Antonio Pappano, Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
(Recorded 18th July, 2005, Royal Albert Hall, London)
Siegmund - Plácido Domingo
Hunding - Eric Halfvarson
Wotan - Bryn Terfel
Sieglinde - Waltraud Meier
Brünnhilde - Lisa Gasteen
Fricka - Rosalind Plowright
Gerhilde - Geraldine McGreevy
Ortlinde - Elaine McKrill
Waltraute - Claire Powell
Schwertleite - Rebecca de Pont Davies
Helmwige - Iréne Theorin
Siegrune - Sarah Castle
Grimgerde - Claire Shearer
Roßweiße - Elizabeth Sikora
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Erica Jeal in "The Guardian" wrote:
"This, astonishingly, was Plácido Domingo's Proms debut. That alone was enough to create an immense buzz around this wholesale transfer of the Royal Opera's "Die Walküre" to the Albert Hall, in staged concert form. But the fact that the evening ended with the entire cheering audience on its feet-something that rarely happens here-was down to much more than that.
Not least of these factors was the fact that the orchestra has been so close to this work for so long. Antonio Pappano's fast tempos may occasionally jettison some of the music's spaciousness, but he keeps its energy flowing, and the musical tension crackled.
Responding to each other but not in costume, the singers seemed if anything liberated by the absence of a full staging. And Domingo's Siegmund is indeed extraordinary. His German is not impeccable, and in the more restless passages he can swallow his consonants; but his burnished sound is unmistakable. In the baleful summing-up at the end of his act one narration you could hear exactly why he has been enjoying such an Indian summer in Wagner.
Waltraud Meier's gleaming Sieglinde was a formidable match, and Lisa Gasteen's huge, penetrating soprano made her headstrong Brünnhilde absolutely convincing. Eric Halfvarson's Hunding made the balconies reverberate, and Rosalind Plowright worked hard to ensure Fricka's crucial confrontation with Wotan carried sufficient weight.
It was Bryn Terfel's Wotan, however, that was the heart and soul of all this; though he has barely begun to sing this iconic role, he already has few rivals in it. Singing and acting were so enmeshed, his projection of text and musical nuance so effortless, that it seemed we were tapping directly into his thoughts. An unforgettable performance, capping an unforgettable evening."
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0:00:00 - Prelude
0:03:52 - Scene 1: "Wes Herd dies auch sei, hier muss ich rasten"
0:06:37 - Scene 1: "Kühlende Labung gab mir der Quell"
0:14:41 - Scene 2: "Müd' am Herd fand ich den Mann"
0:19:13 - Scene 2: "Friedmund darf ich nicht heißen"
0:24:25 - Scene 2: "Die so leidig Los dir beschied"
0:28:05 - Scene 2: "Ich weiß ein wildes Geschlecht"
0:33:37 - Scene 3: "Ein Schwert verhieß mir der Vater"
0:38:34 - Scene 3: "Schläfst du, Gast?"
0:44:53 - Scene 3: "Winterstürme wichen dem Wonnemond"
0:47:28 - Scene 3: "Du bist der Lenz, nach dem ich verlangte"
0:49:20 - Scene 3: "O süßeste Wonne! Seligstes Weib!"
0:55:05 - Scene 3: "Siegmund heiß' ich, und Siegmund bin ich!"
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"Die Walküre" ("The Valkyrie") is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner, with a German libretto by the composer. It is the second of the four works that form the cycle "Der Ring des Nibelungen" ("The Ring of the Nibelung"). It was first performed at the Royal Court and National Theatre in Munich on 26th June, 1870.