Wagner - Der Ring des Nibelungen (Ring Cycle) / Sir Georg Solti

Wagner - Der Ring des Nibelungen (Ring Cycle) / Sir Georg Solti

Wagner - Der Ring des Nibelungen (Ring Cycle) / Sir Georg Solti
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CD Details

Edition: Music CD
Format: Box set
CD Release Date: 1997-10-14
Music Label: Decca
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
  1. Rheingold
  2. Rheingold
  3. Rheingold
  4. Rheingold
  5. Rheingold
  6. Rheingold
  7. Rheingold
  8. Rheingold
  9. Rheingold
  10. Rheingold
  11. Rheingold
  12. Rheingold
  13. Rheingold
  14. Rheingold
  15. Rheingold
Music CD 2
  1. Rheingold
  2. Rheingold
  3. Rheingold
  4. Rheingold
  5. Rheingold
  6. Rheingold
  7. Rheingold
  8. Rheingold
  9. Rheingold
  10. Rheingold
  11. Rheingold
  12. Rheingold
  13. Rheingold
  14. Rheingold
  15. Rheingold
Music CD 3
  1. Rheingold
  2. Die Walk?re
  3. Die Walk?re
  4. Die Walk?re
  5. Die Walk?re
  6. Die Walk?re
  7. Die Walk?re
  8. Die Walk?re
  9. Die Walk?re
  10. Die Walk?re
  11. Die Walk?re
  12. Die Walk?re
Music CD 4
  1. Die Walk?re
  2. Die Walk?re
  3. Die Walk?re
  4. Die Walk?re
  5. Die Walk?re
  6. Die Walk?re
  7. Die Walk?re
  8. Die Walk?re
  9. Die Walk?re
  10. Die Walk?re
  11. Die Walk?re
  12. Die Walk?re
Music CD 5
  1. Die Walk?re
  2. Die Walk?re
  3. Die Walk?re
  4. Die Walk?re
  5. Die Walk?re
Music CD 6
  1. Die Walk?re
  2. Die Walk?re
  3. Die Walk?re
  4. Die Walk?re
  5. Die Walk?re
  6. Die Walk?re
  7. Die Walk?re
  8. Die Walk?re
  9. Die Walk?re
  10. Die Walk?re
  11. Die Walk?re
  12. Die Walk?re
  13. Die Walk?re
  14. Die Walk?re
Music CD 7
  1. Die Walk?re
  2. Siegried
  3. Siegried
  4. Siegried
  5. Siegried
  6. Siegried
  7. Siegried
  8. Siegried
  9. Siegried
  10. Siegried
  11. Siegried
  12. Siegried
  13. Siegried
  14. Siegried
  15. Siegried
Music CD 8
  1. Siegried
  2. Siegried
  3. Siegried
  4. Siegried
  5. Siegried
  6. Siegried
  7. Siegried
  8. Siegried
  9. Siegried
  10. Siegried
  11. Siegried
  12. Siegried
  13. Siegried
Music CD 9
  1. Siegried
  2. Siegried
  3. Siegried
  4. Siegried
  5. Siegried
  6. Siegried
  7. Siegried
  8. Siegried
  9. Siegried
  10. Siegried
  11. Siegried
  12. Siegried
Music CD 10
  1. Siegried
  2. Siegried
  3. Siegried
  4. Siegried
  5. Siegried
  6. Siegried
  7. Siegried
  8. Siegried
  9. Siegried
  10. Siegried
  11. Siegried
Music CD 11
  1. Siegried
  2. Gotterd?mmerung
  3. Gotterd?mmerung
  4. Gotterd?mmerung
  5. Gotterd?mmerung
  6. Gotterd?mmerung
  7. Gotterd?mmerung
  8. Gotterd?mmerung
  9. Gotterd?mmerung
  10. Gotterd?mmerung
  11. Gotterd?mmerung
  12. Gotterd?mmerung
  13. Gotterd?mmerung
Music CD 12
  1. Gotterd?mmerung
  2. Gotterd?mmerung
  3. Gotterd?mmerung
  4. Gotterd?mmerung
  5. Gotterd?mmerung
  6. Gotterd?mmerung
  7. Gotterd?mmerung
  8. Gotterd?mmerung
  9. Gotterd?mmerung
Music CD 13
  1. Gotterd?mmerung
  2. Gotterd?mmerung
  3. Gotterd?mmerung
  4. Gotterd?mmerung
  5. Gotterd?mmerung
  6. Gotterd?mmerung
  7. Gotterd?mmerung
  8. Gotterd?mmerung
  9. Gotterd?mmerung
  10. Gotterd?mmerung
  11. Gotterd?mmerung
  12. Gotterd?mmerung
  13. Gotterd?mmerung
  14. Gotterd?mmerung
Music CD 14
  1. Gotterd?mmerung
  2. Gotterd?mmerung
  3. Gotterd?mmerung
  4. Gotterd?mmerung
  5. Gotterd?mmerung
  6. Gotterd?mmerung
  7. Gotterd?mmerung
  8. Gotterd?mmerung
  9. Gotterd?mmerung
  10. Gotterd?mmerung
  11. Gotterd?mmerung
  12. Gotterd?mmerung
  13. Gotterd?mmerung
  14. Gotterd?mmerung
  15. Gotterd?mmerung
  16. Gotterd?mmerung
  17. Gotterd?mmerung
  18. Gotterd?mmerung

Music reviews of Wagner - Der Ring des Nibelungen (Ring Cycle) / Sir Georg Solti

Music Review: A Long Overdue Comment
Rating: 3 Stars

Despite its legendary status based largely, I would imagine, on the presence of the peerless Nilsson at her prime and various other outstanding cast members, Culshaw's perplexing decision to use Hotter as the Wotan and Solti as conductor were casting disasters which mar much of the cycle. In his book, Ring Resounding, Culshaw admits that Hotter was a compromise and felt he would be critized by one faction or the other if he did or didn't use Hotter. The guy may have much experience and dramatic insight concerning the role, but his voice per se (never that great, even in its prime) is in such bad shape it's virtually unlistenable and even at times unbearable. (Like hearing a bass baritone Gwyneth Jones) I believe Joseph Metternich was still active at the time and would have been an ideal Wotan as evident on many recordings, I don't know if he was under contract with Decca, but since EMI was (foolishly) not planning on a complete Ring at the time, perhaps they might have released him.

Solti's conducting is pretty mediocre (lacking in insight and clarity and articulation in the string writing due to overly rapid tempi, projects various pivotal orchestral sonorities poorly, narrow dynamic range, sameness of attacts and tonal quality within the orchestral choirs...etc...etc..) Most of the electronic tricks and sound effects seem either dated, obtrusive, unrealistic or just lacking in dramatic and/or musical taste.

The Leinsdorf Walkure initially on RCA is so far superior in every respect (Nilsson, London, Gorr, Vickers!) except maybe for some awkward edits, that it easily demonstrates Leinsdorf would have been the legitimate choice and I believe he was under contract with London Decca at the time! His conducting can be best described as the exact opposite of the earlier description of Solti. His interpretation contains all the hallmarks of first class Wagner conducting. He was initially Bodansky's assistant at the Met as Bodansky was initially Mahler's assistant in Vienna. He was part a great tradition of Wagner conductor. You figure it. Solti did work with Toscanini for a short while, I think, at Salzburg, but he seems to have inherited most of Toscanini's worst characteristics rather than his best.

I was lucky enough to get my hands on the Bensar release of a complete uncut Met Ring from the early 60's (before their plug was pulled) with Leinsdorf conducting an excellent cast to boot (also including Nilsson). Even though the sound isn't perfect, it's more than listenable and the musical quality of this great and unique work is audibly present. Parts of this Ring are broadcast occasionally on the Sirius Met Network. I can easily rate it among the best of my two dozen or so complete Ring cycles on CD...along with the Furtwangler (RAI early 50's), Janowsky (first digital on Eurodisc and like Furtwangler, follows all of Wagner's musical details such as the entrance of the male chorus in Gotterdammerung beginning with one then two choristers growing over several measures into the full chorus and not concerting various Walkure's lines in their big scene.) Other great Rings are the Knappertsbusch (several are available from mid 50's, casts vary in quality), Moralt (late 40's excellent cast with suprisingly good sound), Bohm (also, in general great cast, mid 60's Bayreuth). The Met Ring (Schenk production) on DVD is also excellent in nearly every respect. (Biggest outright failure: the effect for Fafner in Siegfried.) Levine is at his best.

I place the Solti Ring somewhere in the lower middle.


In closing I should mention that the Bensar release contains much of the original intermission features. One of which was a great tongue in cheek discussion-argument between Boris Goldowsky and an equally adept opponent over whether Gotterdammerung is a Wagner music drams or a old fashioned bigger than life romantic grand opera a la Meyerbeer. Of course, as we all know, it turns out to be both!! (Siegfried's and Brunnhilde's immolation is the ultimate auto-de-fe!)

Description of Wagner - Der Ring des Nibelungen (Ring Cycle) / Sir Georg Solti

Modern storage media (CD/DVD) offer both high fidelity and great reliability in the playback of music. Yet only a bit more than a generation ago, the possibilities inherent in the long-playing record inspired John Culshaw, a young producer for Decca, to attempt the most ambitious recording project ever contemplated up to that time--a complete studio recording of the Ring. Though other Rings were issued after this landmark enterprise, none have equaled the Decca Ring in popularity. There are those who prefer live performances, or who feel that the sound and theatrical effects in this recording are overdone; nonetheless this remains the benchmark Ring, as shown by its seemingly endless rerelease schedule. The Ring effort was high profile at the time and helped nail down Sir Georg Solti's status as a "superstar" conductor and authoritative interpreter of the Wagnerian repertory. Another key contributor to the success of the project was the uniform excellence in the casting. Definitive performances given include Neidlinger's nietzschean Alberich, Stolze's whining Mime, Boehme's rumbling Fafnir, along with Nilsson in her prime-more a force of nature than a human voice. The care lavished on the capture of the music was unmatched at the time of the recording, and still leaves this as one of the best sounding Rings even today, when the oldest part (Rheingold) has reached its 40th anniversary. --Christian C. Rix

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