Customer Reviews

Wagner: Lohengrin

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

 

 

This is not my primary LOHENGRIN, but this certainly is a gorgeous performance/recording of this masterpiece. Yes, you hear input from the audience, and some bumping and thumping on stage, but you get the advantages a live performance has to offer -- the energy, the edge-of-the-seat excitement that floods the house. And I really enjoy the wide-eyed girlishness of Anja Silja's Elsa; she still a virgin -- just! -- but more of this world than the next. At least that's what I get from the sound of her voice. (I really like her in Berg's LULU as well).

The rest of the cast is loaded with the experience and credentials needed to make this one of the better LOHENGRIN sets, in my opinion. Actually, the presence of Astrid Varney as Ortrud was enough for me to chance this recording. Yes, the date is late in her career, but this is Varnay! And hearing Ramon Vinay return to his original baritone range is yet another reason to grab this set. Finally, I can't decide if I prefer Jess Thomas more here or in the Kempe recording; I've decided not to decide.

Sawallisch leads the whole affair with a sure hand; the sound is rich and full. This is romantic opera at its best. I wouldn't want to be without the classic Kempe set or two others from Bayreuth, conducted by Keilberth and Jochum, though neither can match this Bayreuth issue for sheer opulence.

My favorite characters in Lohengrin have always been Ortrud and Telramund. Like the bad guys often do, they have the best lines and are much more interesting than the rather sappy Lohengrin and Elsa. And Chilean bari-tenor, (back to being a baritone here) Ramon Vinay and Astrid Varnay practically steal the show of this live 1962 Bayreuth recording.

Vinay had a terrific intensity to his singing, which made him one of the greatest Otellos of all time as well as an amazing Tristan. And Varnay had no equal as a Wagnerian singing actress. Together they just tear up the stage as opera's bad couple. (They also make an incredible Tristan and Isolde in another Bayreuth live recording.)

Jess Thomas was in young, supple and glorious voice here, before a decade of heldentenor singing took its toll. He gives Lohengrin a freshness and appealing voice that is often missing on other recordings. And Anja Silja is likewise in early and splendid voice and makes Elsa as credible as is possible to be.

Wolfgang Sawallisch keeps the orchestra moving at a reasonable tempo without sacrificing richness of tone. And the sound isn't bad, considering this is a live recording. Although there's no libretto unless you download it, at the price it can't be beat. In fact, this is the Lohengrin that I listen to most frequently.

Live performances are often things that can be very hit and miss. In this case, Wolfgang Sawallisch's 1962 performance of Lohengrin from the Bayreuth Festival is definitely a hit. I got this performance as part of the Wagner: Great Operas from The Bayreuth Festival box, which I just can't say enough good things about. Anyway, this is a performance not to be missed.

Firstly, the musicians are great. Anja Silja was all of 22 years old when she made this recording, but she sounds incredible. She is also extremely good at conveying a wide range of emotions, which is a testament to her skills as an actress. James King is an incredible, otherworldly Lohengrin. He is even more alive here than in the Kempe recording. Astrid Varnay and Ramon Vinay however absolutely steal the show in this set. Varnay is the embodiment of evil as Ortrud, and she helps to make the second act absolutely delightful. Ramon Vinay is a not-so-submissive Telramund, and he sings very well. Franz Crass is a fine King Heinrich, and the Bayreuth Chorus is in find sound here, making the whole opera a veritable sound-feast. The orchestra is also very good, and the brass in particular shine.

Sound quality is never a problem here. The Bayreuth acoustic is captured very well and it all sounds very natural. Of course, there are some audience noises but never is it great enough to take away from the experience.

I would recommend this recording to those interested in a good live performance in a heartbeat. Although the conditions are not as secure such as in a studio version, this recording has a crackle of excitement that is necessary for a good performance of Wagner.

Bravi tutti!

I first heard this live performance on LP thirty-five years ago and hadn't listened to it again in the interval since, so returning to it has been an interesting and nostalgic experience. Now as then, I am struck by the vehemence with which Varnay and Vinay portray the villainous couple who attempt to stitch up our heroes; for me, the stand-out performance remains Varnay's extraordinarily intense Ortrud. Her sneering, blasphemous guffaw of "Ha-ha!" is a lesson in acting in itself and her huge voice relishes the famous curse passage. Vinay's Telramund is febrile, hysterical and craven; a mass of nervous energy and bullying self-doubt. Jess Thomas, given the demands of a live performance, is not quite as sweet and poised as he is in the Kempe studio recording, but he is still very good indeed, and Silja turns in a major performance as Elsa: tender, pure and touching, despite the occasional hint of shrillness - no doubt it helped that the singer herself was only 21 at the time. Franz Crass's King Henry is a joy of firm tone and Tom Krause's Herald is a major improvement over Kempe's nasal veteran, Otto Wiener. I have given four rather five stars because of the continuous hacking from the audience, once again belying the reputation of the Bayreuth crowd for rapt attention.

This is by no means the only "Lohengrin" worth buying; the opera has been fortunate on disc and I prefer the two superb studio recordings from Kempe and Kubelik (see my review) for repeated listening; they too have spine-chilling pairs of baddies and the Elsa of both Grümmer and Janowitz is a dream in both sets.

This is also currently available as part of the 33 disc bargain Decca live Bayreuth set. Apart from a tepid "Meistersinger" (with singing compromised by the inadequate Jean Cox, although Ridderbusch's Sachs is lovely) and a "Parsifal" whose etiolated tempi divide opinions, this is a very attractive box which includes the whole of the famous Böhm "Ring". For a single purchase, I would still recommend the Kempe or Kubelik studio recordings above this one, but if you have it as part of the bargain box, you need have few regrets.

This is indeed a wonderful performance. I say "wonderful performance" rather than "wonderful recording" because, though the sound is warm and full, as Bayreuth's sound usually is, it is a pure performance - stage noise, audience participation and all.

What one gets here is the audio equivalent of the 3D experience of sitting in the Festspielhaus watching a thrilling performance of LOHENGRIN with a cast of great singers who also happened to be great actors on the stage. That is a rarity even now. Any audience coughing or shuffling literally seems to sound like it's coming from far behind you in the theatre and never overrides the music.

Also, the cuts in the Grail Narration that Wagner made, to save the tenor's voice at the first ever performance, are observed here. Blasphemy to some, to others a relief that brings the work swiftly to its chilling close.

Nice set to own and cheaply priced. Though not the best Lohengrin out there, it's a visceral experience that really brings this otherworldly opera down to earth.

Jess Thomas was the ideal Lohengrin in 1962. He had yet to embark on the Siegfrieds and Tristans that would eventually take their toll on his voice. Here he sounds heroic, fresh, effortless and exciting.

Anja Silja is fine as Elsa although, I suspect, not to everyone's taste.

The legendary Astrid Varnay, as usual, dominates as Ortrud. This is one of the great operatic portrayals.

The sound is splendid.

All in all, a magnificent Lohengrin.

There aren't many live Lohengrins on CD with this kind of top-tier casting, excellent stereo sound (close-up for the singers, but detailed and full for the orchestra in the covered pit as well), good conducting, and above all the flavor of a special night at the opera. In terms of execution, orchestra and chorus are exemplary, and Sawallisch, though not inspired, holds the proceedings together well--the orchestra sounds better than under Krauss, Kempe, Knappertsbusch and other noted maestros in their live Wagner recordings.

The cast consists of Bayreth regulars, but there are two fascinating singers here: Ramon Vinay, who sang Tristan under Karajan in 1953, reverts to his original baritone range as Telramund, and Anja Silja, at the amazing age of 21, sings what must be the youngest Elsa on records. Vinay's German is as garbled as Domingo's, but he's forceful and dominant. Silja soounds young, light of voice, and fresh in charcterization--her gleaming tones make her one of the most convincing Elsas I've heard. Silja's only real deficit is that she doesn't communicate suffering. But what a relief not to have the part taken by a Brunnhilde or Sieglinde struggling to scale back a la Jessye Norman on the Solti set (Decca). Varnay is a powerful, intense Ortrud whose voice is a bit worn and too mature.

Which beings us to the central character, Lohengrin himself. Jess Thomas's mild-mannered portrayal is a known quantity from the famous Kempe recording (EMI), and he's better there. The role is so taxing that Thomas can't sustain it over a three-hour period the way he could with breaks in the studio. The voice is youthful but not very strong, and its timbre isn't to my taste compared to competitors like Heppner, Jerusalem, and above all Sandor Konya. But Thomas certainly owned the role onstage in this period and performs it expertly.

In all, despite my criticisms, this is a convincing performance that evokes Bayreuth perfectly--well worth a listen.

Although this set is worth the money for the Wagner collector, it is hardly the first Lohengrin that one should acquire. While the singing is first-rate throughout, the sound is simply not very good, and the incessant hacking from the audience (from Bayreuth, of all places) is extremely irritating. There is also a hefty amount of background noise from the performers.

You may ask: what's right with it? Quite a bit, in fact. The vocalists are all excellent, and Sawallisch's conducting is perfect for Lohengrin. The packaging is appealing; there's an available libretto via CD-rom. Lastly, the price is very reasonable. Considering the above complaints, though, now you know why.