Given that we have had over sixty years to debate
the various comparative merits of Furtwängler’s two live,
Italian “Ring” cycles, I should first acknowledge that received
wisdom opines that this 1950 La Scala “Ring” is the more
incandescent. It is a stage performance rather than a series of concerts,
and is, on balance and by a narrow margin, better cast but worse recorded.
This XR re-mastering from Pristine certainly puts paid to the that last
objection; I soon found myself completely absorbed by the performance
and quite forgetful of the sound problems in previous issues which have
for many audiophiles rendered a great account almost unlistenable. I
know that I first heard it in the 1970s on a set of LPs from the “Everest”
label. The fact that I soon offloaded them speaks for itself. The LP
issue from “Murray Hill” is by all accounts no better and
both are wildly off-pitch.
Although Andrew Rose cannot compensate for the inevitable tape disintegration
in the masters, he has been able to do a great deal of tidying and even
reduce the odd percussive cough so we can now hear Furtwängler’s
special gift of making the music really “sing seethe or melt”
as Deryck Cooke so vividly described it. He is unmatched by any rival
conductor in his ability to convey his deep understanding of how Wagner’s
themes and leitmotifs interrelate and derive from each other. He confers
an arcing, architectural, compositional intensity on the whole “Ring”,
reflecting its unity as a true “Gesamtkunstwerk”.
However, no amount of fine re-engineering can eliminate one persistent
irritation. This is the constant, relentless, pitiless coughing from
a La Scala audience who were clearly all heavy smokers and so unacquainted
with Wagner as to find the more demanding passages less than absorbing.
They are especially bronchial during the orchestral introduction to
“Zu neuen Taten”. By contrast, the invited RAI audience
was angelically placid until the time came for applause. Obviously the
La Scala recordings provide a broader, more theatrical acoustic whereas
the RAI broadcasts are narrower with voices more forward. That said,
comparison with Pristine’s own excellent re-mastering of the RAI
cycle also reveals that Andrew Rose has been able to uncover a far richer,
deeper, more rounded sound for La Scala from a master tape which was
evidently recorded at considerably higher volume than the RAI one. You
can even hear pages of music being turned in between the hacking. Neither
orchestra will ever sound voluptuous but now you can properly hear Furtwängler’s
intent to shape key phrases beautifully. Try, for example his exquisite
moulding of the music which denotes the bond of love between the Volsungs
in Act of “Die Walküre”. The climax to that act is
stupendous, despite a blooper from the brass coming in a bar early on
“Wälsungen Blut”. Similarly, he makes the “Magic
Fire Music” dance in just the way Barenboim does not and the conclusion
to “Götterdämmerung” becomes the overwhelming,
cosmic experience it should be.
I should mention a further consideration for purists: Furtwängler
sanctioned two sizeable cuts in the La Scala performances, one in Wotan's
second-act monologue in “Die Walküre” and another in
the Siegfried-Wanderer confrontation in “Siegfried”. Neither
seems to me to be of great importance but those who care about such
things should stick with RAI.
Apart from these two sets, the other cycle which deserves consideration
is the often overlooked and excellent one directed by Rudolf Moralt.
This was recorded in war-scarred Vienna between 1948 and 1949 and featured
many of the singers heard in Milan a year later.
In my previous review of the RAI cycle, regarding Furtwängler’s
conducting I wrote, “In Milan, he is more driven and even at times
manic, whereas in Rome the mood is broader and more brooding. His tempi
at La Scala are almost as fast as Böhm's at Bayreuth in the 1966-67
Philips recording; here at RAI the tone for the whole cycle is loftier
and more deliberate, although never dull.” In that review, I was
also minded to redress what I saw as somewhat unjust criticism of the
RAI orchestra. I stand by that verdict but following my recent listening
to this restored La Scala “Ring” I think it must now clearly
be adjudged superior to the RAI; this especially as the singers, too,
are inspired by the atmosphere of a live performance.
The great bonus of the 1950 “Ring” is the presence of Flagstad,
here 54 years old. She is shorn of a few top notes but still hits all
four top Cs in Act 2 of “Die Walküre” and both in the
duet which concludes “Siegfried”, even if the second one
is only touched on. She takes the optional low A flat in the closing
note. By this stage, Set Svanholm, too, is understandably tiring, yelping
a few top notes and inevitably playing second fiddle to a fresher Flagstad
but that extended, half-hour duet remains thrilling. We are otherwise
privileged to hear her only extant complete Brünnhilde sung in
sovereign voice. The middle of the voice occasionally curdles into a
matronly tone but she is rock-steady and for the most part the top still
rings out nobly. Varnay for Krauss and Mödl for Furtwängler
in 1953 were both great vocal actresses but for many, despite a certain
marmoreal imperturbability, Flagstad’s vocal amplitude carries
the day.
The other major singer common to both Furtwängler cycles and indeed
to the Moralt set, is Ferdinand Frantz as Wotan. He had a big, grand,
brazen bass-baritone but is in fresher and more expressive voice in
1950, wholly commanding and riding the orchestra at the end of “Die
Walküre” but also softening his tone to bid his beloved daughter
farewell.
For some, the tenors in the La Scala “Ring” jointly constitute
a comparative blot on the set. Certainly by modern standards none is
less than good and we would be happy to hear any of them. Treptow was
a fine Tristan for Knappertsbusch and excellent throughout for Moralt.
Here he undertakes an almost too virile Froh and a first-rate Siegmund.
His tone can be metallic and his delivery sometimes percussive but he
is credibly heroic. Set Svanholm copes manfully with Siegfried and shines
in the forging scene. He is never really imposing but nor is he ever
an embarrassment. Max Lorenz’s Siegfried is decidedly worn, despite
his being only 48 at the time. The middle of his voice is hollow and
he has largely lost the famous ring although the top notes, even the
sustained top C on “Hoiho!”is still - just - there. On balance,
Suthaus in 1953 is decidedly better than Lorenz and there isn’t
that much to choose between Windgassen, Svanholm and Treptow.
For me, despite his fine voice, compared with Frantz, Josef Hermann
is not very successful as the Wanderer in “Siegfried”. His
neat, lightish baritone is simply miscast; his voice is not the kind
to make us believe that it has the heft to summon Erda from the depths.
Höngen is a bit unsteady as both Fricka and Erda but she is marvellously
acute with the text. Likewise, Ludwig Weber is rocky but imposing in
no fewer than four roles: Fasolt, Hunding, the Dragon Fafner and Hagen.
Konetzni’s bell-like soprano creates a spirited Sieglinde who
is no milksop. She is a little careful but touching as Gutrune. The
Rhine daughters at La Scala are less starry than those for RAI, missing
Jurinac, but still very fine. Both Donners are good but Mattiello has
more ring to his tone than Poell. Sattler’s experienced Loge has
less sap to his voice than Windgassen but he makes a plausibly wily
intellectual. All Furtwängler’s singers were hand-picked
by him, so none is less than good whichever performance you favour,
although I still demur at his choice of Wanderer.
Documentation is minimal and no libretto is provided. However downloads
include full scores of each of the operas which can be either viewed
on-screen or printed out as desired. There is one technical issue which
is obviously an oversight: at 2:58 in track 16, CD 4 of “Siegfried”
there is an editing jump which will need correction.
Wagnerians everywhere have reason to be grateful to Pristine for resurrecting
these justly celebrated performances.
Ralph Moore
Masterwork Index:
The
ring cycle
Performer list
Das Rheingold
Wotan - Ferdinand Frantz (bass-baritone)
Donner - Angel Mattiello (baritone)
Froh - Günther Treptow (tenor)
Loge - Joachim Sattler (tenor)
Fricka - Elisabeth Höngen (contralto)
Freia - Walburga Wegner (soprano)
Erda - Margret Weth-Falke (contralto)
Alberich - Alois Pernerstorfer (bass-baritone)
Mime - Peter Markwort (tenor)
Fasolt - Ludwig Weber (bass)
Fafner - Albert Emmerich (bass)
Woglinde - Magda Gabory (soprano)
Wellgunde - Margherita Kenney (mezzo)
Flosshilde - Sieglinde Wagner (mezzo)
Die Walküre
Siegmund - Günther Treptow (tenor)
Hunding - Ludwig Weber (bass)
Wotan - Ferdinand Frantz (bass-baritone)
Sieglinde - Hilde Konetzni (soprano)
Brünnhilde - Kirsten Flagstad (soprano)
Fricka - Elisabeth Höngen (mezzo)
Helmwige - Ilona Steingruber (soprano)
Ortlinde - Marie Cerhal (soprano)
Gerhilde - Walburga Wegner (soprano)
Waltraute - Dagmar Schmedes (mezzo)
Siegrune - Margherita Kenney (mezzo)
Rossweiße - Margret Weth-Falke (contralto)
Grimgerde - Sieglinde Wagner (mezzo)
Schwertleite - Polly Batic (mezzo)
Siegfried
Siegfried - Set Svanholm (tenor)
Wanderer - Ferdinand Frantz (bass-baritone)
Mime - Peter Markwort (tenor)
Alberich - Alois Pernerstorfer (bass-baritone)
Fafner - Ludwig Weber (bass)
Waldvogel - Julia Moor (soprano)
Brünnhilde - Kirsten Flagstad (soprano)
Erda - Elisabeth Höngen (mezzo)
Götterdämmerung
Brünnhilde - Kirsten Flagstad (soprano)
Siegfried - Max Lorenz (tenor)
Hagen - Ludwig Weber (bass)
Alberich - Alois Pernerstorfer (bass-baritone)
Gunther - Josef Herrmann (baritone)
Gutrune - Hilde Konetzni (soprano)
Waltraute - Elisabeth Höngen (mezzo)
Woglinde - Magda Gabory (soprano)
Wellgunde Margherita Kenney (mezzo)
Floßhilde - Sieglinde Wagner (mezzo)
1st Norne - Margret Weth-Falke (contralto)
2nd Norne - Margherita Kenney (mezzo)
3rd Norne - Hilde Konetzni (soprano)
