"As you listen to this score, you enter a forest with very tall, very old trees and you ascend a rock which is more barren and higher and more frightening than the Alps. At the end you watch a fire which is grander than the burning of Rome. This is dream stuff, with the deepest instincts of love, hate and violence unleashed, speaking a language of passion, romanticism, enchantment. I envy all those who have yet to make its acquaintance."
I went to buy this many years ago. When I got it home there was a mistake in the pressing. Despite the label on the CD saying disc 2, it actually contained a repeat of disc 1. So I took it back to the shop and got my money back. So I never got to hear this particular recording but you have reminded me to remedy that.
Totally agree with all your comments. I'm delighted you mentioned some of the excellent Valkyries. Also worth mentioning is David Ward as Hundung. A stalwart contract bass baritone at the Royal Opera, at the suggestion of Rudolf Kempe since 1960 he had been singing some of Wagner's lesser roles at several Bayreuth Festivals. There he came to the notice of Hans Hotter who believed he would make an excellent Wotan, even as his own successor. Over a couple of years Ward flew to Munich for lessons with Hotter and was cast as Wotan in Hotter's own production at the Royal Opera, a role he later repeated as the young Scottish Opera built its 1971 Ring. Sadly he died the year after he retired aged 60. His recorded legacy is slim including a Titurel in Knappertsbusch's 1960 'live' Bayreuth Parsifal, Verdi Requiem with Giulini from the London Proms and Arkel in the famous 1970 Royal Opera Pelleas conducted by Boulez. His best recording in my view is Friar Lawrence in the 1962 Berlioz recording by Pierre Monteux.
I agree that this is the greatest Walküre ever, with an extraordinary cast - Birgit Nilsson is in her prime and beyond all criticism as Brunhilda, while George London is incredible as Wotan, with a voice that has a very tenorish timbre yet is still baritone. Nilsson and London really do sound like gods, with the producer's use of reverb making them really sound like gods on the peak of a mountain.
No contest, the Leinsdorf recording is the finest, well certainly of all the recordings I’ve heard. The cast is of legend now, no singers today can match this quality of singing and Leinsdorf gets playing from the LSO which matches the later Solti recording with the VPO. Yes this set was released on RCA in the U.S. and I think in the U.K. as well.
Love this recording! I was fortunate enough to see both Nilsson and Vickers in Die Walkure live. I love this recording as a reminder of their glorious singing!
Absolutely. Although I only encountered it much later in my Wagner odyssey (because of aforementioned Decca neglect), I was an instant convert from the Böhm recording. Vickers is insane in this.
At this time George London was already singing with only one functioning vocal cord, the other had been paralysed since 1960 due to an infection with an unclean syringe. Fortunately, he was able to compensate by then and record a magnificent Walküre Wotan. Only a short time later, his voice no longer sounded good.
I've been championing this recording ever since I got my copy off iTunes (!!) in high school! What a great CD... one way I test a Walkure recording is the first three minutes. Here, Leinsdorf creates such a visceral sense of energy and fear that I felt like I was realizing for the first time that the opera actually begins with a chase! All these years, and I think of Act I as a domestic drama... Leinsdorf reminds us that this, the most moving of the Ring operas, is filled with as many dangers and shadows as the others. (Amusingly, I evaluate Magic Flute recordings the same way: does the opening chase feel like a chase? Is there real fear and blood in it?)
Fascinating discussion! I discovered your channel long before I dared to take the leap into Wagner. So I've been honoured to use your recommendations to get into Wagner. This has been wholly satisfying. I first listened to the ring using Solti, except I listened to this leinsdorf Walküre instead of Solti's. I'm not quite sure why I did it that way, I think I used your Ideal List video. Anyway, it was a thrilling experience. And interestingly enough, when I did get round to Solti's Walküre right after, I thought something was wrong with the recording I was using on Spotify or something? It was a step down in intensity and recording quality. It was still great at the end of the day, but I'm fascinated that I pretty much listened to the ring in the original order in which the Solti ring + leinsdorf Walküre were recorded!
Nope. They were RCA recordings, but the engineering was done by Decca under a contract they had at the time with RCA. The rights reverted to Decca after a specified period of time, which is why you see them on Decca today. Not all the Decca engineered RCAs from the period did so. Previn's 60s and early 70s RCA recordings were all engineered by Decca, but remain on RCA.
The remastered version available at High Definition Tape Transfers is a significant improvement over the Decca CDs. And it is the greatest EVER! Yes, it did come out first on RCA, on LPs in the luxuriously boxed Soria Series.
As others have noted, it was an RCA recording issued in the luxurious Soria series, but the engineering was done by Decca under a contract RCA had with them at the time. The rights reverted to Decca after a specified period of time and it was re-issued on LP by London (Decca) in the U.S. in the early 70s. There are many other recordings from the period, the Price/Solti Aida for example, that were originally issued on RCA that are now on Decca. The existence of this recording was why Decca didn't follow up Rheingold with Walkure in the Solti cycle. They didn't think the market would support two Walkure's issued in such close proximity, especially with some of the same singers. As a result the Solti Walkure was the last Ring opera Decca recorded. It came out in 1967, ironically the same year as Karajan's Walkure, the first opera DG recorded in his cycle.
That was the recording my college music history teacher used for classroom examples, but the Solti recording was the one he had on reserve in library for our study listening.
This is probably the best of Birgit Nilsson’s Walkure recordings (and THAT’S saying something), but I’ve never fully warmed to George London’s Wotan. The Farewell scene feels a little breathless to my taste. But Leinsdorf did magnificently in this recording, especially the opening, which hardly any other recording gets really right.
That's the one! Some critics say that by the time of the Solti Nilsson had acquired greater depth and insights into Brunnhilde. Well, maybe so, but really, the difference is not that significant. Plus London, following up on the Rheingold Wotan for Culshaw and Solti, is in far better shape than late Hotter would be. This set did appear first on RCA in the deluxe Soria packaging.
I couldn’t agree more! I remember an old article in Stereo Review which suggested the compilation of an ideal Ring from the recordings available at the time: Das Rheingold - Solti Die Walkure - Leinsdorf Siegfried - Karajan Gotterdammerung - Furtwangler I have heard all but the last one.
@@bombayteddy I already own Siegfried which I have had for years and just picked up the Walkure, I will pick up the others one at a time. I have to own the most famous Wagner recording of all time, you are correct.
Well, I was there when it came out on RCA. It was not only RCA but it was LDS rather than LSC...thus part of the Soria Series beautiful linen bound ultra deluxe edition. After that it was out of sight for quite a while as the Culshaw Ring was getting all the publicity (and then Karajan) and RCA had no interest in a complete Ring recording. It was produced by Richard Mohr so RCA had some skin in the game. I only recently got it from HDTT in a 96K/24bit production that, while lacking the Soria presentation, as a recording is immaculate. I preferred London in the Rheingold and I don't much care for Hotter...though, to me, he doesn't sound much better in the 1955 Keilberth/Bayreuth recording (on Testament). Getting Vickers (from the Karajan) and Nillson (from the Solti) together under Leinsdorf is the best of both worlds. So while it has been left largely to obscurity Dave is right, it is a very special recording.
Видеоклипы
Oh yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! My all time favorite Wagner opera recording, and the best thing Leinsdorf ever gave us! Nilsson, Vickers, Gorr!
and George London!
Loved it when it came out, still love it 6 decades later. It IS the best recording of this sublime work.
"As you listen to this score, you enter a forest with very tall, very old trees and you ascend a rock which is more barren and higher and more frightening than the Alps. At the end you watch a fire which is grander than the burning of Rome. This is dream stuff, with the deepest instincts of love, hate and violence unleashed, speaking a language of passion, romanticism, enchantment. I envy all those who have yet to make its acquaintance."
Absolutely. No question. Thanks.
I went to buy this many years ago. When I got it home there was a mistake in the pressing. Despite the label on the CD saying disc 2, it actually contained a repeat of disc 1. So I took it back to the shop and got my money back. So I never got to hear this particular recording but you have reminded me to remedy that.
Totally agree with all your comments. I'm delighted you mentioned some of the excellent Valkyries. Also worth mentioning is David Ward as Hundung. A stalwart contract bass baritone at the Royal Opera, at the suggestion of Rudolf Kempe since 1960 he had been singing some of Wagner's lesser roles at several Bayreuth Festivals. There he came to the notice of Hans Hotter who believed he would make an excellent Wotan, even as his own successor. Over a couple of years Ward flew to Munich for lessons with Hotter and was cast as Wotan in Hotter's own production at the Royal Opera, a role he later repeated as the young Scottish Opera built its 1971 Ring.
Sadly he died the year after he retired aged 60. His recorded legacy is slim including a Titurel in Knappertsbusch's 1960 'live' Bayreuth Parsifal, Verdi Requiem with Giulini from the London Proms and Arkel in the famous 1970 Royal Opera Pelleas conducted by Boulez. His best recording in my view is Friar Lawrence in the 1962 Berlioz recording by Pierre Monteux.
Probably, Leinsdorf's finest hour in the recording studios.
This, the Salome with Caballé, and Korngold Die Tote Stadt
I agree that this is the greatest Walküre ever, with an extraordinary cast - Birgit Nilsson is in her prime and beyond all criticism as Brunhilda, while George London is incredible as Wotan, with a voice that has a very tenorish timbre yet is still baritone. Nilsson and London really do sound like gods, with the producer's use of reverb making them really sound like gods on the peak of a mountain.
Oh yes, without.a doubt! For raw excitement, and for Vickers' incredibly passionate performance, nothing else comes close.
No contest, the Leinsdorf recording is the finest, well certainly of all the recordings I’ve heard. The cast is of legend now, no singers today can match this quality of singing and Leinsdorf gets playing from the LSO which matches the later Solti recording with the VPO. Yes this set was released on RCA in the U.S. and I think in the U.K. as well.
Love this recording! I was fortunate enough to see both Nilsson and Vickers in Die Walkure live. I love this recording as a reminder of their glorious singing!
Absolutely. Although I only encountered it much later in my Wagner odyssey (because of aforementioned Decca neglect), I was an instant convert from the Böhm recording. Vickers is insane in this.
At this time George London was already singing with only one functioning vocal cord, the other had been paralysed since 1960 due to an infection with an unclean syringe. Fortunately, he was able to compensate by then and record a magnificent Walküre Wotan. Only a short time later, his voice no longer sounded good.
I still have my vinyl copy of this wonderful recording. The clear choice for "best recording" of Die Walküre for me as well!
Couple of years ago I got the Nilsson complete DECCA box. Which is insane! This is getting listened to on my commute tomorrow. Glorious.
And George London singing Wotan’s Farewell is amazing.
I've been championing this recording ever since I got my copy off iTunes (!!) in high school! What a great CD... one way I test a Walkure recording is the first three minutes. Here, Leinsdorf creates such a visceral sense of energy and fear that I felt like I was realizing for the first time that the opera actually begins with a chase! All these years, and I think of Act I as a domestic drama... Leinsdorf reminds us that this, the most moving of the Ring operas, is filled with as many dangers and shadows as the others.
(Amusingly, I evaluate Magic Flute recordings the same way: does the opening chase feel like a chase? Is there real fear and blood in it?)
Fascinating discussion! I discovered your channel long before I dared to take the leap into Wagner. So I've been honoured to use your recommendations to get into Wagner. This has been wholly satisfying. I first listened to the ring using Solti, except I listened to this leinsdorf Walküre instead of Solti's. I'm not quite sure why I did it that way, I think I used your Ideal List video. Anyway, it was a thrilling experience. And interestingly enough, when I did get round to Solti's Walküre right after, I thought something was wrong with the recording I was using on Spotify or something? It was a step down in intensity and recording quality. It was still great at the end of the day, but I'm fascinated that I pretty much listened to the ring in the original order in which the Solti ring + leinsdorf Walküre were recorded!
Relevant to the review situation may have been its issue in the US on the RCA Soria Series. Many of these recordings were licensed from Decca.
Nope. They were RCA recordings, but the engineering was done by Decca under a contract they had at the time with RCA. The rights reverted to Decca after a specified period of time, which is why you see them on Decca today. Not all the Decca engineered RCAs from the period did so. Previn's 60s and early 70s RCA recordings were all engineered by Decca, but remain on RCA.
You're right, Dave: it was first issued in 1962, on RCA Victor, 5 LP discs, both in stereo and mono editions.
The remastered version available at High Definition Tape Transfers is a significant improvement over the Decca CDs. And it is the greatest EVER! Yes, it did come out first on RCA, on LPs in the luxuriously boxed Soria Series.
At $30 a pop it better be an improvement over the DECCA CDs.....
Where do I find this?
@@lawrencerinkel3243 Google high definition tape transfers
As others have noted, it was an RCA recording issued in the luxurious Soria series, but the engineering was done by Decca under a contract RCA had with them at the time. The rights reverted to Decca after a specified period of time and it was re-issued on LP by London (Decca) in the U.S. in the early 70s. There are many other recordings from the period, the Price/Solti Aida for example, that were originally issued on RCA that are now on Decca. The existence of this recording was why Decca didn't follow up Rheingold with Walkure in the Solti cycle. They didn't think the market would support two Walkure's issued in such close proximity, especially with some of the same singers. As a result the Solti Walkure was the last Ring opera Decca recorded. It came out in 1967, ironically the same year as Karajan's Walkure, the first opera DG recorded in his cycle.
not heard this one, must check it out
That was the recording my college music history teacher used for classroom examples, but the Solti recording was the one he had on reserve in library for our study listening.
Just curious, when hopping between hearing examples in the classroom, vs. listening in the library, could you necessarily pick out differences?
@@SoiledWig Maybe sonics, but Opera was to new to me. The Solti is close to my heart for personal reasons.
This is probably the best of Birgit Nilsson’s Walkure recordings (and THAT’S saying something), but I’ve never fully warmed to George London’s Wotan. The Farewell scene feels a little breathless to my taste. But Leinsdorf did magnificently in this recording, especially the opening, which hardly any other recording gets really right.
That's the one! Some critics say that by the time of the Solti Nilsson had acquired greater depth and insights into Brunnhilde. Well, maybe so, but really, the difference is not that significant. Plus London, following up on the Rheingold Wotan for Culshaw and Solti, is in far better shape than late Hotter would be.
This set did appear first on RCA in the deluxe Soria packaging.
Leinsdorf conducted all four Ring operas with Nilsson at Chicago Lyric Opera in the early 1970s.
I couldn’t agree more!
I remember an old article in Stereo Review which suggested the compilation of an ideal Ring from the recordings available at the time:
Das Rheingold - Solti
Die Walkure - Leinsdorf
Siegfried - Karajan
Gotterdammerung - Furtwangler
I have heard all but the last one.
Which Furtwangler Goterdamerung? La Scala with the bad sonics or RAI?
The RAI if I’m not mistaken.
@@bombayteddy I finally own a recommended version! Exciting! I need to purchase the others now.
@@eddihaskell Instead, I think you should go ahead and purchase the Solti Ring complete, with the Leinsdorf Walkure as an adjunct.
@@bombayteddy I already own Siegfried which I have had for years and just picked up the Walkure, I will pick up the others one at a time. I have to own the most famous Wagner recording of all time, you are correct.
That Turandot recording was my introduction to Puccinni
Well, I was there when it came out on RCA. It was not only RCA but it was LDS rather than LSC...thus part of the Soria Series beautiful linen bound ultra deluxe edition. After that it was out of sight for quite a while as the Culshaw Ring was getting all the publicity (and then Karajan) and RCA had no interest in a complete Ring recording. It was produced by Richard Mohr so RCA had some skin in the game. I only recently got it from HDTT in a 96K/24bit production that, while lacking the Soria presentation, as a recording is immaculate. I preferred London in the Rheingold and I don't much care for Hotter...though, to me, he doesn't sound much better in the 1955 Keilberth/Bayreuth recording (on Testament). Getting Vickers (from the Karajan) and Nillson (from the Solti) together under Leinsdorf is the best of both worlds. So while it has been left largely to obscurity Dave is right, it is a very special recording.
just ordered it on CD, will let you know what I think, I do know that Soltis Walkure is the weakest of the 4 operas in the Ring.
That must explain why there are so many of them available to purchase (Solti Walkure) at so low a price.