Tristan und JJ
Our very own editor takes to the airwaves this afternoon when he is interviewed by John Schaefer on WNYC’s Soundcheck. As part of “Tristan Mysteries” week here in New York, JJ will play selections from a few of his favorite recordings of Tristan und Isolde, and probably will find time to mouth off a bit as well. JJ is skedded to appear sometime in the second half of the show, after about 2:30 p.m.
UPDATE: Here’s the interview.
Sad how the good opera chats on radio are often cut short. It happened to Scotto last Saturday and now to JJ on WCNY. On the other hand Margaret Juntwait goes on and on and on with all sorts of trivia and wrong information. If only JJ would replace MJ !
Why does it not surprise me that JJ’s three TRISTAN choices are my three TRISTAN choices. I’m not a Wagnerite, but I do own all three of the recordings that JJ mentioned. creepy…
I am a bit surprised that JJ didnt choose Bayreuth ’52 with Moedl and Vinay, and instead preferred the Pappano recording.
Now, the Pappano set has something very dear to me, and that is Nina Stemme. I heard her last year in Bayreuth and it will stay as one of the most satisfying opera performancces I have ever attended. I hope the Met decides wisely and invites her there (for me, her best roles are Isolde, Senta and Sieglinde). She is singing Senta these days in Vienna, conducted by Ozawa.
I’d love to know what JJ thinks about the Carlos Kleiber studio recording and the Bernstein set.
For drawing out the modernity of the music itself, and for bringing sheer electricity (despite the slower speeds)of the orchestral writing, nobody matches Bernstein in this opera, in my view. Particularly in the second act, in the duet and its exciting prelude, Bernstein’s interpretation deserves to be heard. The Philips recording is at mid price, but even so, it’s a lot to ask for a set that doesn’t have the most recommendable singing. I suppose that would be on Bohm’s Bayreuth recording, although I find it a bit dull in comparison to those who followed, relative to the conducting. This is an arguable point, naturally–not everyone wants to hear Wagner as I do. I find the Kleiber set rather underwhelming–nicely sung (damming with faint praise, I suppose), but not quite up to the hype. I love Vickers in the HVK recording, and can never hear the third act without comparing everyone else to his unique intensity. But, again, his singing is not for everyone, and HVK was notorious for knob-twisting (in the control room, at the very least). I have the Pappano set, but haven’t heard it all yet. I’ve not heard a moment of the Voigt set from Vienna, and would like to know if others have. It doesn’t seem to have too sterling a reputation among Amazon reviewers…
Tubsinger,
I agree with you about the Bernstein set, altough sometimes the tempi are too Knappertbusch-styled.
I dont love the Karajan set for EMI very much since I am a big fan of his Bayreuth one.
The live Thielemann set bring great conducting but vocally is far from great, in my opinion Voigt doesnt quite fit as Isolde and Moser is a bit out of his prime altough his phrasing is superb.
As for the Kleiber’s set, I also prefer his 74 Bayreuth performance but I find in his DG set the most beautifully sung “Einsam wachend” on record.
It’s very hard for me to choose my favorite Tristan recordings because each set has its own merits and downfalls. Perhaps if one were to ask me which was the most rounded in terms of singing and conducting, I would choose the Böhm set. Many people like the Furtwängler, but I find that Flagstad and Suthaus don’t make the most convincing young lovers. I like Karajan’s Tristan (studio) very much too, although I do admit that Vicker’s timbre and his German can tire me sometimes. Dernesch’s Isolde is very beautiful, in my opinion, and I think she definitely is one of the best Isolde’s brimming with power, a beautiful voice, and a keen sense of expression. Add to that Ludwig’s Brangäne and Walter Berry’s Kurwenal plus the rapturous Berliners and you have a winsome record. I have to say though that Karajan can be a bit lugubrious sometimes, and when I do find his studio recording a bit cloying, I turn to his 1952 Bayreuth recording. By the way, 10 years later, Böhm with conduct a Tristan with Nilsson and Windgassen and I simply think that the 1962 performance is much better than the Deutsche Grammophon one. I also like Kleiber’s Tristan, and you get a very nice cast with Kollo, Price, Fassbaender, and Moll. Kleiber’s conducting may not be truly Wagnerian, but it works like a charm around the recording. Moll ties in with Pape as my favorite Marke, and since Kollo and Price sound absolutely youthful, I find the recording absolutely enchanting. Still, Kollo and Price do sound underpowering in the long run so I turn to other recordings in that instance. I don’t like Bernstein’s or Barenboim’s Tristan, although Barenboim’s is alright if you remove Meier from the cast list. Pappano is wonderful, especially because you have Domingo’s burnished Tristan, Stemme’s radiant Isolde, and Pape’s perfect Marke. This definitely is a great recording, and I turn to it when I get tired of the other Wagner recordings. It’s really hard to choose, and I think I like my Tristans depending on my mood.