Customer Reviews

Or sai chi l'onore: Opera Arias from Mozart, Weber, Wagner, Strauss

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To detail individual items here would be an exercise in redundance. Birgit Nilsson, who recently passed away, remains the standard by which Wagnerian sopranos will be judged. True, Flagstad was equally acclaimed, but unfortunately her absolute prime was well before the time when recording studios could do her full justice. While her voice was probably warmer than Nilsson's, she lacked the ease Nilsson had on the top C. Nilsson also had the benefit of stereophonic recording during her vocal prime (which lasted quite a while). I saw Nilsson many times in actual performance, but the one which sticks out in my mind the most is a concert performance of "Salome" with the Chicago Symphony in 1974 under the baton of Georg Solti. The full Chicago Symphony Orchestra at its loudest couldn't cover the Amazonian voice of Nilsson, who sent forth a stream of sound that is still ringing in my ears. Hers was the voice ideal for Wagner, Strauss, Weber, and in a few instances, even Verdi and Puccini (no one today can sing "Turandot" the way Nilsson did!) It was a voice that became more brilliant and powerful as it climbed higher and higher. There are no voices like this today, and opera is the poorer for it. At the price of this disc, how can you possibly pass it up? That is, unless you already have the complete performances from which these excerpts are taken.

Having heard Nilsson live in the 60's and 70's, I think her voice was the great voice of her time. The power of her voice could be felt on your skin. I was lucky enough to be at the met the night she and vickers sang Tristan and Isolde, and even with all the great isolde's out there, she will always be my Isolde and Salome. You can't go wrong with any of her recordings.

This generous (67 min.) budget CD has been cobbled together from various DG recordings. The most welcome snippet for me is the entire closing scene from "Salome" performed live at the Metropolitan Opera as part of a farewell gala for Rudolf Bing in 1972. Bing was a martinet who held no terrors for the strong-willed Nilsson, and here she chose to bestow on him one of the greatest examples of her art. In power, range, drama, and accuracy it exceeds even her stupendous Decca recording, and Karl Bohm's conducting is far less lurid and jolting than Solti's.

Another glory of this disc is the big aria from Weber's Oberon, "Ozean, du Ungeheuer," which Nilsson dispatches in the heroic, proto-Wagnerian style that it deserves. I am much less keen on her three Donna Anna arias from Don Giovanni -- Nilsson is quite shaky in Mozartean runs and trills, and her metallic edge doesn't suit the idiom. She gives a strong performance of Beethoven's concert aria, "Ah, perfido," but the music means nothing to me. Three Wagner excerpts are far more successful (what else would one expect?), including the most familiar snippet here, Nilsson's Liebestod extracted from the famous Tristan under Bohm from Bayreuth.

I imagine that experienced collectors will own several of these items already, but the Salome scene is worth the price of admission if you've never heard it.

Brigit Nilsson is/was one of the best singers in the world. Her recent death was a great grieving for the opera world. But her wagnerian voice towers above most other singers. First on the disc are excerpts from Mozart's Don Giovanni. Her "Or sai chi l'onore" is wonderful but her "Crudele...Non mi dir" sounds labored and slow under the baton of Karl Bohm and Prauge opera orchestra. The next excerpts are from Weber's Oberon. "Ozean, du ungeheuer" and "Trau're, mein herz um verschwundenes gluck" are wonderful (but no one can surpass Hillevi Martinpelto in my opinion.) Next is Beethovens aria and scene for soprano "Ah, Perfido!" which she sings wonderfully. Next are excerpts from Wagner's Tannhauser- "Dich teure halle" and "Allmacht'ge, jungfrau" and definite treasures. Now for the big kahuna of opera songs- the libestod from Tristan and Isolde. Every soprano who has ever sung Isolde has based her voice on Nilsson's. And, to wrap up the disc we have the final scene from Strauss's Salome which is very powerful. My verdict: for the price of the disc you cannot go wrong.

I agree with all other writers here but as there are some complaints concerning Miss Nilsson's Donna Anna I would like to make a special comment on that subject.

I have always liked Miss Nilsson's Donna Anna. Why should such a Mozart specialist as Karl Böhm have chosed her for this jubilee recording if she did not fit in? Donna Anna is a very brave and dominant woman with great power and Nilsson is very convincing here. By the way this was not the only time Maestro Böhm choosed her as Anna, there is a recording from Napels 1953 - (and we also have Leinsdorf's)!