WAGNER: The Ring—an orchestral adventure; Parsifal—an orchestral quest; Tristan and Isolde—an orchestral passion – Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra/ Edo de Waart, conductor – Challenge Classics 72338 (3 CDs), 185:27 [Distr. by Allegro] *****:
These recordings stem from 1992-1995 but do not sound any the worse for wear—in fact, they are each superb, with lots of detail and ambiance around the forces, and an orchestra that plays as well as anyone I have ever heard try this repertory. And what is it exactly? Well, long tradition dictates that “bleeding chunks” be excised from the complete scores in order to spread the Wagnerian gospel as far as possible. There have been many such attempts, and in fact they do work very well in the concert hall, Wagner ensuring that his system of “leitmotifs” (not his term, by the way) give the potential listener all that he or she needs to follow a wordless yet highly discernable story solely through the music.
The last arrangement of this nature that I can remember hearing was Lorin Maazel’s Berlin Philharmonic recording on Telarc called “The Ring without Words”. I like that one a lot, but this Ring arrangement blows that one away, including the playing as well. Edo de Waart is one of the unsung heroes of classical music in my book, and his pacing and inspiration are at a very high level here, his subtle navigation of the transition between scenes a marvel to behold, and everything feeling just right.
This arrangement was created in 1992 after performances of the Ring with these same forces in concert. Composer, arranger, and percussionist with the Radio Philharmonic, Henk de Vlieger, then created a second series based on Parsifal also performed in concert, only two years later. Parsifal may be somewhat problematic—but only somewhat—as an opera, but orchestrally it is an exquisite marvel to hear, and one misses the voices even less than in the Ring. Tristan and Isolde works equally well in this format too, De Vlieger capturing all of the nuances of the complex tale of unrequited love—until conjured up—between the two protagonists and Isolde’s husband, King Mark. This creation was done specifically for this recording project.
This is an outstanding issue that deserves its resurrection, and all Wagnerites will want it even if there are several similar issues in the library.
— Steven Ritter
Rodziński Conducts the NBC Symphony Orchestra, 1938 Vol. 4 – Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Strauss… – Pristine Audio
From Pristine – Volume 4, of their revival of the NBC Symphony concerts led by Artur Rodzinski.
