Der Ring des Nibelungen on CD and DVD
By Henrik Engelbrecht
Perhaps I’m thinking in grooves – or perhaps it’s because I happened to grow
up with this specific recording of The Ring – but my number-one preference is
still Georg Solti’s hyper-energetic studio recording from 1966 (14 CDs, Decca).
With the first complete studio recording of The Ring, the producer, John Culshaw,
sought to recreate the experience of the staged opera in the comfort of your
home. The stereo sound reaches its full potential and the recording features
plenty of amazing sound effects. The singers are the best performers around at
the time: Birgit Nilsson as Brünnhilde, James King as Siegmund and Regine
Crespin as Sieglinde. Hans Hotter, in the roll of Wotan, is perhaps the only
vocalist whose voice is somewhat in decline but his psychological interpretation
of his roll is phenomenal! If it’s a studio recording you are after, you need
look no further. Digitally remastered quality at medium-range price.
A close runner-up contender on second place is a live recording from 1967
from the high temple of Wagner, Bayreuth. Many of the performers on this
recording by Böhm were also featured on Solti’s studio recording from the year
before. The set (14 CDs, Philips) showcases what Bayreuth had to offer in the
1960s. Nilsson is yet again the ideal and vocally indefatigable Brünnhilde and
James King is matchless as Siegmund. Theo Adam performs better than Hotter does
on Solti’s recording although not quite as nuanced. The Bayreuth orchestra plays
with depth and warmth, which faithfully renders the feeling and atmosphere of a
live performance while sparing listeners the ordeal of having to endure coughing
and sneezing from the audience. Yet another medium-priced recording.
A complete recording of The Ring is generally a major expense, but it doesn’t
have to be. When I came across this recording, conducted by Günther Neuhold, I
initially thought the price tag was wrong (14 CDs - Brilliant Classics/Bella
Musica). It costs no more than two regular-priced CDs, yet it’s no second-rate
product! This recording is a good choice if you are in a pinch and are having to
choose between purchasing a complete recording of The Ring or paying your
grocery bill for the rest of the month. With this recording, you needn’t miss
out on either, and the sound quality and performances are outstanding. Not all
the soloists are on par with the world elite but John Wegner’s Wotan offers pure
pleasure and the orchestra plays with dynamism and a sense of drama. Most
certainly not a second-rate recording of The Ring. The only drawback is that no
libretto is supplied with the CDs.
With DVDs the obvious first choice is a live recording of Patrice Chereau’s
groundbreaking Bayreuth performance from 1976, featuring conductor Pierre Boulez
in the covered orchestra pit at the Bayreuth Festival Hall (7 DVD, Philips). The
recording from 1979 is compelling and demands that you surrender completely
while watching this amazing staging where the vocal performances are so
breathtaking that any prejudice against Wagner’s allegedly lack of knack for
stage mastering inevitably vanishes in thin air. Boulez reveals new facetted of
the music and there is never a stale moment.
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For further information on these and other recordings of The Ring and
Wagner’s other operas, please visit this extensive website: http://go.to/wagner-discography
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Articles about the music
The Ring seen from the Pit
H.Engelbrecht
Der Ring des Nibelunges on CD and DVD
H.Engelbrecht
THE
WAGNER TUBA -
the instrumentet that only existed in Wagner's imagination...
P.E.Vilsbæk
The four operas
Read more about the four operas:
Das Rheingold
Die Walküre
Siegfried
Götterdämmerung
Read more about The Ring
- a small excerpt of the enormous literature available about The Ring:
Lars Ole Bonde, ed.:
Rundt om Ringen - veje til Wagners verdensteater.
DR Multimedie, 1994
Articles in Danish by e.g. Danish author Villy Sørensen, published to coincide with the performances by the Danish National Opera.
Rudolph Sabor:
Der Ring des Nibelungen, 4 volumes.
Phaidon Press, 1997
Outstanding introduction to The Ring with English translations of the entire libretto and analysis, etc.
Deryck Cooke:
I Saw the World End – A Study of Wagner’s Ring.
Oxford University Press, 1979
One of the most accomplished analysis of Das Rheingold and Die Walküre. Unfortunately, Deryck Cooke passed away before competing chapters on the last two operas of The Ring.
Robert Donington:
Wagner’s "Ring" and its Symbols.
Faber and Faber, 1963
Another classic of literature on The Ring.
J.K. Holman:
Wagner’s Ring – A Listener’s Companion & Concordance.
Amadeus Press, 1996
Extensive and very useful reference book on the characters and terms pertaining to The Ring.
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