{"product_id":"leinsdorf-wagner-ring-cycle-3-siegfried-1962-met-paco155","title":"LEINSDORF Wagner Ring Cycle: 3. Siegfried (1962, Met) - PACO155","description":"overviewfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eWAGNER \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eDer Ring Des Nibelungen: 3. Siegfried\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003eLive broadcast performance, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #000000\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"bodysmallarial\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003e1962\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 12px;\"\u003eTotal duration: 3hr 49:17 (includes radio announcements)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eSiegfried - \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eHans Hopf\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eBrünnhilde -\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003e Birgit Nilsson\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eMetropolitan Opera Orchestra \u0026amp; Chorus  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003econducted by \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 16px;\"\u003eErich Leinsdorf\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9review_titlefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9review_quotefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9review_bodyfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9main_samplefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fsamples\/PACO155.mp3578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_labelfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fSleevenotes578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_typefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcontent578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_contentfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eSiegfried\u003c\/em\u003e\nis perhaps the least respected of all the Ring operas. Some say it lacks\nthe taut drama of \u003cem\u003eDas Rheingold\u003c\/em\u003e, the intensely personal emotions\nof \u003cem\u003eDie Walküre\u003c\/em\u003e or the spectacle of \u003cem\u003eGötterdämmerung\u003c\/em\u003e. In\nsome respects, it could be classified as a chamber opera – the whole of Act\n1 takes place in Mime’s cave, the whole of Act 2 outside Fafner’s cave, and\nonly in Act 3 is there a (small) scene change from near Brünnhilde’s rock\nto its summit. It’s also a peculiarly male-dominated opera. It’s hard to\nthink of any other opera where all the singers in Act 1 are male, and\nindeed for large parts of it, only tenors are singing. Female voices are\nnot heard until the latter stages of Act 2, and only given real prominence\nfor the final half an hour of Act 3. Yet for all these reservations, \u003cem\u003eSiegfried\u003c\/em\u003e is a masterful opera.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nThe story introduces us to Siegfried, love-child of the ill-fated Siegmund\nand Sieglinde from \u003cem\u003eDie Walküre\u003c\/em\u003e. He has been raised, after the\ndeath of his parents, by Mime the Nibelung dwarf, brother of Alberich, and\nlast seen in \u003cem\u003eDas Rheingold\u003c\/em\u003e. In Act 1, Siegfried learns of his\nparentage and successfully re-forges Nothung, the sword shattered by Wotan\nin \u003cem\u003eDie Walküre\u003c\/em\u003e. In Act 2 Siegfried kills Fafner, who has turned\nhimself into a dragon to protect the gold. This is done at Mime’s urging,\nas he wants the magical treasure for himself. Tasting a drop of Fafner’s\nblood enables Siegfried to understand the voice of a Woodbird, who warns\nhim to beware Mime’s duplicity and Siegfried quickly slays him. The\nWoodbird then tells Siegfried of a heroine fit for a hero, sleeping on a\nrock, surrounded by magic fire, and Siegfried sets off to claim his bride.\nIn Act 3, Wotan, disguised as the Wanderer, tries to block Siegfried’s\npath, but the newly forged Nothung shatters Wotan’s spear and Siegfried\npasses through the fire. At the top of the rock he awakens Brünnhilde and\nthey sing a rapturous love duet. At its heart \u003cem\u003eSiegfried \u003c\/em\u003eshows us\nthe transformation of a boy into a man, but it also marks the liberation of\nmankind from divine meddling.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nThe title role in \u003cem\u003eSiegfried\u003c\/em\u003e is incredibly difficult to cast. The\npart is perhaps the longest tenor role in all opera, and the character is\non stage for most of each act. The number of tenors who have been able to\nsing the part successfully is vanishingly small. The voice has to be large\nand heroic – easily distinguished from Mime - yet light and versatile at\nthe same time as there is a lot of quiet, reflective singing in Act 2.\nAbove all, the tenor must have stamina. It is a cruel trick to put a\nvocally demanding love duet at the end of a four-hour opera with a soprano\nwho has only just woken up. There are plenty of Siegfrieds who have little\nvoice left by the end of Act 3 and are dominated by a Wagnerian soprano who\nis really just getting warmed up. Hans Hopf offers us a Siegfried that\nticks many of the right boxes. His voice is large and carries a certain\nheft that the role demands. He also possesses that rare stamina that\nenables him to sing this role successfully. He sounds just as fresh in Act\n3 as he did in Act 1. It would be unfair to compare him to the matchless\nLauritz Melchior, heard in the role on the 1937 broadcast from the Met\n(PACO139), and instead we should measure Hopf against Wolfgang Windgassen,\nhis great contemporary. Hopf has more stamina and vocal weight while\nWindgassen is the more thoughtful singer. Only Hopf disrupted Windgassen’s\nreign as the Siegfried at Bayreuth between 1953-67, assuming the role\nbetween 1960 and 1964. He also sang Walther, Tannhauser and Parsifal at\nboth Bayreuth and the Met, but sang Lohengrin only at the latter.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nPaul Kuen and George London return as Mime and Wotan\/Wanderer from \u003cem\u003eDas Rheingold\u003c\/em\u003e. Kuen was a master of the role, performing it at\nBayreuth and elsewhere, and he gives us a truly sung characterisation\nrather than the caricature that others sometimes offer. London is here\nsinging his first Wanderer but he has the role well under control, offering\nboth gravitas and wit. Birgit Nilsson resumes her role as Brünnhilde, and\ncompared to \u003cem\u003eDie Walküre\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eGötterdämmerung\u003c\/em\u003e, this is\nalmost a day of rest for her. Her brief appearance is thrilling and her\ntrademark high notes, including a magnificent final high C, don’t\ndisappoint. As in \u003cem\u003eDas Rheingold\u003c\/em\u003e, Jean Madeira gives us a powerful\nand authoritative Erda while Fafner is sung by Gottlob Frick, one of best\nWagnerian basses of the 1950s and 1960s. Most of Frick’s career was in\nEurope, indeed he sang only twelve performances at the Met, but he was the\nHunding and Hagen at Bayreuth between 1960 and 1964 and sang both roles in\nDecca’s Ring Cycle under Solti.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\nErich Leinsdorf continues his policy of performing the Ring uncut, and this\nis the first ever Met broadcast of Siegfried without the customary cuts in\nAct 3.\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_cover_thumbnail1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_cover_thumbnail2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_cover_download_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample3_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample4_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample5_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab1_sample6_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_labelfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fFull Cast Listing578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_typefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5ftrack_listing578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_contentfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: medium;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: small;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: medium;\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eWAGNER \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 18px;\"\u003eDer Ring Des Nibelungen: 3. Siegfried\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eCAST\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSiegfried \u003cb\u003e- Hans Hopf \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBrünnhilde \u003cb\u003e- Birgit Nilsson \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWanderer \u003cb\u003e- George London \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eErda \u003cb\u003e- Jean Madeira \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMime \u003cb\u003e- Paul Kuen \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAlberich \u003cb\u003e- Ralph Herbert \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFafner \u003cb\u003e- Gottlob Frick \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eForest Bird \u003cb\u003e- Martina Arroyo\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eMetropolitan Opera Orchestra \u0026amp; Chorus    \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003econducted by \u003cb\u003eErich Leinsdorf\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eXR remastering by Andrew Rose\u003cbr\u003eCover artwork based on a photograph of Hans Hopf as Siegfried against a detail from Josef Hoffman's 1876 set designs\u003cbr\u003eLive broadcast from New York Metropolitan Opera House, 13 January, 1962\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTotal duration:  3hr 49:17\u003cbr\u003eOpera duration: 3hr 45:06578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_cover_thumbnail1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_cover_thumbnail2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_cover_download_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample3_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample4_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample5_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab2_sample6_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_labelfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fCover Art578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_typefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcover_art578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_contentfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_cover_thumbnail1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcovers\/thumbs\/PACO155.jpg578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_cover_thumbnail2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_cover_download_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcovers\/PACO155.pdf578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample3_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample4_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample5_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab3_sample6_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_labelfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fHistoric Review578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_typefb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5fcontent578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_contentfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 17px;\"\u003eReview of Robert Sabin in Musical America\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis uncut \"Siegfried\" was full of delightful discoveries. I can offer Erich Leinsdorf no higher praise than to say that the beautiful playing of the orchestra brought back may vivid memories of Fritz Stiedry's inspired interpretation of this score. Nowhere was Wagner's miraculous sense of color and atmosphere more subtly employed than in this music, which stirs the intellect as it intoxicates the senses.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAll of the members of the cast were new to their roles at the Metropolitan, except Miss Madeira and Mr. Herbert, and all of them were excellent. Mr. Hopf could not, in the nature of things, look like a young hero, but he sang and acted like one, with a full understanding of his marvelous musical opportunities. The pathos of the orphaned boy, his horror of evil and his need for love were very real to this fine singer and artist.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt needed no more than the awakening to stamp Miss Nilsson's Siegfried Brünnhilde as one of the great ones of all time. The plastique was memorably beautiful and her tones poured forth with a freshness, gleam and abundance that kept one tingling with amazement. Her final high C, instead of an agonized effort, was a rapturous outburst. Like Mr. Hopf, she was aware every second of what she was singing about, and it is a sad commentary on Wagnerian standards that I should have to single this as a rare virtue.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnother memorable performance was that of George London. Not since Friedrich Schorr have we had a Wanderer who brought to this role such majesty of bearing, beauty of voice and diction, and dramatic profundity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePaul Kuen was an ideal Mime and managed to sing the role, instead of barking it, and he combined grotesque malevolence with a sort of cringing pathos in his portrait of a creature that was neither all man nor all monster. His facial expressions alone were marvels of distortion and characterization.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGottlob Frick, great artist that he is brought out the sleepy heaviness of the rather lovable dragon and the marvelous irony of \"ich schlafe and besitze\" (\"I sleep and I own\"). And Martina Arroyo sang the exquisite music of the Forest Bird with startling volume but saving agility and gracefulness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMiss Madeira had the right kind of voice for Erda, but she had her troubles with placement and phrasing at this performance. Mr. Herbert helped to make the quarrel between Alberich and Mime (one of the wittiest things in all music) one of the highlights of a generally eloquent performance.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e[\u003ci\u003eReview of performance of \u003c\/i\u003eJanuary 2, 1962]\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_cover_thumbnail1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_cover_thumbnail2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_cover_download_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_sample1_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_sample2_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_sample3_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_sample4_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_sample5_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f578a9379d1e540bd96d26f03a79628d9tab4_sample6_s3_locationfb55cd020f0643f08418183279e63a5f","brand":"Pristine Classical","offers":[{"title":"Ambient Stereo 24-bit FLAC","offer_id":54932341162323,"sku":"pfk1789302401392","price":42.32,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Ambient Stereo 16-bit FLAC","offer_id":54932341195091,"sku":"sqv1789302401393","price":26.42,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"320kbps Ambient Stereo MP3","offer_id":54932341227859,"sku":"jyo1789302401394","price":18.8,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1068\/1833\/9155\/files\/leinsdorf-wagner-ring-cycle-3-siegfried-1962-met---paco155_1.jpg?v=1789302430","url":"https:\/\/lovevividclad.shop\/products\/leinsdorf-wagner-ring-cycle-3-siegfried-1962-met-paco155","provider":"luckagni","version":"1.0","type":"link"}