R. Strauss: Die Ägyptische Helena

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Strauss and librettist Hoffmannsthal planned a light opera on themes of marital relations and reconciliation. They imagined the rescued Helen of Troy traveling home with Menalaus, who now wants to kill her for her infidelity that led to the carnage of the Trojan War. Despite some comic writing early on, they failed to produce the requisite lightness, stuffing the libretto with clichéd symbolism including singing seashells, elves, magic potions, and more. But Strauss' score, if not wholly successful, does have some terrific moments, including Helen's spectacular big aria that opens Act Two. This again proves that even lesser Strauss operas shouldn't be missed. Deborah Voigt invests Helen with vocal radiance and power. She makes this recording a must-have. Her colleagues include mezzo Jill Grove's big-voiced Sea Shell and Celena Shafer's fine lyric soprano in the role of the enchantress Aithra, and tenor Carl Tanner who valiantly gets through the impossible part of Menaleus. All must contend with Leon Botstein's rough-and-ready conducting, but only Voigt effortlessly rides over the huge orchestral climaxes that sometimes bury the others. The fine orchestral playing gives Strauss' brilliant colors their full due. Telarc's engineering of this live concert performance is first class, helping to make this the preferred recorded version of the opera. --Dan Davis

R. Strauss: Die Ägyptische Helena, Music, Deborah Voigt, Richard Strauss, Leon Botstein, Jill Grove, Elizabeth Batton, Christopher Robertson, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, German/Austrian Romantic Opera, Opera, Opera / Operetta / Oratorio

Average customer rating:

Strauss' Most Obscure Opera....for good reason!

Great Score,Fine Singers,Reticent Conductor

Fine live performance of Strauss' unfairly neglected opera

Not impressive at all

Good Voigt

R. Strauss: Die Ägyptische Helena
Deborah Voigt , Leon Botstein , Jill Grove , Elizabeth Batton , and Christopher Robertson
Manufacturer: Telarc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00009NHAA
Release Date: 2003-06-24

Tracks:

Einleitung: Das Mahl Ist Gerichtet
Sause Hin, Sturm! Flieg Hin Wie Der Blitz!
Wo Bin Ich?
Bei Jener Nacht, Der Keuschen Einzig Einen
Ein Becher War SuBer Als Dieser
Ihr Grunen Augen
Ohne Zaudern
Wer Bist Du?
Ai!
O Engel, Fur Elfen
Das Notigste Nur

Tracks:

Zweite Braut Nacht!
Wo Ist Das Haus?
Aus Flirrender Stille
Eilig Zusammen Geraffte Gaben
Denn Es Ist Recht, DaB Wir Kampfen
Ich Werde Neben Dir Reiten!
So Schon Bedient
Aithra! Liebe Herrliche!
Habet Acht!
Hute Dich Furst
Mein Geliebter! Menelas!
Die Wir Zum Feste Dich Laden
Weib, Tritt Hinweg!
Bei Jener Nacht, Der Keuschen Einzig Einen
Tot-Lebendige!
Zu Mir Das Weib!
Vater, Wo Ist Meine Schone Mutter?
Gewogene Lufte, Fuhrt Uns Zuruck

Amazon.com

Strauss and librettist Hoffmannsthal planned a light opera on themes of marital relations and reconciliation. They imagined the rescued Helen of Troy traveling home with Menalaus, who now wants to kill her for her infidelity that led to the carnage of the Trojan War. Despite some comic writing early on, they failed to produce the requisite lightness, stuffing the libretto with clichéd symbolism including singing seashells, elves, magic potions, and more. But Strauss' score, if not wholly successful, does have some terrific moments, including Helen's spectacular big aria that opens Act Two. This again proves that even lesser Strauss operas shouldn't be missed. Deborah Voigt invests Helen with vocal radiance and power. She makes this recording a must-have. Her colleagues include mezzo Jill Grove's big-voiced Sea Shell and Celena Shafer's fine lyric soprano in the role of the enchantress Aithra, and tenor Carl Tanner who valiantly gets through the impossible part of Menaleus. All must contend with Leon Botstein's rough-and-ready conducting, but only Voigt effortlessly rides over the huge orchestral climaxes that sometimes bury the others. The fine orchestral playing gives Strauss' brilliant colors their full due. Telarc's engineering of this live concert performance is first class, helping to make this the preferred recorded version of the opera. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

Strauss' Most Obscure Opera....for good reason!.......2007-04-07

As a diehard R. Strass fan, I eagerly looked forward to hearing this opera, having never heard it and also having to teach it to my opera class. I must admit that if I never hear this opera again, that's fine with me. The plot is totally nonsensical and very hard to comprehend. Musicologists claim the second act to be the stronger of the two, and they are correct, as at least there is some character development. The first act, to be honest, is simply stupid. Hoffmansthal and Strauss really slipped on this one.

The movement of the drama, therefore, must fall on the shoulders of the singers, and here they fall short. Debra Voight is in exquisite voice, but she has only two volumes: loud and louder. Her touches of nuance are few and far between, and this opera begs for a lot of them to give it any shape. She attacks the incredibly demanding range with a vengeance, but after a half hour her voice ceases to fall graciously on the ear.

The tenor, Carl Tanner, sounds totally out of his league, valiantly trying to sing his lines in a tessitura that simply is too high for him. His lower notes show warmth and a normal vibrato, but once above the staff (where much his part lies), the vibrato slows alarmingly and his tone becomes tight and forced, giving the impression that he's right at the limits of his vocal capacity.

As a through-composed opera (a nod to Wagner), there are precious few parts that can be removed as an aria per se. The most viable section is the famous Awakening Scene at the beginning of Act II. Here Debra Voight scales the taxing range with relative ease, but her delivery is pretty void of any emotion. [I suggest listening to Leontyne Price, or, better yet, Leonie Rysanek for a comparison.]

What really redeems this recording is the orchestra and conductor. The under-rated American Orchestra brings the music to life with clear and in-tune playing: a fabulous feat considering all the dissonances strewn with seeming abandon throughout. Conductor Leon Botstein is to be commended for maintaining a cohesive ensemble and keeping the opera moving, with careful attention to musical details and instilling a sweeping vivacity that keeps the opera alive.

If you can locate Leonie Rysanek's live 1956 performance, buy it! The sound is iffy at times, but she and her colleagues bring the weak libretto to life much more so than this recording.

Great Score,Fine Singers,Reticent Conductor.......2005-02-12

I felt some unfair judgements concerning this recording,by reading controversial rewiews below.First of all,"Helena" is an unquestionable fine score,a kind of a "Die Frau" opera twin,in spite of the overfanciful plot and its historical and ficticious mix characters.Mostly,the music is intricate just like the libreto,heavly orchestrated and singers have a really hard job to do,especially the tenor(Menelaus).Of course,if one expect an immaculate singing of this part,this listener must go to a studio recording because Menelaus must sing a couple of hours with very little breaks.This live "Helena" has an youth,brave Carl Tunner singing the deceived husband and his performance is a very respectable one.He was strength enough to his seductive partner,Deborah Voigt.If you don't know what is a truly straussian soprano voice,just hear Voigt's radiant and flexible tones.About those singers,I think all of they increase energy and brightness to this recording.I like a lot Christopher Robertson(Altair),a baritone I never heard before.But,this cd-set brings out a serious problem;a conductor that doesn't have affinities with music he's performing.Prologue and Act One(the singers,as well)suffer due to reticent,cowardly Botstein's conducting and I remember that moment when Helena says to her suitor,Da-ud;"-Boy,take care around the fire,or you'll melt like wax!".In my opinion,in despite of all that gorgeous singing,fine digital sound,fire was fairly I miss here.However,this set is an indispensable one to Strauss' opera lovers.

Fine live performance of Strauss' unfairly neglected opera.......2004-07-09

Since I never heard any other recordings of this opera before, I came to it unprejudiced, with a fresh mind
and ear. I was skeptical at first, the opera being rarely performed, if at all, and generally referred to as the composer's least successful work. Be it as it may, I found the score ravishingly beautiful, owing somewhat to that other mythological opera, Ariadne auf Naxos, and just as gorgeous, but without its commedia dell'arte silliness.
Here we have a stunning new recording, a live concert performance from New York's Avery Fischer Hall and there is an electricity and excitement about it that cannot usually be found in studio recordings. An all American cast of young singers, all in fine voices, adds enthusiasm to the proceedings and Deborah Voigt, perhaps today's greatest of Strauss sopranos , is finest in the performance , but the other singers
are also very satisfactory.The American Symphony Orchestra, founded by Leopold Stokowski, now led by Leon Botstein, plays very well indeed, creating many magical orchestral effects, colours and sonorities and coping well with the enormously rich,intricate score. The finales to acts one and two were superbly done and sent shivers up my spine. I am sure the audience felt the same way and went home satisfied and spiritually enriched.
Perhaps it is unfortunate that none of the singers are German and therefore the pronunciation suffers and the words tend to be blurred out.
TELARC here created a perfectly well balanced , natural and very dynamic sound , bringing out Strauss' magnificent orchestration. It will please the most critical listener and will leave all previous recordings behind as far as sound is concerned.
This may not be the finest recording of this opera, but let's face it, this is the 21st century and Solti, Keilberth and Krips are dead and so is Leonie Rysanek (fortunately their recordings are still available). One is free to choose of course, but I recommend this recording very highly . It comes in a handsome box-set , a full trilingual libretto and an exhaustive essay by Botstein, who is also a fine Strauss scholar.

Not impressive at all.......2004-06-14

This opera stands or falls with the soprano singing the title role, and I'm afraid Debbie Voigt isn't a good exponent of the part. Her voice sounds thin at the very top, and she sings without much feeling. One wonders how such a dull Helen can kick up all that fuss!

Good Voigt.......2004-04-23

In the interest of full disclosure I must state I have been a fan of Deborah Voigt ever since I first heard her in a semi-staged production of Verdi's "Un Ballo" in Palm Springs, CA. That must be close to twenty years ago. She was impossibly young and impossibly talented.

Vocally, she has seldom failed to impress ever since.

This recording is no exception, with one or two small caveats: Ms. Voigt is about voice, voice and more voice. A friend of mine used to refer, in awe, to Dame Joan Sutherland as producing "piles of sound". Much the same can be said of Voigt. She produces piles of sound that can simply leave one speechless. It can be a thrilling experience.

However, it can also be said she does not necessarily base her art on an exceptional ability to interpret her roles dramatically. That simply is not what she is all about.

Because of that, and because of what I find to be somewhat unconvincing conducting, I would say this recording is awfully good, but perhaps not great.

I wouldn't be without it, because I find those "piles of sound" impossible to resist.

However, I would strongly suggest one also give a listen to the contemporaneous recording by Korsten. He seems to have a better take on what Strauss is up to here and his soloists are pretty exciting stuff as well.

You may find it to be one of those recordings you like telling others you discovered. Don't worry, I won't tell on you.

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