Customer Reviews

Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen [Box Set]

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The difficulty of producing recordings of Wagner's Ring Cycle lies in the massive scope of the master's vision. What it necessitates is about fifteen hours of dedication and focus not only from the musicians and conductors, but also from the engineering team, producers, and other technicians whose task it is to aid in immortalizing this music in a medium that will preserve Wagner's art for posterity. Those fifteen hours also come in addition to all the other times spent on rigorous rehearsal, tape playbacks and cuts, editing, balancing, and so forth. Recording a Ring is an enterprise of Herculean dimensions. Such was the task of John Culshaw and Georg Solti fifty years ago, and as such does it remain for future generations of visionaries and wunderkinds who wish to associate their names with this monolithic milestone. There have only been five official studio recordings produced in the last century--Solti's premier Vienna Cycle, Karajan's Berlin cycle, Janowski's Dresden Cycle, Levine's New York Ring, and this recording with Bernard Haitink leading the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. Most other Rings were issued from recorded live performances taken from the Bayreuth Festival and other venues where productions of this tetralogy have been recorded (indeed, it has been proven to be a far more facile and undemanding assignment to document a Ring from an opera house). To their credit, all five studio Rings have been recorded with the world's greatest orchestras, providing an ideal tapestry from which the vision of Wagner's magnificent score can be pristinely realized. The only caveat: they lack the thrill and the pulse of a staged performance. Another caveat (I lied): you lack the consistency in casting that is more easily had in a live cycle.

Wagner's Ring is one of those artistic monuments that academics and musicians tend to debate about for its musical and philosophical ideas. Are the very basis of the music and the plot derived from the theories of Freud or Jung? Is it a socialist drama in the line of Marxist philosophy? Or are the central themes closer to the subjects of Rousseau? The list can go on, and such academic jargon need not be discussed here. The musical arguments put forth, however, should be. Conducting Wagner has always been an issue that each generation of Ringmasters tries to pose as a challenge for its listeners. Should the tempi be pondering, slow, and mammoth-like as Knappertsbusch and Goodall had theirs? Or, is it a brisk, dramatic, and chaotic world in motion in the line of Furtwangler, Bohm, Krauss, and Keilberth? Or is it a lyrical chamber drama in the mould of Janowski, Karajan and Levine's Rings? There are several ways to conduct the Ring, and the problem is, aside from the composer's recorded references and anecdotes, no one has really set any distinct and definitive rules to how his music should be presented to an audience. Of all the Rings that I have heard, there are three which I believe to be absolutely bewitching. The first is Barenboim's Bayreuth Ring on Warner Classics. No other documentation of this music has been so convincing that it coalesces the ideas of the aforementioned Ring Masters histrionically and musically. Barenboim, in fact surpasses all of these conductors in the sense that he has achieved a global and philosophical view of the Ring that favors above all others the ideal balance of dramatic vision and musical immediacy and traditional Germanic Romanticism. His orchestra provides transparency, lyricism, and beauty without compromising the essentially massive scope of the score: leitmotifs, gargantuan chords, and all. The second conductor whose Ring I find definitive is Clemens Krauss. In spite of the less than ideal recorded sound, the balance of speed, elegance, tonal verisimilitude, and that ideal Wagnerian pulse (a gene that belongs only to the greatest of conductors) makes his conceptualization of this tetralogy an absolute necessity. The last of this triptych is Sir Georg Solti, but another strong contender tying with him is the Dutch conductor Bernard Haitink, a musician particularly known for his exemplary work in the symphonies of Gustav Mahler, Shostakovich, Beethoven, and Brahms.

Bernard Haitink is a conductor of poise and elegance. What he does best is to present without bias and a minimal intervention of personality the skeleton of the music with all its anatomy attached in the most symmetrically beautiful manner. Absent are the distortion that other artists apply with their inflated egotism and inadvertently personal ideas about how the score should conducted. Haitink's approach is different. He deconstructs the music from its core and creates a sound world that defines the canvass of the music in such a way that you can hear every single orchestral color and voice clearly without removing from the panoramic view of the complete picture. What he so successfully brings to his acclaimed performances of Mahler's symphonies he carries over to Wagner's four operas. Contrary to Oscar Wilde's stipulation that the artist's personality is an essential component of the art, Haitink proves that his intellectual and emotionally involved yet elegant vision of the score works for Wagner. I wouldn't call him the greatest Wagner conductor who ever lived (that title would go to Barenboim, Furtwangler, and Krauss), but he certainly is one of the most judicious and balanced musicians to arrange this most difficult of scores. Listen to his Rheingold opening at how simply natural and beautifully played those opening bars are. There is simply no other orchestra that brings so much riches to the score while at the same time portraying the ebb and flow of the River Rhine so gracefully. Listen to the gods' march to Valhalla and how grandiose and regal that burnished tone is. Listen to the opening of Walkure and the romantic, dolorous, and rapturous sequence of events in the first Act. Or the heartbreaking Todesverkundigung and Wotan's Farewell. Listen to the schizophrenically ominous, fun, epic, and mysterious environment created by the bars of Siegfried. Listen to Gotterdammerung and the various scenes that depict the tragic fall of the gods. Where else and who else has done such a magnificent job in setting every single musical value in place? I can name only a few conductors who have done so, and Haitink is one of them. It (the interpretation) can never be accused of being too lyrical despite its orchestral beauty, and it can never be labeled as bland as evidenced by the more dramatically injected sections of this Ring. If any recording were to be chosen as one that could be easily followed with a score, this would be it. Haitink's venture is aided too by the glorious Bavarian Radio Symphony, an orchestra that placed their definitive stamp on what is perhaps the finest Mahler Cycle on records (with Rafael Kubelik). Contrary to popular belief, it is one of Europe's and even the world's greatest orchestras. If you don't believe me, check the last edition of Gramophone. It has voted this orchestra as the sixth best in the world, with top marks going to the Concertgebouw, the Berlin Philharmonic, and the Vienna Philharmonic. In the company of such legendary ensembles, this orchestra has proven itself to be one of the finest mediums of expression for any composer. Its gossamer tone and its technical flexibility and refinement are outstanding and make it an ideal vehicle for Wagner's operas.

Haitink can also be lauded for assembling one of the finest casts to sing the parts of the Ring since Solti's great cycle in the 50's. The tiniest parts such as the Rhine maidens, Norns, and Valkyries to the leads who play Wotan, Siegfried, and Brunnhilde are all accounted for in such a way that they not only deliver the requisite vocal goods but also produce a humanly immediate conception of the character. The Walsung twins in this recording are taken by Reiner Goldberg and Cheryl Studer. Ms. Studer is outstanding as Sieglinde, singing one of the most mellifluously vocalized and heartfelt interpretations of the character since Leonie Rysanek. That she is vocally secure is an added bonus to this already sympathetic and perfect interpretation. Goldberg, who sang a sometimes uninspired Siegfried for Levine, proves to be better in the part of Siegfried's father, Siegmund. While James King will never be effaced in this role, Goldberg is fine enough of a singer to not detract from the overall quality of the performance. James Morris is absolutely ravishing as Wotan. From the proud and negotiating god in Rheingold to the weary Wanderer in Siegfried, there is simply no vocal trick that escapes his glorious bass baritone (perhaps the greatest to assume this part since Hans Hotter). While his characterization for Levine is more delineated and thought out, this Wotan is still compelling and in a way much more vocally fresh and immediate. Setting Hotter aside, Morris is peerless in his assumption of the role. His farewell to Brunnhilde in the third act of Walkure is more than enough to bring tears to one's eyes.

Siegfried Jerusalem is a discovery in the part of his namesake. While his voice has not the heroic dimensions of Lauritz Melchior, he has everything else that Siegfried needs (the poetry, some heroism, sensitivity, a secure voice), not to mention the refulgent tone that Windgassen never had. For once, Siegfried sounds like a callow youth who has no care for the world without ever looking like an amphora. His Brunnhilde, Eva Marton is just as amazing. Many years before this recording was made, Marton released a recital of Wagnerian gems in which her Immolation Scene sounded like it could eclipse the milestones that Nilsson and Varnay have likewise immortalized on tape. She is found here in this Ring a few years later in slightly less than optimal vocal resources. Some listeners have found this to be a problem, but I find her to be absolutely compelling in the part of everyone's favorite Valkyrie. She generates the kind of chemistry with the other character's that often eludes Nilsson and other great Brunnhildes, and she is committed to the text and what she sings. Especially in Gotterdammerung, Marton shows that she knows the character and her plights and is unwilling to part without offering a take on the character that can bring one to tears. I remember seeing her as Fidelio and she like no one else (not even Ludwig or Gwyneth Jones) brought a tear to my eye as she sang Komm Hoffnung. Setting her vocal inconsistencies aside, we would be much poorer without her awesome Brunnhilde. Besides, she is the only person who has recently sung the character with the necessary vocal size.

Theo Adam assumes the part of Alberich, Wotan's counterpart and the touted villain of the cycle. While other singers have much firmer and secure voices, Adam is an intelligent singer who makes the most out of the character and in a way portrays an anti-Wotan, not the dumb dwarf that most people would much more easily portray him to be. Neidlinger, Wlaschicha, and von Kannen still reign supreme among the echelon of vocally rich Alberichs, but Adam is in a class of his own. This is not your cartoon villain, but rather a mastermind whose gears ticked and tocked in rhythm with his rivals. Peter Haage sings his brother Mime without the exaggerated and acidic effects of Gerhard Stolze. While he has neither the distinction and the control of Heinz Zednik's Mime, he makes a fine enough dwarf in these operas. Heinz Zednik, speaking of the devil, is peerless as Loge. Period. The trio of gods in Rheingold are the best on records--Peter Seiffert as Froh, Andreas Schmidt as Donner, and Eva Johansson as Freia. Fricka is eloquently sung by Marjana Lipovsek in Rheingold and devastatingly and impressively portrayed by the magnificent Waltraud Meier in Walkure. Meier makes what is in my opinion the most complete portrait of Fricka on records. Brava to her. Jadwige Rappe understands intimately what little that Erda has to sing, even if her voice is not nearly has enormous and earthen as let's say Ewa Podles is. Salminen is frightening as Hunding, and Kurt Rydl makes a dominating and frightful Fafner (his brother Fasolt is unfortunately sung by a clueless no-name). In Gotterdammerung, Thomas Hampson sings the finest Gunther since Fischer-Dieskau and Lipovsek is brilliant if less impressive than Meier (in Barenboim's Ring) as Waltraute. But perhaps the most impressive secondary character of them all is John Tomlinson's indispensable and malevolent Hagen. He is rightly sinister and intelligent, two traits that don't always make up a whole in other singers' characterizations of this villain. Along with Salminen, these two basses are without peer in the assumption of this character. The rest of the cast--te Kanawa's Forest Bird), a starry bunch of Norns, lovely Rhinemaidens, and a well-tuned octet of Valkyries--are all taken by singers of sound technique and round up the most balanced and well-recorded studio Ring along with Solti's and Levine's. It wouldn't be a first choice for many people, but I find this Ring absolutely convincing on a musical and dramatic scope. I would recommend that you get this after Solti, Barenboim, and Krauss' cycles.

Haitink has become jusly famous for his Bruckner and Mahler, but with his affinity for large scale musical works, he has been an outstanding conductor of opera as well. Evidence is provided by many recordings, of which I would give highest marks to Verdi's Don Carlo, Mozart's Don Giovanni and the Ring cycle.

When Haitink started recording the cycle with Die Walküre, his Ring experience was limited but you'd never know if from listening to these discs. The Siegfried and Götterdämmerung followed a run in Covent Garden and although Haitink sounds more secure in these later works, the overall impression of transparency and structure remains. With the Bayerischen Rundfunk playing like gods for him, the results are hugely exciting.

His singers are excellent, as well. James Morris is the standout, providing a Wotan that is not only memorable, but very well and beautifully sung. He recorded the same role at the same time for Levine, and here he is just as good if not better. The other principals range from good (Adam, Tomlinson) to great (Marton, Jerusalem, Goldberg, Studer, Hampson).

Recorded sound provides a realistic but slightly recessed sound stage common to many EMI recordings, in which the singers are well integrated. All in all, this is essential listening.

This is a great ring. Sound, cast, conducting, orch take you to the clouds of Valhal. Haitink is great and BRO greater. Buy it and walk the Rainbow Bridge to......................

I had wanted to listen to a complete recording of Der Ring des Nibelungen for over 10 years but did not get a chance to pick one up until a few weeks ago (I had listened to plenty of excerpts and highlights before). Well, I'm glad I did because I finally got to listen to one of the most monumental pieces of drama - music or otherwise - ever conceived. So after experiencing the whole Ring for the first time can I recommend this set to others, either relative newbies like myself or experienced Wagnerites? Well, yes, although there are some reservations.

Orchestral-wise this may be the finest Ring ever. Some conductors like to take this very long cycle of music very fast (like Böhm), sometimes even to the point of brutality (Solti) to highlight the dark drama in the Ring, while others (like Knappertsbusch) like to go a little slower to highlight the lyricism in Wagner's music... sometimes to the point of going too slow and inducing slumber (Goodall). Bernard Haitink strikes a balance between the two methods and draws out an emotional expressiveness while maintaining a dramatic urgency. This is not simply taking a middle-of-the-road approach or sitting on the fence musically - Haitink is one of the few conductors (that I have heard anyway) to bring true balance to the orchestral music of Richard Wagner's magnum opus. Amazingly he does this while not putting an egotistical personal stamp on it ("This is MY Ring!") - in fact, he doesn't put an egotistical stamp on anything at all here. You won't see his picture anywhere on the packaging, for instance. How often does that happen? Kudos.

The singers are mostly good. I really liked James Morris as Wotan - powerful and commanding! Siegfried Jerusalem is great in his namesake role. All of the other parts are well done too. Unfortunately - as many of those who have reviewed this have already said - the weak link on this set is Brünnhilde, played here by Eva Marton. Now, I don't *hate* Marton's voice, and I thought that she was good in Die Walküre - powerful and dramatic but not overly so, and she does manage to do okay (just) during her Immolation Scene at the end of Götterdämmerung. But on the rest of that opera and Siegfried she is... less than satisfactory. She's fine in those later operas when she's at lower volume, but the moment the loudness starts to go up, well... let's just say I was reminded of the sound of the phaser weapons on Star Trek ("Set soprano on stun, Mr. Spock!"). After a while I kinda got used to it, but if Brünnhilde is the make-it-or-break-it factor for you when it comes to a Ring Cycle you may want to pass on this one.

Well, enough about the actual music (because others here have reviewed this *far* better than I ever could). What about the set that this wonderful music comes in? Well, this is a budget-priced compact box set and fits very nicely on your shelf with less space taken up compared to the old individual opera boxes. This box from EMI comes with 14 CDs in cardboard sleeves and a small booklet that gives a synopsis of the plot. There is no libretto included here (like all modern opera sets) but that isn't a big problem for me as I feel that you shouldn't be reading along with a 15 hour long music drama in a teeny-tiny little CD booklet anyway... go get yourself a libretto (I got this one) and have fun - your eyes will thank you. I would have liked the booklet to have a little more information on this recording of the Ring - info on the conductor and singers, for instance - but I guess that wasn't deemed important by the makers of this product. Oh well. I also didn't like the cardboard sleeves for the CDs that much - I realize that they did this so all of the discs could fit in the box and save space and money (for which I am grateful - I would not have been able to afford this otherwise) but the discs are harder to extract than from a standard CD case. So, there's a trade-off. It is up to you to decide whether it is worth it or not to get this or one of the older sets. On a positive bonus note I would like to point out that I really like the box art for this: a single flaming ring... very simple, very elegant, very cool.

In conclusion, I enjoyed this Ring very much and would recommend it to first time listeners for its fine balance and awesome conducting. However, I realize that the leading lady might be problematic for some - I would suggest listening to some sound samples from this; if the sound of Eva Marton's voice bothers you then you might not want to pick this up - you'll be listening to quite a lot of it. But if it doesn't then go ahead and get this and prepare to be immersed in a powerful and involving drama of greed and selflessness, power and submission, helplessness and heroism, fate and determination, hate and love - in short the totality of human emotion and experience in 15 hours of music. What more could you ask for?

After reading several reviews of this recording, I was a bit skeptical about listening to this at first, but I ultimately relented and figured I would give it a try.

Most everything said about this recording is true (and then some), both good and bad. Eva Marton is a truly HORRIBLE Brünnhilde, screaming most of the time, and even at her best she cannot even match Hildegard Behrens(!) or Nadezda Kinplova(!!!) despite having a significantly larger voice. She is simply a bore and her "involvement" in the role matches that of Pavarotti and Sutherland (in other words, hardly at all). Most of the cast is truly boring. Eva-Maria Bunschuch is too large and deep to be Gutrune, and she sounds a bit too much like Marton. John Tomlinson is not a bad Hagen, but he does not match the main competition of Matti Salminen. Thomas Hampson is not bad as Gunther, but Bernd Weikl will always sound better to me. Cheryl Studer (a fantastic Gutrune for Levine) plays Sieglinde here, and although she does a wonderful job dramatically, she does not have the right sized voice for my taste, and like Gundula Janowitz, is a significantly better Gutrune (whose voice is meant to be small, but exceptionally beautiful). Peter Haage and Kurt Rydl are not bad as Mime and Fafner repsectively, but cannot match Zednik and Salminen. Theo Adam, a common Wotan/Wanderer dating back to the 1960's, takes on Alberich, a move that has often been criticized, and although I never cared much for his voice, this is not an extremely bad performance, and is actually an interesting perspective and he is actually fantastic at points. He may not be the nasty little bastard that Gustav Neidlinger made him in to, but he makes me wonder about casting Hans Hotter, George London, or Hermann Uhde in the role just to see how it would sound. The supporting cast has its moments, but not always, in particular, Peter Seiffert and Andreas Schmidt are fairly uninteresting as Froh and Donner. This is all I will say about Reiner Goldberg: AAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! (well, at least he has less sound time than in Levine).

There are good moments in the cast, however. James Morris is not the greatest Wotan ever, but his strong and commanding voice are wonderful, and anyone who has seen Levine's video recording knows why he was so wonderful in the role on stage. Matti Salminen is fantastic as always, Marjana Lipovsek and Waltraud Meier are successful in their respective performances of Fricka (and Waltraute for Lipovsek), and Heinz Zednik once again struts it as Mime (I admit to preferring heldentenors in the role, but Zednik and Gerhard Stolze do such a wonderful job it's hard not to like them). The Rheinmaidens do not reach the same heights as others (Böhm has the best on record by a marathon, thanks to the high profile Helga Dernesch and Sieglinde Wagner), but are delightful.

Siegfried Jerusalem is a mixed bad when it comes to any of his roles. His voice is fairly unimpressive and hardly comparable to heldentenors of previous years, but he knows how to use it successfully (his career did last into his 50's after all), and his performances as Siegfried are good in their own right. His death scene is truly exceptional. He does not deserve to be discounted any time soon, and with the possible exception of Ben Heppner, he is one of the best post-René Kollo heldentenors out there (Kollo may not be that impressive either, but I have always liked him).

Now for the part of the cycle that makes this truly wonderful. Bernard Haitink's conducting. It is truly unique and reaches heights that although different from Solti's and Böhm's. He takes a swift and light approach to the score, letting is float along briskly, and never letting it drag on. It does feel a bit too light at times (the funeral march does not contain the same force as Keilberth's whose approach is similar enough to compare). He knows the score well and shows it. His Ride of the Valkyries is one of the best I've heard (it's also the easiest part of the score to play along with the Rheingold prelude), and the finale from Siegfried is hardly lacking anything (except a decent Brünnhilde) and it's mastery is truly comparable to Furtwängler and Knappertsbusch who could perfect it in their sleeps, and I can see Melchior and Flagstad performing to this performance in their prime. At least one review I read said that he has one of the most "right" ideas of how to handle the score, and he certainly does (my first choices will always be Solti, Böhm, and Keilberth though since they are heavier). Haitink is truly an incredible conductor and deserves the respect of critics and any Wagner fans for his mastery of the work (I can see him working with Cosima, Siegfried, Winifred, Wieland, and even Richard Wagner themselves!).

The set is worth buying for its incredible sound as well. The acoustics are set back as if it were a Bayreuth recording, but much more detailed and lush, and it sounds absolutely gorgeous, and much more successful than Levine's in-your-face style. The sound production would also make John Culshaw proud for its use of thunder and other sound effects, and is actually somewhat more successful since it does not sound as cheesy. The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra also takes top prize for its fantastic performance, but it always manages to be successful at Wagner no matter who is conducting so its accolades are hardly necessary.

Overall, this is a decent cycle, hampered only by a rather lackluster cast (Levine's wins by a mile, but it would be even more if Jerusalem was cast instead of Goldberg as Siegfried), and helped by a few fantastic players and an extremely skilled conductor, and is definitely worth looking into buying as a later cycle. For first choices, though, I recommend Solti, Böhm, Keilberth 1955 (if you can afford it), and possibly Levine (only on DVD since you get a Jerusalem as Siegfried instead of the horrific Goldberg, and Christa Ludwig in an additional role).

Okay, so we numerous recordings for Wagner's epic Ring Cycle: Krauss, Solti, Karajan, Sawallisch, Goodall, etc. And all of these leave me to one conclusion: the many differences lead me to believe that all of these ring sets have their own authenticities and setbacks. And here we have Bernard Haitink and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra & Chorus.

This might be seen as a disappointment to some people. If you want great conducting, then this is for you: Haitink understands the score more than Levine does. If you want a persuasive array of singers, look somewhere else: Levine has a better sounding cast than Haitink's. Overall, Haitink's conducting saves this work from being a total flop. There is nothing quite like his Rheingold & Gotterdammerung ("Siegfried's Rhine Journey" is a bit forced, but magnificent nonetheless).

This may very well be like Metropolitan, because it sounds just as poignant. The only difference that this orchestra has more austerity. While the woodwinds are not as good, the strings sound better and the percussion sound clearer. The leitmotivs are almost never screwed up. First scene of Rheingold will take one's breath away.

Let's now focus on the singers. James Morris is a notch below Hotter, Adam, and Bailey, but he overpowers Fischer-Dieskau and McIntyre pretty much throughout Haitink's Ring. His multi-dimensional performances are compelling in Walkure. "Nicht send ich dich mehr aus Walhall" should not be missed.

Hmph. I was hoping that Eva Marton would do well here. I was seriously let down by her strained singing. She does okay in "Annunciation of Death", but she is at her worst in "Immolation".

Reiner Goldberg appears as Siegmund, while Cheryl Studer performs as Sieglinde. I must say that Goldberg sounds much better as Siegmund than Siegfried (a major flaw in the Levine Ring). His gruff and unsteady voice suits this Walsung, and his performance here is worth a listen. Cherly Studer does what she does best as a Wagnerian soprano. I've heard her sing as Senta in the Sinopoli recording of "Der Fliegende Hollander" and I was stuck with emotion over her recording. Here, she's not as great, but she still doesn't disappoint.

Have you ever seen Siegfried Jerusalem on the Levine/Metropolitan DVD? Well, here he is again, and this time, he sings with more valor and enthusiasm in both "Siegifried" and "Gotterdammerung." Bravo!

No offense, but Theo Adam, a Wotan for the Bohm Ring, singing as Alberich? Come on . . .

Peter Haage sounds like he's entertaining young kids. His version of Mime is a bit childish, and the dark humor that the dwarf brings out sounds-over-the-top here. Nonetheless, he is still entertaining to listen to ("Wer halfe mir?" has never sounded better).

I can summon Heinz Zednik's performance in just three words: Brilliant Beyond Belief! Scene Two is when he's at his finest.

The rest of the cast do very fine. The Valkries here sound a bit disappointing; they don't have the sheer power that's found in the Karajan and Solti rings. Studer returns in "Gotterdammerung" as Gutrune, and she makes it an extraordinary performance. Waltraud Meier and Marjana Lipovsek make excellent Frickas. Matti Salminen makes a great Hunding, though I do prefer Kurt Moll.

So in short, the Haitink Ring should not be your first, but shouldn't be your last, either. Buy it for the orchestra and conductor, but not for Brunnhilde or Alberich.