Arte Nova are to be congratulated in releasing yet another little known,
and under-rated opera. At such a bargain basement price, adventurous opera
lovers should be unable to resist sampling this first opera of Richard Strauss.
They should be warned however that Arte Nova's generosity is limited to rather
terse notes and a libretto in German only, so those without this language
facility will have a hard time following the detail of the plot and will
not be able to appreciate every subtle interpretative nuance. However this
irritation should not deter prospective buyers. After having read the plot
synopsis in English one can sit back and luxuriate in this often glorious
music.
Guntram was composed between 1887 and 1893 and first performed at Weimar
(shades of Wagner) in 1894. At the time, Strauss already had the success
of Aus Italien, Macbeth, Don Juan and Tod und Verklärung behind him.
Yet Guntram was such a disaster that Strauss, as he recalls in his memories
of the opera reproduced in this CD booklet, lost his courage to write for
the theatre for another six years. It was not until 1940 when a revised version
which Strauss had been working on from 1934-39 that the opera came to be
in any way appreciated. Strauss vividly recalls all the traumas and difficulties
associated with the early productions in Weimar, Frankfurt and Prague before
the opera was abandoned after several attempts to 'liven it up'. He recalls
how his pupil, the tenor Heinrich Zeller, agonized over the 'unnecessarily
strenuous role' which defeated his voice - the number of his bars, when counted,
was found to exceed those in Tristan! Later another horrified tenor, Mikorey,
whose memory, at times, failed him during the premiere, threatened that he
would only continue to sing the part if he received a higher pension! Added
to all this aggravation, were rehearsal tantrums from Strauss's then
fiancée Pauline de Ahna (they were married in1894) who felt she was
not getting sufficient attention from conductor Strauss. She threw the piano
score at him! Then the orchestra got stroppy. They pleaded to be freed from
this "scourge of God."
In truth, Guntram is an uneven work and unbalanced in favour of the tenor
voice, Guntram himself. Fortunately, in this live recording, we have a fine
dramatic tenor in Alan Woodrow, with the stamina and expressive resource
to carry the role. The other lead, Elisabeth Wachutka as Freihild, has the
power we associate with those Wagnerian sopranos to sustain the many high
notes in her equally demanding role. (Although she is not quite so centre
stage as Guntram for this is more of an opera for the male voice as opposed
to Der Rosenkavalier and other later Strauss works in which he favoured the
female voice). The work is also unbalanced in other vocal respects. Take
Freihild's admittedly beautiful ACT III aria when she asserts her love for
Guntram and please that he should escape from prison with her. Guntram is
only allowed to gasp out her name at infrequent intervals and we are left
more than half-expecting her aria to develop into the impassioned love duet
that never happens.
Briefly Guntram tells of the knight Guntram who is a champion of love and
peace. He is appalled at the acts of tyranny and cruelty by Duke Robert.
He saves Freihild, Duke Robert's wife when in despair, because the Duke has
forbidden her to aid the poor, she ties to drown herself. In gratitude,
Freihild's father, the old Duke (yes it is confusing) grants Guntram's request
that the poor be freed. But this action infuriates the Duke Robert who remains
suspicious of Guntram. Act II takes place in the castle where new found peace
is being celebrated. Freihild persuades Guntram to sing his passionate plea
for peace and of the horrors of war. His audience is moved, that is all except
Duke Robert who is madly jealous and orders Guntram's arrest after a messenger
bursts in to bring the news that war has flared up again. . Duke Robert attacks
Guntram. Guntram kills Robert in self-defence.The old Duke is outraged when
he hears the news and believing Guntram is guilty of murder has the luckless
knight thrown into prison. Act III opens in the dungeon where Guntram is
imprisoned. Guntram expresses his remorse explaining to Freihild that he
is guilty in as much as he was jealous of Duke Robert's possession of Freihild.
She asserts her love and pleads with Guntram to escape. Even though his name
is cleared, he declares that for his sin of jealousy he must renounce his
love for Freihild and leave her to carry on her altruistic works as the new
Duchess.
The opera begins with a substantial and impressive Wagnerian Prelude that
speaks of heroism, chivalry and compassion. In its more mystical reaches
this Prelude is pure Strauss and it looks forward to the language of Der
Rosenkavalier. Act I includes the first of Guntram's three considerable arias
as he reflects on the beauty of nature and the evils of mankind. Freihild's
material as she is introduced is less impressive except in so far as it gives
Wachutka the opportunity to reach for a considerable number of top notes.
Ivan Konsulov as the villainous Duke Robert chews the scenery but cannot
quite get his mouth around his German. This Act's ensemble vocal writing
(and the singing on this recording) is unremarkable. Act II has another
impressive but briefer Prelude culminating in some fine multi-part writing
for the four minstrels singing at the celebrations in the castle
The second of Guntram's big extensive arias is his impassioned plea for peace
and again Woodrow's oaken, persuasive eloquence impresses. The fight music
is a little prolonged; it is powerful and darkly dramatic but teeters just
this side of being OTT. Act III is probably the most successful musically
with Freihild's aria mentioned previously and the most beautiful of Guntram's
arias as he renounces Freihild's love and encourages her altruism. This lovely
aria has that kind of shimmer and sheen that one associates with the purity
of the Presentation of the Rose scene of Der Rosenkavalier.
A critic commenting on the live performance of this opera that has been released
as this recording wrote: "Gustav Kuhn...created tone colours and melodic-harmonic
contrasts of all shades. One could almost call this a model performance..."
True in as much as I found my ears time and again being seduced through the
vocal line to attend to the fabulous orchestral colours which Richard Strauss
created for his first opera. Not surprisingly for Strauss still had to perfect
his vocal technique; a technique he would bring to perfection in operas such
as Der Rosenkavalier; Arabella; Ariadne Auf Naxos; and Capriccio.
[The Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana has its home in The Marches, a region
in central Italy. It is one of the twelve national Italian symphony orchestras.]
Reviewer
Ian Lace
Alan
Woodrow; Elisabeth Wachutka Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana conducted by
Gustav Kuhn 
