieks, cracks and groans her way through the role. She makes Callas in 1975 sound good. She is simply just terrible for the role, I don't mind an ugly sounding Ortrud, Randova on Solti is not pretty but she is very convincing. The rest of the cast is quite good, Rootering and Terfel both sound great and bring a nice depth to their roles. All in all, I would reccomend this set to someone interested in hearing the finest Lohengren around today, and a great Elsa, but be warned most of Act II is pretty brutal. Do yourself a favor and listen to Act I up to Ortrud's appearance, skip most of Act II, and then sit back and luxuriate in a truly sublime Act III.

I am a nut who owns 3 Lohengrins (Abbado,Solti,Davis) and have seen it with Abbado/Domingo/Studer at the Vienna State Opera a few years back. I really like Ben Heppner, his german is way better than Domingo's whose german makes me cringe. His voice is very powerful, whereas maybe not quite as luscious as Domingo's voice was back then. Sharon Sweet is a pretty good Elsa, although a tad shrill at times (prefer Studer and Norman). Marton is dramatically good but her voice is a bit too piercing. I like the pace of Davis' conducting and the lush orchestra sound. Sergei Leiferkus really bugs me with his "german" and his "S"s are awful. For the orchestra part I go with the Vienna PO (coincidentally I am Viennese-born, living in San Diego, CA now) but the Bavarians are definitely up to task.

This is a very uneven set. Heppner is a fine Lohengrin, one of the best around. Sweet, while not the Elsa of one's dream, is better than average. Leiferkus is mediocre and Marton downright bad. Rootering and Terfel are excellent, though. A mixed bag. Look elsewhere!

Ben Heppner's Lohengrin is becoming world-famous, with experts saying things like "the role is tailor-made for Heppner." I did find his Lohengrin to be very good, but I prefer Plácido Domingo's performance for Solti. Heppner's voice and interpretation are excellent, but Domingo is even more fluid and effortless, and combines the ideal sound for the character with a superb interpretation. (Heppner's German, however, is much better.) Heppner, though, is the best Heldentenor the world has seen recently (I don't really think Domingo qualifies as a Heldentenor) and his intelligence as well as his voice make him a very promising budding star. He is by far the most important reason to hear this set, as the rest of the cast leaves a lot to be desired - with the exception of Jan-Hendrik Rootering, who produces gorgeous sound as the King (Sotin on the Solti is even better). Sharon Sweet as Elsa does sometimes get inside the character well, but her voice can sound rather unfocused and blowsy at many points. Colin Davis' conducting is good, but not exceptional. Sergei Leiferkus is awful as Telramund, with a voice that is so gravelly and rough that it makes you cringe just listening to it (although it does add to his portrayal of the villain!). Eva Marton, however, is even worse. She has developed a huge wobble in her voice that makes it extremely unpleasant to listen to her, and as Ortrud has a lot to sing in "Lohengrin," this sinks the set. If you are looking for a real "Lohengrin," turn to Solti on Decca/London. It has everything this recording so conspicuously lacks.

I was lucky enough to hear Ben Heppner and Deborah Voigt in Robert Wilson's miraculous production of Wagner's LOHENGRIN at the Metropolitan Opera a few seasons ago. And now, on RCA Victor, Heppner's superb, unrivaled performance has been captured in a recording that equals the best.

I'd always thought that the still-available Rudolf Kempe version (from 1964) of this gorgeously romantic opera on EMI was untouchable. It has a star-studded cast the likes of which will not be collected again soon: Jess Thomas in the title role, the unmatchable Elizabeth Grummer as his love "Elsa," Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Christa Ludwig as "Telramund" and "Ortrud" and Gottlob Frick as "King Henry." But now on RCA Victor from 1994 comes this version conducted by Sir Colin Davis and it is very much worth purchasing. First of all, the sound is spectacular...RCA's engineers got everything right. Even with a sound system that is far from the best or most expensive (mine!) you feel as if you are smack in the middle of the conflict and romance. Davis leads a regal yet intimate, beautiful performance which is genuinely exciting from first moment to last.

And secondly, and most importantly, there's Heppner's performance. He is,undoubedly, the finest heldentenor of our time and this recording is a testament to his artistry: the sweetness of Jussi Bjoerling combined with the fierce power of Jon Vickers. I hope he will soon take on some of those tenors' roles from the Italian repertory: "Otello," "Macbeth," and "Manrico" immediately come to mind.

The supporting cast does well too, especially Eva Marton as "Ortrud" and Bryn Terfel doing a cameo as "The King's Herald." If Sharon Sweet is not my ideal choice for any role, she does well enough as "Elsa." RECOMMENDED.

Lohengrin has been a triumphant role for Ben Heppner, but he had bad luck when it came to a studio recording. His Elsa, Sharon Sweet, had a short career that desrvedly ended in obscurity, to judge by her blowsy, shallow, unfocused singing on this set. When a lead role turns out to be this bad, it hardly matters who else is singing well, but commendation must go to Rootering, Terfel, and even the rough-voiced Leiferkus, who paints a black Telramund that deserves to be feared. Marton is past her prime and shouts her way through Ortrud. Davis conducts with professionalism, but Wagner is hardly his metier.

My main reason for writing is to rejoice in a new Lohengrin that triumphantly pairs Heppner with Deborah Voigt, James Levine, and the MET orchestra in a blazing live performance from 1998. It can only be had as a download from Real Rhapsody. Sonics are excellent, and the audience is fairly quiet throughout. But the critical thing is that Heppner and Voigt are in best voice, and Levine approaches the score with vigor and insight. I'd count it among the best Lohengrins ever recorded, and perhaps the very best.

I have been very happy with this CD recording. Sweet's Elsa has come in for criticism but I find it appealing and while the vibrato is marked, this helps the image of a young, vulnerable woman. Marton also excels as Ortrud and while some may find parts lacking in attack, better that than shrieking and it is a carefully controlled reading. Again, vibrato is evident and a reason why these two parts blend well.Heppner is acknowledged as the best modern day Lohengrin and he doesn't disappoint. I find I prefer his voice to Konya's who set the standard for many years. The other soloists range from adequate to very good and good to see Terfel step up to the plate in an early Wagner role.The palm for overall excellence must go to Sir Colin Davis who had been conducting Wagner for some 20 years. The careful preparation is evident and his speeds, shaping of the acts and support of the soloists, just right.Thus, no hesitation in awarding 5 stars.
With a backward glance to those considering other versions, there are a number of very good early sets ie: Windgassen/Steber/Varnay/Keilberth and Konya/Grummer/Gorr/Von Matacic. These necessarily suffer from monophonic sound and with the live recordings, audience intrusion. A more recent issue: Studer/Jerusalem/ Meier/ Abbado is very good with the proviso that Studer and Jerusalem age wise were just past their best. A DVD I have of Armstrong/Hofmann/Connell/Nelsson is very well staged but disappointing in other respects. Hofmann certainly looks the part as Lohengrin, is in good voice but a curiously uninvolved portrayal. Armstong I found unconvincing but it was Connell who was the stand out as Ortrud, so good that it showed up the others.
The Domingo/Norman/Randova/Solti set has won high praise. Like others I find Domingo's diction a problem and Norman, while a great voice, is too powerful to suit Elsa's character.Perhaps the best overall is the Grummer/Thomas/Ludwig/Kempe recording.

Before I begin, I will get to the most important point. On the whole, this is a failure. Heppner is very very good and Sweet is as well. Davis and his orchestra are also fine, though not as sensational as the VPO for Solti or Kempe or Abbado(CD, not DVD) or these same forces for Kubelik. Taking everything into account-this becomes below average which is a shame to spoil such a fine performance by Heppner.
Your first stop on the swantrain should be Kempe(which is now only about $20-that considering it is the finest overall Lohengrin available makes it an absolute must-Hepner may be superior to Thomas, maybe, but everyone else fails in comparison to their counterparts on the Kempe-including Davis and Sweet.
Along with Solti, the recent Abbado on CD(not DVD) also far surpasses this account and Siegfried Jerusalem as Lohengrin surpasses Heppner and, in my opinion, almost everyone else on record with the possible exception of Sandor Konya with Matacic. And Cheryl Studer(abbado-elsa is one of the finest and most successful portrayals of Elsa I know of. Her voice is "tailor made" for the mentality of the role and Abbado and the VPO match Davis note for note and then some.
So- to summarize-this Lohengrin pales in comparison to
1.Kempe EMI
2. Abbado DG-CD
3. Solti-London\Decca

and most others. This would actually be one of my last choices and would only be considered if it was released for an extremely low low low price.

Below is a slightly more specific review of the actual performance

THis is a below average Lohengrin. Ben Heppner is terrific as Lohengrin and Sweet is wonderful as Elsa. However, that is where the perks end. I have rarely heard an act II as horrible as this. Compared to Dieskau and Ludwig for the legendary Kempe recording this is pure trash. Marton has never been a really powerful singer-her Elsa on the Levine DVD is pretty though often wobbly but she fully succeeds in reminding the audience of his misguided innocence. Here, as Orturd, her voice cannot sustain those "GOTTT!" moment making it sound like an ear-piercing shrill. And Telramund is better, but not by much.
Davis is good, sometimes a little too broad and unfocused(but who wouldnt be with singers like these)-god, I cant imagine trying to turn in an inspired performance when from the start you know your singers are going to be dreadful and outright panned. So, bravo to them in the face of all that.

Heppner's Lohengrin is simply amazing- warm, yet ringing at the same time, without sounding forced at all. Truly stunning. I find Sweet's singing also quite warm, expansive and expressive, actually. And the conducting here is beautiful- very sensitive. Even Lieferkaus' non-diomatic interpretation is nonetheless clean and apt but good Heavens!! When is Marton NOT a liability?? Her Ortrud is incredibly disturbing- and not in a good way! This is the sort of wobble that simply upsets the ENTIRE performance, EVERY time she screeches a note...or rather, heaves herself around one. 2 stars unavailable for her 'involvement', sadly. A terrible shame.

Heppner is simply great in this recording. His "In Fermen Land" is awesome, as is the rest of his singing on this disc. Sweet sings her role beatifully, she truly has one of the most beatiful Dramatic Soprano voices around now. Their Wedding duet is absolutely incredible, and beautiful. It is true the some other members of the cast are past their prime, but it hardly takes away from the overall performance.