Richard Wagner - Lohengrin - Nilsson, Varnay, Adam, Uhde, Windgassen - Jochum, 19543CD - ADD Remasterd
Archipel 2005
Performer: Birgit Nilsson, Wolfgang Windgassen, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Theo Adam, Hermann Uhde, Astrid Varnay
Conductor: Eugen Jochum
Orchestra/Ensemble: Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, Bayreuth Festival Chorus
This 1954 live-from-Bayreuth recording is a fine souvenir of the great Birgit Nilsson's early career, and it was, I believe, her Bayreuth debut. Her Elsa is an attractive portrayal--her voice was a bit slimmer in '54 and she plays Elsa for the frail, needy creature she is in a very believable fashion. The gleaming top notes are in evidence as well, and while she may not inhabit the role as entirely as, say, Elisabeth Grummer, she's still excellent. Wolfgang Windgassen's not-quite heldentenor is precisely right for Lohengrin, and he sings with sensitivity and authority in both introspective and public moments. His "In fernem land" is both haunting and heroic. Hermann Uhde's Telramund is a nice, evil conception, making us hate him in just the right way, and Astrid Varnay's ferocious Ortrud is breathtaking--the slight ugliness that began creeping into her voice around this period is just right for the manipulative, odious Ortrud. Theo Adam's King is distinguished, and a young baritone named Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau sings the role of the Herald and makes it a starring part.
The Bayreuth Festival Orchestra and Chorus perform as if the music were in their blood, which of course it is, and Jochum's leadership can't be faulted: he keeps the action flowing with never-eccentric tempos and the ensembles hold together nicely. --Arkivmusic
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