Richard WAGNER (1813-1883)
Parsifal [226:20]
Parsifal - Christian Elsner
Kundry - Michelle de Young
Amfortas - Evgeny Nikitin
Gurnemanz - Franz-Josef Selig
Klingsor - Eike Wilm Schulte
Titurel - Dimitry Ivashchenko
Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Rundfunkchor Berlin/Marek Janowski
rec. live, in concert, Berlin Philharmonie, 8 April 2011
PENTATONE PTC5186401 SACD [4 CDs: 58:11 + 38:38 + 62:06 + 67:25]
When I reviewed the most recent release in Pentatone’s Berlin Wagner
cycle, I said that they needed to up their game if these recordings were to
attract attention in a crowded marketplace. Happily, with this release of
Parsifal, they have done so.
This is the third instalment of the cycle to be released, though the second
to be recorded. As with Meistersinger,
the first benefit that strikes the listener is the quality of the recorded
sound. It’s crystal clear with strong extremities but inner transparency.
It’s apparent right from the start of the prelude. The re-statements
of the main theme sound bright and ever-so-slightly piercing on the winds.
They are buoyed up by a shimmering halo of strings, while the brass statement
of the faith theme brings about an outstandingly strong climax. This is repeated
with wonderfully atmospheric scenes in the grail temple. Sound quality is
important in this opera, and the Pentatone engineers have excelled themselves.
This is matched by a vivid performance from the orchestra, who have played
Wagner brilliantly throughout this cycle so far. Brass and winds lend kaleidoscopic
colour in their contributions. The string playing is even more outstanding,
especially in the world-weary prelude to Act 3; even more so, at the moment
in the same act where Gurnemanz recognises the mysterious knight as Parsifal.
The rich, almost chocolaty hue of the string tone at this moment is something
which every orchestra aspires to but few achieve. The chorus play an outstanding
role in the proceedings, singing with clarity and direction but always with
a good degree of beauty. The engineers do a great job of capturing their dramatic
part in the Act 1 temple scene, each layer of sound conveyed in its proper
place with the right amount of distance between each component. The only place
where this doesn’t quite work is the entry of the Flower Maidens, who
are all over the shop in terms of the soundscape, often sounding confusing
or poorly thought out. It’s not until Komm, holder Knabe that
their sound settles down and when it does so they are appropriately bewitching.
It helps, too, that Janowski feels much more at home with this score than
he did in Meistersinger or Holländer.
He evinces a greater sense of the long view and he shapes the unfolding of
the music with a more secure eye as to where it is going. The hasty tempi
that marred his Meistersinger are here brought under control. The Prelude
unfolds naturally from within itself, leading to an account of the first act
that is unhurried but dramatically urgent. The Transformation interludes are
paced and accented with an eye not only to structural progress but also to
musical argument. The temple scenes, always tricky to pace, seem just right,
judging the balance between stasis and movement as well as anyone else. His
conducting of Klingsor’s music is quicksilver and slippery, as well
it should be. This sets the seal on a very strong performance. Not everything
is perfect: I want more of a sense of urgency in the orchestral plunge into
Amfortas! Die Wunde! and Gurnemanz’s recognition of the spear
(O Gnade!) is too fast but on the whole the overall sweep of the work
is convincing. Janowski commands the confidence of both his orchestra and
his singers and the results are very strong.
He is partnered by an excellent cast of singers. The Gurnemanz of Franz-Josef
Selig is outstanding, anchoring the whole set with gravitas and weight. He
sings not only with authority but with outstanding beauty, even more so than
he did for Thielemann’s
Vienna set. The narrations of Act 1 fly by in their dramatic excitement.
Nikitin’s Amfortas is a little gravelly at first but this conveys the
character’s agony very well. His interpretation grows in stature as
the work progresses. His narrations in the grail temple do not have the poetry
or nobility of, say, José van Dam (for Karajan and Barenboim), but
they are enormously exciting to listen to and Nikitin is outstanding at evoking
sympathy for the plight of the fallen king. Eike Wilm Schulte is wonderfully
malevolent as the magician Klingsor but he never over-eggs it and is interpretation
is thoroughly musical. Christian Elsner’s voice has a hard-edged, nasal
quality that not everyone will love but it shouldn’t put any listener
off as he becomes ever more compelling as the recording progresses. His assumption
of the role of King is thrilling in the final act. Michelle de Young’s
Kundry is outstanding because she gets inside both aspects of the role.
In Act 1 her voice has a frenzied, almost manic quality to it which gives
way to deflated submission before her exit. The great duet with Parsifal in
Act 2 inspires her to find a much more seductive tone which stands her in
great stead. The narration where she laughs in the face of Christ is thrillingly
successful.
This disc is well worth picking up. It’s admirably performed with excellent
sound, and the packaging is very effective too. As with the other instalments
in this series, the four discs are housed in a hardback booklet with full
texts and translations and extensive - though somewhat esoteric - notes about
the work. It won’t make anyone throw away their recordings from Knappertsbusch,
Barenboim or Karajan (whose 1981 Berlin recording is still, for me, the best,
despite its evident flaws) but it’s a worthy modern successor. It’s
the finest release in this Janowski/Wagner series so far.
Simon Thompson
The finest release in this Janowski/Wagner series so far. Admirable and well
worth picking up.