WAGNER: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (complete opera) (2 DVDs)

by | Jun 1, 2012 | DVD & Blu-ray Video Reviews

WAGNER: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (complete opera) (2 DVDs) (1999/2008) 
Conductor: Daniel Barenboim
Cast: Robert Holl (Hans Sachs)/ Matthias Hölle (Pogner)/ Andreas Schmidt (Beckmesser)/ Peter Seiffert (Walther von Stolzing)/ Endrik Wottrich (David)/ Emily Magee (Eva)/ Birgitta Svenden (Magdalene);  Bayreuth Festival Orchestra and Choir
Director: Wolfgang Wagner
Studio: Unitel Classica 2072358, 2007, 2 DVDs [Distr. by Naxos]
Video: 16:9 Color
Audio: DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1, PCM Stereo
Subtitles: German, English, French, Spanish
Length: 274 minutes
Rating: ****
Who else but Wagner could make so much of a glorious 4/4 beginning with an equally glorious C-major chord? In a way this whole opera is a celebration of the “basics” of musical composition—straightforward melody, counterpoint rarely heard in the romantic era, and a very simple plot where Wagner himself seems to teach us the art of melody in a storyline centered on one man trying to create the perfect song—or at least good enough to be pronounced a “master” and get the girl as well—all in a very short four hours. It really doesn’t seem long, the astonishing miracle of Wagner’s music turning itself inside out and outside in, up and down and all around to provide one of the most complete spectacles of musical/emotional manipulation ever created. Die Meistersinger is often called a comedy, but turn elsewhere if you are looking for belly laughs; it’s a love story pure and simple, with excursions into the beautiful poetics of life by the famous (and real) Hans Sachs. And despite what might seem preposterous in the invocation of “holy German art” at the end, the sincerity can never be questioned, and we walk away from the opera wondering if, maybe, there just might be something to that.
There have been many recordings—about 35 currently available—in CD form, the Jochum, Karajan, and Solti productions some of the most popular, but far fewer DVDs, though the ones available are generally very good, especially Levine’s Metropolitan Opera version. This is one of Wolfgang Wagner’s last productions (he died in 2008) and makes use of traditional elements imposed on a modern stage that relies on elaborate and (thankfully) period costuming but very few props of any kind, with a huge screen in the back that facilitates the scene changes with basic background. Visually it is very appealing if not the last word in creative staging. But it does give the required feeling for the period of the opera. Daniel Barenboim, a Bayreuth mainstay, conducts very well with a lot of energy and support.
This is a 1999 recording that took place over a week’s time, and was broadcast on television; I can’t detect any audience at all in the theater. The production itself was three years old at the time. What might throw some listeners is the surround sound—it won’t project like you think. It does reflect the marvelous and unusual sound of the Festspielhaus in Bayreuth, Wagner’s own design, where the voices don’t always project like we moderns have come to expect in these days of microphone productions, but even though the volume is considerably lower and the voices blended into the fabric of Wagner’s orchestra—as he wanted—you can always hear the words. It’s disconcerting at first until you realize that this is how it’s supposed to sound. If you want a more traditional presentation then change the option to PCM Stereo; magically the voices appear on the top with the orchestra subjugated.
The cast is generally very good. Though some reviewers have complained that the role of Eva looks too “old”, in fact Colorado native Emily Magee made her debut only four years before this filming, and her singing in on target and refreshingly direct. Peter Seiffert is an effective—and very large—Walther, while Robert Holl’s Sachs captures the role nicely without drawing undue attention to itself. Add Andreas Schmidt’s colorful and character-laden Beckmesser—without turning the part into that of a clown—and you have a basic line of principals who blend very well as a cast. Everyone needs a good visual Meistersinger, and this one serves the need about as well as any.
Steven Ritter

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