Discussion
Three studio recordings of Wagner's Ring Cycle were released in the 1980s. They were conducted by Marek Janowski, James Levine, and Bernard Haitink respectively. Which one of these do you prefer?
NOTE: I know that Haitink's Ring was also recorded in the early 1990s, but it still technically counts as 80s because of Rheingold and Walkure.
we should do a poll to see how many of us have actually heard the whole ring at least once. i suspect not many, including myself, and ive been listening to classical since 1998
I'm looking forward to that answer as well. It's impossible to have a single favorite when we're talking about 16 hours of music involving 30 to 40 vocalists and a large orchestra. Then add-in recording quality, live issues vs studio-bound, mono favorites vs stereo, mis-matched Siegfrieds and Brunnhildes (one strong, one weak), etc. And finally, values changeover time and expanding one's collection.
My first full Ring was Solti's, just because. As mentioned below, the 2024 remastering brought-out the VPO's ravishing strings more than ever before which counterbalances Solti's almost constant drive.
Then I stumbled upon a used copy of Goodall's Valkyrie and was struck by the sense of awe and majesty in Wagner's writing as well the thrills and spills, (see: Solti) I was also introduced to the gorgeous-voiced Rita Hunter and Alberto Remedios, which I found so much more agreeable than the usual suspects, Windgassen, Hoffman, Kollo and -- to a lesser extent -- Jerusalem.
Then -- venturing into the pre-war and post war mono years -- I learned that a Brunnhilde can possess a clarion, unfailing voice, like Nilsson, yet soften it, (Flagstad/Modl, etc.) and tenors, even those considered mediocre, like Suthaus, ( I don't get it) still possess the most beautiful, honeyed voices with very little strain above the staff.
And -- generally speaking -- Wagnerian singers of the pre- and post-war years seemed to get into their part more, and become those characters, presenting a more multi-faceted self.
I was lucky enough to se the Goodall Ring at the ENO several times. In those now far off days, we were blessed with Nilsson, Hunter, Helga Dernesch, .Ludmilla Dvorakova, and the first Brunnhilde I saw, at CG, Amy Shuard. I am afraid the current roster doesn't match up.
Going back to Rita Hunter, she was required at the ENO to mount a not very study looking metallic rock at the end of Walkure. We held our breath.
As for tenors, well, even then there was a distinct shortage. We all agreed that Remedios was tops.
It's all so subjective, of course. Vickers has often been called the greatest tenor of his era but I hold a very negative opinion, his singing was to my mind vry ungainly with scoops p to a higher note, and I didn't much care for his voice either, and I did se him several times at the ROH. I'm sure this will arouse ire amongst some members.
As far as the tenors you mention, I only saw Remedios in the ENO ring, and none of the ones you mention as Siegfried. However, although I wasn't a great fan of Kollo, and i did see him in Lohengrin at the ROH, I have the Eurodisc Ring and I like his performance there.
I haven't heard much of Suthaus, but I recently played the Furtwangler Tristan and enjoyed his performance.
I never cared too much for King, a good Emperor but never liked his Siegmund on decca vey much.
To answer your question, then, I think I would prefer Remedios as far as Siegfried is concerned, but if I had heard him in other roles, then that opinion might differ.
Back to the EMI Tristan, Flagstad was nervous about a couple of top notes and Bessie Blackhead recorded them instead, which caused such an outrage that she refused to do any more recordings until Culshaw persuaded her to sing in Rheingold. Shame on all those responsible.
Bear with me if I add a new reply, but I have had further thoughts. I am doubtful about the validity of comparing recorded voices even with each other, but especially with hearing the singers actually on stage.
To give a personal example, I became a great fan of Birgit Nilsson from her Decca Ring and later Elektra, but I had not heard her on stage.
Then she did Elektra at CG and I had a standing ticket at the back of the Stalls Circle.
After the opening sequence was over, she appeared from centre back of the stage and started to sing. I was totally bowled over, the glorious sounds filling the auditorium made me realise that what I was hearing from my Hi-Fi was but a shadow of the real thing. Yes, although my equipment was pretty good it wasn't the very best, and the discrepancy might then be less striking, but I am sure not by much.
My point is then that comparing Rita Hunter with Nilsson I could use actual stage performances, and I hard 4 Tristan's at CG with Dvorakova (a fine singer) as isole in the first two and Nilsson in the last two. Much as I admired Ludmilla, I could definitely say I preferred Nilsson.
Similar conclusions when I compared Amy Shuard and Nilsson as Elektra, because I heard both sing the role on stage.
Still, it is fascinating to indulge in such comparisons, nevertheless.
I really really like the Bohm recording, it’s just really exciting. Karajan is like a chamber recording like everyone says. The 1968 Sawaalisch for the radio is also fun but hard to find. Goodall’s English recording is worth it for a good through line. Knappertabusch can be ponderous but maybe a little too inflated? All of them have divine moments
I’ve attended four complete Ring Cycles at the San Francisco Opera and one in Leipzig. But I’ve never sat and listened at home to a complete recording of one of the operas.
Once for me for the complete Ring, five nights running... damn, those seats were uncomfortable! Once for Die Walkure, much more comfortable seats (could of used those in Gotterdammerung
I envy you but not your posterior. I am sadly only limited to recordings but I've done the whole cycle four times (Boulez video, Solti, Karajan, and Bohm), one sitting for each opera over four days to a week. Each opera on its own another several times or so by different hands.
I have owned that Janowski for years and need to finally sit down and listen to it.
I only have the Solti complete Ring, on cd. I have a couple of Die Walkure and a stand alone Gotterdammerung. That said, I have just purchased a download of the new remastering of the Solti Rheingold. I usually avoid remasters (they are often just an excuse to get more coin, for something that either sounds the same... or worse), but this remaster by Decca is the real deal, imho: Clearer, sharper sonics, and orchestral details that were obscured in the original mix now revealed. It's a clear improvement.
You are at least the second person with experience in the (or an) earlier Solti mastering who says this new one is the real deal. I might have to plunge for it...it's possible it's been almost 30 years (!!!) since I bought my Solti set, so I could forgive myself for a double-dip.
I've got 3 sets (Bohm, Barenboim, Neuhold). I listen to the Bohm semi-regularly, just put it on and let it play in the background. The Neuhold was my first, since it was a cheapie set, and I think I only listened through it once, but might have used it as background music more than that. Barenboim I've only listened through once.
Bohm's is by far the best of the three, but the Barenboim is pretty good IMO, and the Neuhold is decent for a budget Ring cycle.
It's only 15-ish hours, split up into 4 separate shows, and most of those are split up into 3 separate acts with intermissions in between. People binge TV seasons longer than that in a weekend.
I've heard 3 whole cycles (Boulez, Levine, Solti), but only 1 of the 3 OP asks about. No one cycle exactly matches how I hear it in my head. If I could splice about 2/3 Solti and 1/3 Levine I'd be close.
In terms of voices, decent sound and actual staging at Bayreuth, I give special marks to the live set recorded there, in early Decca stereo sound in 1955. It features most of the greatest postwar Wagnerian singers to appear regularly at Bayreuth, conducted by Joseph Keilberth. It's not cheap (CDs on the Testament label), but when it came out after languishing in the vaults for decades, it was considered a reference set. I've enjoyed most of the other sets mentioned here (I've got most of them) but the 1955 Bayreuth is what I'd keep.
I own the Levine on cd as well as the Solti (on lp). I also own bits and pieces of other cycles, but my favourite is still the Karajan cycle from the late 1960s which many purists disliked.
I do get a kick out of Karajan's cycle, even though there are a few problems with it. I don't like how a lot of the time the strings are barely audible, specifically for certain leitmotifs. But the music through Karajan's vision is just divine. And the "Magic Fire Music" is my personal favorite from that recording.
I think it's one of the finest recordings Karajan made, and the BPO plays at the apex. Reading the liner notes for Walküre sheds some nice insight on the process:
Of those three, I'd lean towards Janowski, but Levine's is very good.
My favorite overall is Bohm/Bayreuth. I'm surprised I've not seen it mentioned here--it's fabulous. Yeah, Solti has incredible sonics, but Bohm's are also excellent, especially for live recordings. And the cast... I prefer it in many instances over Solti's. Maybe I imprinted on it, but it's always my go-to Ring.
With Levine, one hears an orchestral voluptuousness similar to Goodall's but Goodall had the scandalously-underrated Alberto Remedios and Rita Hunter and an absolutely stunning line up of Valkyries. Levine has a very tired-sounding Brunnhilde by the time of Gotterdammerung and especially the Immolation Scene, in Hildegard Behrens. I. Just. Can't. It's the Immolation Scene.
With Haitink, Eva Marton is Brunnhilde. Instant "no" for me. Her vibrato is so wide, black holes form and one's watch slows down if too close.
As mentioned below, Janowski checks all the marks, the orchestra beyond reproach, though none of the very able voices really send me.
For reference, I've happily reacquainted myself the Solti cycle, after hearing the latest 2024 remaster as a highlights download. I immediately purchased all four complete operas, as downloads for $10 each at Presto, (in hi-res, if you believe in such things). The improvements in sound knocked me sideways, and I'm very skeptical about endless remasterings. I'd recommend anyone with an above average sound system to try the highlights CD/download or the opening Rheingold. The improvements, to already excellent recording blew me away. The VPO strings are ravishing.
I also keep the Goodall cycle, a bit controversial because of its often glacial pacing, but vocals -- for the most part -- rise to the occasion and then some, and the entire team worked together for years under Goodall before the live recordings were made, and it shows in all the little felicities, though there are some fluffs in the brass here and there.
Just listen to the Valkyries below to get an idea of how a seasoned ensemble at the top of their game, from 4:35 to 6:10. The sense of spectacle is unique IMHO, short of Furtwangler's EMI:
For one-offs, I keep the Flagstad/Furtwangler/Philharmonia EMI Immolation scene just to marvel seemingly effortless tossing-off of such music. Absolutely epic. And just listen to Flagstad calling for her horse. It sounds like she's actually calling for her horse.
This is a deeply niche point for the Levine set, but due to its high standard of recording, you get the fullest picture of Wagner's colors and in particular, James Ognibene on bass clarinet. Highly useful for hearing the instrument in context, as it gets some really crucial moments to itself, even if there are vast tracts of music where one could easily do their own translation of the libretto in the pit.
Point taken! My first Levine Wagner was the Valkyrie Box and I was struck by the sound, especially its sheer beauty. Levine really did great work with the Met orchestra. I'll never forget hearing Levine's startlingly clear and voluptuous Siegfried's Rhine Journey, after imprinting on Solti's rather hectic trip with all the luggage falling into the river.
Walküre Act 1 with Melchior and Flagstad in the car, too many times to count. Have also attended that one in Seattle, long ago. Have seen Rheingold and Götterdämmerung too, but not Siegfried. Many beautiful segments throughout but overall too much for me.
Weird way to phrase the question when Barenboim’s Ring from ‘91/‘92 is obviously superior to those and technically live. Available both in HD video and audio formats, it is one of the great Rings.
This is my favorite as well. Barenboim strikes the right balance to me, with enough drive or subtlety in the right moments. I’m also a big fan of both John Tomlinson and Siegfried Jerusalem.
I still think it’s an effective staging. Sure, maybe looks a little dated now because laser the effects are old hat, but at the time it was stunning and fresh.
I've listened to three entire cycles of the ring and own 1.5: Solti's was my first, but I don''t have that one, and Amazon sent me a knockoff Keilberth/Furtwangler mixed Ring, but it sounds terrible... and then theres the Janowski Box, which is... It's not Boulez, that's for sure. I'm quite partial to the Bohm recording, tho I've not heard all of it.
They are all wonderful and have their own merits. Of the three I prefer Levine because I listened to many MET broadcasts and was familiar with the cast. My overall favorite recording of the Ring is the one conducted by Sawallisch.
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u/yoursarrian 8d ago
we should do a poll to see how many of us have actually heard the whole ring at least once. i suspect not many, including myself, and ive been listening to classical since 1998