Strauss: Daphne

1. Daphne, opera, Op. 82
Composed by Richard Strauss
with Rose Bampton , Elvira Barbieri , Anton Dermota , Tullio Gagliardo , Angelo Mattiello , Set Svanholm , Ludwig Weber , Lydia Kinderman , Norma Palmieri , Mafalda Rinaldi , Umberto di Toto
Conducted by Erich Kleiber

Strauss: Daphne,Richard Strauss,Erich Kleiber,Angelo Mattiello,Anton Dermota,Elvira Barbieri,Ludwig Weber,Lydia Kinderman,Mafalda Rinaldi,Norma Palmieri,Rose Bampton,Set Svanholm,Tullio Gagliardo,Umberto di Toto,Video Arts Int'l,Classical,German/Austrian Romantic Opera,Opera,Opera / Operetta / Oratorio,Opera/Operetta

Average customer rating: I have this on LP somewhere - it was treasure but Decca & Fleming my current first choice! A Collector's Item This is the one to own.... Wonderful document, but... Daphne is a great opera

Strauss - Daphne / Güden · Wunderlich · King · Little · Schöffler · Böhm Richard Strauss , Karl Böhm , and Fritz Wunderlich, James King, Vera Little, Paul Schöffler Hilde Güden Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Braun, Hans | ( B ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music Similar Items: Giacomo Puccini: La Bohème (Cambridge Opera Handbooks) R. Strauss: Die Frau ohne Schatten Strauss - Intermezzo / Popp, Fischer-Dieskau, Dallapozza, Fuchs, Finke, Moll, Raimund Grumbach, Hirte, Wilsing, Bayerischen Rundfunks, Sawallisch W. A. Mozart: Così fan tutte (Cambridge Opera Handbooks) Memoirs of Lorenzo Da Ponte (New York Review Books Classics) ASIN: B000001GMO Release Date: 1994-09-20

Tracks:

1. Orchestereinleitung: Kleontes!-Adrast! - Hans Braun/Kurt Equiluz/Harald Proglhof/Ludwig Welter
2. O bleib, geliebter Tag! - Hilde Guden
3. Leukippos, du? - Hilde Guden/Fritz Wunderlich
4. 'Daphne!/Mutter!/Wir warten dein - Vera Little/Hilde Guden
5. Ei, so fliegt sie dahin - Rita Streich/Erika Mechera/Fritz Wunderlich
6. Seid ihr um mich, ihr Hirten alle? - Paul Schoffler/Hans Braun/Kurt Equiluz/Harald Proglhof/Ludwig Welter/Vera Little
7. Ich gru dich, weiser, erfahrener Fischer - James King/Paul Schoffler/Vera Little/Hans Braun/Kurt Equiluz/Harald Proglhof/Ludwig Welter
8. Was fuhrt dich her im niedern Gewande - James King/Hilde Guden

Tracks:

1. Dieser Kudies Umarmen - Hilde Guden/James King/Vienna State Op Chor/Scherlich/Paul Schoffler
2. Trinke, du Tochter! - Vera Little/Rita Streich/Erika Mechera/Hilde Guden/Hans Braun/Kurt Equiluz/Harald Proglhof...
3. Furchbare Schmach dem Gotte! - James King/Hans Braun/Kurt Equiluz/Harald Proglhof/Ludwig Welter/Rita Streich/Erika Mechera...
4. Zu dir nun, Knabe! - James King/Fritz Wunderlich/Hilde Guden
5. Jeden heiligen Morgen - James King/Fritz Wunderlich/Hilde Guden
6. Unheilvolle Daphne! - Hilde Guden
7. Was erblicke ich? - James King
8. Daphnes Verwandlung: Ich komme-ich komme-grunende Bruder - Hilde Guden
9. Mondlichtmusik - Hilde Guden

Album Description

The complete opera on two CDs. Deutsche Grammophon. 1994.

Customer Reviews:

I have this on LP somewhere - it was treasure but Decca & Fleming my current first choice!.......2007-07-10

I have this on LP somewhere - it was treasure but Decca & Fleming are my current first choice! Why 3 stars - well as one reviewer says its live and it was winter and everyone had coughs! Also whilst Gueden evolves into a tree beautifully and is captivating in the process the rest is a bit of a shouting match so 3 stars. The Fleming Decca version does nearly everything well except Fleming sounds a little hard of tone from time to time but does evolve beautifully into a tree also, and some of her female supports are not much to my liking but its had to tell if its the singer or the score (like the Mother in Arabella!).

Daphne is a problem work to perform which is why the views here are mixed - in parts you think you are in the middle of Schoenberg (Gurrelieder)then back again in lyrical Strauss - Boehm tended to suppress this a little but that's what the shouting match is about, its in the score!

You might want to wait until you have explored other Strauss stuff - I have just found Intermezzo (EMI) and there Popp is wonderful and it suits me more than Daphne as a whole work. Then there is another conundrum in the new Helene, (versus the Price, Hendricks etc).

So 3 stars (or 6.5/10) seems about right oh and its an older style recording as well! I would go for the Decca Fleming first then this second unless you come across it at super special price!

A Collector's Item.......2007-04-26

I did not pick this CD deliberately - it came accidently when browsing for Wunderlich's recordings.
Thankful indeed that I got it. This live recording will be an invaluable item in any collection of classical music.
The sound in stereo is good enough - even if recorded in 1964.
The dedicatee Karl Boehm conducted well and headed a dream cast : Gueden in title role, flanked by Fritz Wunderlich and James King.
The final trio between the three protagonists are really electrifying.
I haven't heard this opera before, but would say that it is every bit as good as Rosenkavalier or the other Strauss's works, if not as lengthy as others.
Apart from Hilde Gueden's singing, an interesting 'singing battle' was waged between Wunderlich and King in this performance. It is fun picking out who is who in the ensembles: King's heldentenor voice having more baritonal depth and Wunderlich having a brighter metallic ring. Their respective portrayals as god and man constrasted successfully.
I've seen that in the modern album, some critics commented on Fleming's voice as being too 'dark'. Well, I haven't heard that recording yet, but from my recent impression of Fleming in recital, I don't think this role would cause her any great problem - she sounds as gorgeous as ever even in 2007, in great lyrical and silvery tone from top to bottom.
Hilde Gueden had a very girlish (soubrette like) soprano. This suited Daphne's role. But a soprano with a silvery lyricism like Fleming should equally excel.
Surely I will get hold of the modern version some other day.

This is the one to own...........2006-07-27

I'm not a Fleming fan and I would rather she had been replaced with Voigt in that "other" recording. Moreover, when one can find an opera recording - almost any opera recording - with native speakers, unless the orchestra and/or the conductor is simply dreadful, go for the hometown crowd.

Wonderful document, but..........2005-07-29

Daphne is most certainly a good opera by an outstanding composer of operas. The only question is whether one wishes to buy the CD or just hear it in performance. As this latter is very unlikely, and certainly never with such a cast, you will have to "pays you're money and takes you're chances." If you are interested in the classical art of Greece perhaps that should push you into a purchase. As a fan - a huge fan - of Hilde G. I bought the opera for her. Frankly I found her tested pretty severely in her long epic solo opening. If tenors rightly dread walking out on stage and with little warm-up tackling Verdi's Celeste Aida, I can only imagine how sopranos envision this test!
If you are not sold on this opera as a purchase and don't yet own the composer's Four Last Songs you might consider those before Daphne.

Daphne is a great opera.......2004-09-23

Much has been said about the tremendous quality of this performance... I won't reiterate it except to say that if there were a thousand recordings of this opera, this would easily still be the best. As it stands, there aren't a thousand, there aren't very many at all, and that's a shame. Strauss has the reputation of being a retroacitve composer; some say he wrote two great modern operas and then lost it, others say four or five, with a sudden burst of greatness at the end with Cappriccio and the four last songs.
It's becoming more apparent that Strauss had much more to offer us than just Rosenkavalier. While many people criticize the librettos after Hofmannsthal's death, one really should keep in mind what we are comparing here. Considering that the later librettos are being compared to one of the greatest of German poets and the master Oscar Wilde (whose Salome was altered very little and to great effect), one could perhaps have a more forgiving attitude. Certainly the Libretto to Daphne is not bad; no worse than most operas, although lacking a little in excitement and explosive scenes.
The music, however, is absolutely incredible. There are moments that are every bit as intense as Elektra or Salome, and other moments that are even more restrained than Capriccio. It is also a return to tragedy for Strauss, after the succession of comic or at the most tragic-comdedic (after all, Die Frau Ohne Schatten does have a happy ending). If one does not feel comfortable comparing it to the so called great Strauss operas, it has to be at least admitted as a great opera (more so for the music than the libretto). In a way it's similar to the great operas like Cosi fan Tutte, Parsifal, Falstaff and most of Puccini's work after Butterfly, in that it is great, and unfairly overshadowed by works that are more popular and sometimes not as brilliant.
It's also important to remember that Strauss never retreated from dissonance and modernism, anymore than Puccini did either. Because the subject of Rosenkavalier is Mozart era Austria, and because the dissonance is applied in a subtler way, people make the mistake of thinking it is retroactive. If you don't believe this, listen again to the theme associated with the Silver Rose... it's quite dreamy, but it is also removed from the key of the music supporting it. And so on for all of his operas, including Daphne. I should also recommend all the Bohm/Strauss recordings in this series; this man could do Strauss' music, and if you have any doubts about the quality of his music, these are the recordings to get.

Average customer rating: what a voice.... Amazing!! Renee Fleming - Signatures-Great Oper Scenes BEAUTIFUL CROSS SECTION OF STYLES Renee Fleming's greatest recital ever!

Renée Fleming - Signatures ~ Great Opera Scenes / Sir Georg Solti Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky , Antonin Dvorak , Giuseppe Verdi , Benjamin Britten , Richard Strauss , London Symphony Orchestra , Sir Georg Solti , Renée Fleming , Larissa Diadkova , and Jonathan Summers Manufacturer: Decca ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Britten | Britten, Sir Benjamin | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Dvorák, Antonín | ( D ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart | Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Tchaikovsky | Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilyich | ( T ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Verdi | Verdi, Giuseppe | ( V ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music Romances | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Czech | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music English | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Russian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Fleming, Renee | C to G | Featured Performers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music Similar Items: Renee Fleming - The Beautiful Voice ~ Gounod, Lehaair, Orff, Puccini, Rachmaninov, Strauss Renée Fleming Renée Fleming: Bel Canto Renée Fleming - Visions of Love ~ Mozart Arias / Mackerras Renee Fleming: By Request ASIN: B0000042HU Release Date: 1997-09-09

Tracks:

1. Le nozze di Figaro: Porgi, Amor
2. Le nozze di Figaro: E Susanna Non Vien!...Dove Sono I Bei Momenti
3. Eugene Onegin: Nu, Zaboltalas Ya!...Puskai Pogibnu Ya (Letter Scene)
4. Rusalka: Mesicku Na Nebi Hlubokem (O Silver Moon)
5. Otello: Era Piu Calmo?...'Piangea Cantando Nell Erma Landa'... Ave Maria
6. Peter Grimes: Peter Seems To Have Disappeared...Embroidery In Childhood Was A Luxury Of Idleness
7. Daphne: Ich Komme - Ich Komme (Transformation Scene)

Amazon.com essential recording

As the possessor of one of the great lyric soprano voices of our time, soprano Renée Fleming is in demand in the world's great opera houses. (It doesn't hurt that she's also lovely and a fine actress.) This album is an outstanding collection of great arias, ravishingly sung. It shows something of Fleming's range, including as it does music by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Dvorák (the sumptuous "Song to the Moon" from Rusalka, the best part of the entire opera, and sung here in definitive fashion), Verdi, Britten (an effective "Embroidery Scene" from Peter Grimes), and Richard Strauss. This disc is a good starting point for someone seeking to learn more about operatic singing, and a valuable addition to the library of anyone already converted. Fleming is given strong support by mezzo-soprano Larissa Diadkova, baritone Jonathan Summers, and by the late Sir Georg Solti in one of his last recordings. --Sarah Bryan Miller

Customer Reviews:

what a voice...........2006-09-14

I love this recital which is my first introduction to a solo album by Fleming.
Her voice , with its richness and dusky timbre and beautiful, strong higher notes is a treat to hear.
She did sound expressive too but has not yet touched a chord in me when it comes to emotion and feeling.
Call me a helpless Callas fan, but I couldn't help but wonder how La Divina would sound if she sang Russian and played Tatyana in the "Letter" scene; what a great vehicle for acting!
But it does take voices a while to grow on me and that might be it.
I do plan on buying more of her CDs.

Amazing!!.......2005-09-28

This may be one of my favorite albums of all time. Renee Fleming is of course amazing with Mozart...but there are other gems on this album. The scene from Otello is truly astounding!! My personal favorite on this album is the Embroidery Scene from Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten...WOW!!! And of course we all know that the Song to the Moon from Dvorak's Rusalka is amazing. The Tchaikovsky is so wonderful!! The scene from R. Strauss's Daphne is awesome! Brava Renee!!!

Renee Fleming - Signatures-Great Oper Scenes.......2005-08-11

I gave this item as gift so I cannot review it.

BEAUTIFUL CROSS SECTION OF STYLES.......2004-11-22

I really loved this CD, mainly however due to "Mesicku Na Nebi Hlubokem" as it was the first version I had ever heard. Her phrasing, emotion, and tone were a perfect match for Dvorak's lone mermaid. I was also surprised to find Richard Strauss's Daphne here. It is not a common opera or aria so it was all I could do to listen to the beauty of the music that was not a real aria as it was vocal renderings controlled by the orchestra. It may not ever be common but it shows Richard Strauss in a more lyrical way verses his usual more heavy and harsh operas including "Salome" and "Elektra". Now if only we could get Fleming to record "Daphne" in it's entirety. Her other pieces were rich and warm as I have always adored her in the Countess road and she has always does Desdemona proud even if it is just a literary character. This CD is Renee Fleming at her best!

Renee Fleming's greatest recital ever!.......2004-04-16

What can I say that hasn't been said already? The great Solti (Who adored Fleming btw) and Renee Fleming made magic here. One of the greatest recitals in operatic history. Brava Renee!

Average customer rating: My current first choice...!8.25/10! Strictly for Fleming lovers! Late Strauss opera serves as a showpiece for Renee Fleming Renee is wonderful Not the Best Recording

Renée Fleming - Strauss: Daphne Manufacturer: Decca ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music Similar Items: Sacred Songs Cecilia Bartoli ~ Opera Proibita (Handel · Scarlatti · Caldara) / Les Musiciens du Louvre · Minkowski Wagner: Tristan und Isolde [Includes Bonus DVD] R. Strauss - Capriccio / Fleming, von Otter, Finley, Trost, Henschel, Hawlata, Dell'Oste, Banks, Tear, Schirmer, Paris Opera Love Sublime ASIN: B000A3VTS4 Release Date: 2005-09-13

Tracks:

1. Orchestereinleitung - "Kleontes!" / "Adrast"
2. Leb wohl du Tag
3. Leukippos, du?
4. Daphne! / "Mutter!" / "Wir warten dein"
5. Ei, so fliegt sie vorbei
6. Seid ihr um mich, der Hirten alle?
7. Ich grch, weiser, erfahrener Fischer
8. Was fich her im niedern Gewande?
9. Nicht wollen die Gr
10. Dieser Ku- dies Umarmen
11. Alll blonysos
12. Trinke, du Tochter!
13. Furchtbare Schmach dem Gotte!
14. Zu dir nun, Knabe!
15. Jeden heiligen Morgen
16. Was blendet so...Ich komme - ich komme

Tracks:

1. Unheilvolle Daphne!
2. Was erblicke ich?
3. Daphnes Verwandlung "Ich komme - ich komme"
4. Mondlichtmusik

Amazon.com

This rarely performed one-act opera dating from 1938 is not one of Strauss's great works, but its 100 minutes has some ravishingly beautiful music. However, the story of a simple nature-girl who rejects the advances of the god Apollo and is turned into a laurel tree is uniquely enchanting, handsomely orchestrated, and contains some wonderful vocal writing for soprano and a pair of tenors--the latter being very rare in Strauss. Renée Fleming sings the title role beautifully, although some might argue that her voice is too ripe and slightly too big for the part of a very young, virginal girl. But she certainly has all the notes and her silvery tone is irresistible. Johann Botha's Apollo is note-perfect: no mean feat given how high and loud the role is. But he sings with less passion than, say, James King in the same role on DG. Michael Schade, as Leukippos, Daphne's innocent suitor, is ardent and also copes well with Strauss's sometimes cruel writing--one phrase begins on a high C! The rest of the cast is very good. Semyon Bychkov leads a clear, well-paced performance and the WDR Symphony and Chorus play and sing expertly. The number one choice may still be the DG recording under Böhm, but Fleming fans will be very pleased to hear her in this beautiful, strange work. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

My current first choice...!8.25/10!.......2007-07-11

My current first choice - only because I haven't heard much else except the live Boehm which I give 6.5/10 mainly due to sound and good tenors shouting at each other! It's a little better here tenorwise but if only they were King & Wunderlich in the studio. I am not a great fan of Fleming but am hard pressed to say why not - after all its hard to fault her singing, perhaps its her diction or lack of it and the fact that the voice is not identifiably unique (a sort of modern day Kanawa, though even she had a voice you could pick). However that aside this is the best recording around and Fleming does sound lovely on CD 2 but a little hard of tone in CD1. Some of her fellow female singers are not much to my liking but its probably the score (cf. Arabella's Mother) as much as anything!

The orchestra's good and whilst you feel its a bit driven Solti-like at times its not that bad, indeed the pace almost sags but not really!!!

So until I get to hear the June Anderson mentioned by others here its my first pick and no doubt will be treasured in years to come much as the Boehm is now! See what I said about that one!

Its an 8.25/10 mainly due to the lack of repeat playability this set generates (same with the Fleming Thais even though it heaps better than the EMI Sills set except for characterisation, (Sills a much loved and now missed singer!))

Strictly for Fleming lovers!.......2007-05-29

AsI write this, there are 17 reviews for the Byschoff /Fleming version and 8 for the Bohm/Hilde Gueden/James King version. This is because Fleming lovers will follow her to the end, remembering her stellar roles in other operas. I believe the magic of the this lyrical opera is lost with Fleming, although her voice is strong. The conducting is certainly poorer than Bohm's in bringing out the rich lyrical quality of the opera, particularly as the opera approaches its culmination and the laurel tree sings of the earth's sap flowing up the roots. In the 17 reviews there is little mention of the orchestration and in that lies the art of Strauss. Certainly one would have to hear the Fleming opera several times to get to its interpretation. Not so for the Bohm.

Late Strauss opera serves as a showpiece for Renee Fleming.......2007-05-24

SOURCE: Studio recording made in the Cologne Philharmonie, February 28 to March 12, 2005.

SOUND: Satisfactory contemporary digital stereo.

CAST: Daphne - Renee Fleming (soprano); Apollo - Johan Botha (tenor); Leukippos - Michael Schade (tenor); Peneios - Kwanchul Youn (bass); Gaea - Anna Larson (mezzo-soprano); First Shepherd - Eike Wilm Schulte; Second Shepherd - Cosmin Ifrim; Third Shepherd - Gregory Reinhart; Fourth Shepherd - Carsten Wittmoser; First Maid - Julia Kleiter; Second Maid - Twyla Robinson.

CONDUCTOR: Semyon Bychkov with the Men of the WDR Rundfunkchors and the WDR Simphonieorchester, Koeln.

DOCUMENTATION: Libretto in German and English. Short essay on the creation of the opera. Track list that identifies singers and provides timings.

FORMAT: Disk 1 - tracks 1-16, 72:35. Disk 2 - tracks 1 - 4, 27:08.

COMMENTARY: "Daphne" is one of a pair of one-act operas by Richard Strauss--the other was "Friedenstag"--that premiered as a double bill in Dresden in October 1938. Neither opera has ever been a part of anybody's standard repertory. For nearly all intents and purposes, "Friedenstag" was stillborn. There are a couple of bits in "Daphne" that are attractive concert pieces for big-time divas, so the opera maintains a sort of thin, half-ghostly existence. At long intervals, it earns a complete recording when a particularly prominent diva is in the mood for it.

There will always be fans who will argue that "Daphne" is a neglected gem, but to me it is just late, largely uninspired Strauss. It explores no new territories and is hobbled by lame libretto by Joseph Gregor, an oddly elusive literary figure, usually described dismissively as a Viennese stage historian and amateur poet.

A few years earlier, Strauss' great collaborator Hugo von Hoffmanstahl had died. His replacement had been the novelist Stefan Zweig, who happened to be both Jewish AND a pacifist, a man not likely to achieve great success in the Third Reich, even though Strauss had obtained written permission to use him from the hand of Adolph Hitler himself. The team of Strauss and Zweig had turned out "Die Schweigsame Frau," a good but Germanically ponderous version of a story set to music a century earlier as "Don Pasquale." After two performances, Strauss had been ordered to remove his Jewish collaborator's name from the playbill. He refused and wrote a letter to Zweig criticizing their political masters. The letter was intercepted. The opera was shut down, never to be performed again during the lifetimes of its creators.

The Strauss-Zweig partnership could not endure after that, and in any case, Zweig seeing which way the wind was blowing, fled to Britain, where he became a citizen. Strauss, not giving up on opera, needed a new literary collaborator. He chose Joseph Gregor for no better reasons, so far as I can tell, that he was there and that he was willing.

The myth of Daphne is straightforward. It explains why the laurel tree ("daphne" in Greek) is sacred to Apollo. Apollo, the divine archer, had taunted Eros about his little bow. The love god, annoyed, had fired a golden-tipped arrow of love into Apollo's heart and a leaden-tipped one of aversion into the heart of the nymph Daphne, daughter of the river god Peneios (according to Ovid, or of the ancient earth goddess Gaia, according to others.) Apollo pursued the nymph vigorously; the nymph fled precipitously. Eventually he caught up with her and just as he reached out to gather her in, she called out to her father the river god (or to Gaia) for help. Peneios (or Gaia) turned her into a laurel tree. The chastened Apollo thereupon declared the laurel tree to be his favorite forevermore.

For his libretto, Gregor kept Apollo as a Greek god. Daphne became a young girl who lives in a riverside village with her father Peneios, a fisherman, and her mother Gaea. She has a suitor named Leukippos whom she disdains (perhaps because he likes to dress up in drag ... don't ask). Apollo turns up and is attracted to the village girl. Leukippos tries to interfere. Apollo kills him with an arrow. NOW, Daphne regrets that she hadn't recognized her love for the dead shepherd. A chastened Apollo turns the grief-stricken girl into a laurel tree.

The vocal parts of Apollo and Daphne make up in fiendish difficulty what they lack in memorability. Gina Cigna, a great Turandot and Norma, sang Daphne in the Italian premiere of the opera in 1942. "I was flabbergasted by its tessitura," she said. "You kill yourself and in the end you have absolutely nothing."

This recording is a showpiece for Renee Fleming. The only significant question about that requires an answer is does she sing well? Yes, she does. She gives everything that a true Fleming fan might hope for, and that alone would justify a five-star rating for the great majority of those who might be contemplating the purchase of this recording. For my own part, however, Fleming has always struck me as a performer who wants too much to be loved. This brings about in her a profound disinclination to became engaged with the dramatic cores of the characters she portrays. Fleming has the voice and nearly all the tools of her profession, but she always remains Fleming and never Daphne.

Those reviewers inclined to get worked up over matters of non-English pronunciation are worked up over her German in this performance. This seems a small thing to me in a world where mush-mouthed Joan Sutherland was deservedly a fabulous star.

German-Canadian tenor Michael Schade is quite good as Leukippos, although he is capable of delivering more than Strauss' rather insistent writing allows him to do. Johan Botha as Apollo is more than adequate in a voice-mangler of a part. The rest of the cast and the orchestra are perfectly satisfactory.

Four stars ... in metamorphosis.

Renee is wonderful.......2007-05-07

If you like Strauss, and it takes a few listens, then you will love this recording. Renee Fleming is wonderful and breaks your hear with her voice.

Not the Best Recording.......2006-09-25

I know in recent years Renee Fleming has developed an opinion that she can pretty much sing anything well (how else do you explain her recording a Stevie Wonder song?). The problem with this is she simply can't.

While much of this recording is quite good (Johan Botha is a revalation!), unfortunately, Fleming brings down the proceedings everytime she opens her mouth. It's true--her German is pretty terrible. She consistently misprounces the name of her character (what's odd about this is everyone else seems to get it right), and when she sings "Ich komme" in the Transformation Scene, it comes out sounding like "Ash Canna." Perhaps Fleming needs to stick with the French and Italian roles that made her a star and leave the German roles to the experts.

Average customer rating: sublime and fascinating Insomnia- No Way! This one is hot! Insomnia? No Way-This is for the living!

Insomnia Manufacturer: Philips ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Cage, John | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Part | Part, Arvo | ( P ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Rota, Nino | ( R ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Satie | Satie, Erik | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Schnittke | Schnittke, Alfred | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Takemitsu | Takemitsu, Toru | ( T ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Violin | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Movie Scores | Soundtracks | Styles | Music Movie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music Similar Items: John Cage: In a Landscape John Cage: Music for Prepared Piano, Vol. 2 Indeterminacy 4'33" Cage: Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano ASIN: B000026CMT Release Date: 2000-02-08

Tracks:

1. Haru No Umi
2. Nocturne
3. Stanza 2
4. Insomnia
5. Les Fils De Etoiles: Prelude Du Premier Acte 'La Vocation'
6. Cinque Piccoli Duetti: Preludio
7. Cinque Piccoli Duetti: Pastorale
8. Cinque Piccoli Duetti: Canzonetta
9. Cinque Piccoli Duetti: Sogno
10. Cinque Piccoli Duetti: Rondo
11. 'Daphne' Etude
12. Six Melodies: No. 1 (Rubato)
13. Six Melodies: No.2 (Legastissimo)
14. Six Melodies: No.3
15. Six Melodies: No.4
16. Six Melodies: No.5
17. Six Melodies: No.6
18. Spiegel Im Spiegel
19. Il Padrino
20. Suite In The Old Style: Pantomime

Amazon.com

This may be one of the least abrasive albums of contemporary music you'll ever hear. On this culture-melding disc, violinist Gidon Kremer and harpist Naoko Yoshino explore the dizzying roots and offshoots of modern compositions from the Far East and Europe. Every work on Insomnia--whether written by John Cage, Arvo Pärt, or Richard Strauss--seems to share influences and similarities with the next. While Japanese composer Michio Miyagi (1894-1956) was looking to France for influences on Haru no umi, Erik Satie (1866-1925) was looking to the East on the preludes to Le Fils des Étoiles. The comparisons are fascinating, and Kremer and Yoshino make this difficult music sound easy and hypnotic. Especially effective: Pärt's gorgeous Spiegel im Spiegel and Schnittke's almost New Age-sounding "Pantomime" (from Suite in the Old Style). Great stuff for modern lovers. --Jason Verlinde

Customer Reviews:

sublime and fascinating.......2006-02-25

I could not agree more with the next reviewer: this is one of the most cohesive collections I've heard; each track segues effortlessly into the next. While the dissonance and atonality of much modern music grates on me; this CD is devoid of such things. The compositions are wonderfully luminous and the performer(s) approach rivets the listener. Excellent night-time composition music, seduction music- what have you. I strongly encourage you to take a chance on this!

Insomnia- No Way! This one is hot!.......2000-06-16

The title is misleading if not down right dubious. This is one hot album. Gidon Kremer is a performer of rare ability and he is at his best with the broad range of composers featured here. He is accompanied by an excellent harpist Naoko Yoshino who adds her own special charm to these pieces. They work well together and their skills are clearly evident. This album is not for everyone; it challenges the listener and forces you to pay attention but it is worth it.

Insomnia? No Way-This is for the living!.......2000-06-15

Gidon Kremer is at his most provocative best! The wide range of composers played here require all of his skill and he comes through. This album is not for everybody but those who want something new won't be disappointed. Naoko Yoshino's contributions on the harp are a delight in themselves and shouldn't be missed. From a musical point of view this is not for quiet nights! It gets you up and keep you up This album may challenge some people but that's one of its charms. Need a challenge go for it; its truly an adventure.

Average customer rating: Sawallisch is the star Not the best

Strauss - Elektra / Marton · Studer · Lipovsek · Weikl · Winkler · Sawallisch Richard Strauss , Wolfgang Sawallisch , Eva Marton , Cheryl Studer , Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks , Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks , Marjana Lipovsek , Bernd Weikl , Hermann Winkler , Kurt Moll , Victoria Wheeler , Dorothea Geipel , Ulrich Ress , Alfred Kuhn , Carmen Anhorn , Daphne Evangelatos , Shirley Close , Birgit Calm , Julia Faulkner , and Caroline Maria Petrig Manufacturer: Angel Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Studer, Cheryl | ( S ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music ASIN: B000002RRP Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

1. Wo Bleibt Elektra
2. Ich Will Vor Ihr Mich Niederwerfen
3. Allein! Weh, Ganz Allein
4. Elektra! Ah, Das Gesicht!
5. Ich Kann Nicht Sitzen Und Ins Dunkel Starren
6. Es Geht Ein Larm Los
7. Was Willst Du? Seht Doch, Dort!
8. Ich Habe Keine Guten Nachte
9. LaBt Du Den Bruder Nicht Nach Hause, Mutter?
10. Was Bluten MuB?
11. Alles Schweigt, Du Horst Dein Eignes Herz
12. Orest! Orest Ist Tot!

Tracks:

1. Platz Da!
2. Nun MuB Es Heir Von Uns Geschehn
3. Wie Stark Du Bist!
4. Von Jetzt An Will Ich Deine Schwester Sein
5. Sei Verflucht!
6. Was Willst Du, Fremder Mensch?
7. Die Hunde Auf Dem Hof Erkennen Mich
8. Es Ruhrt Sich Niemand!
9. Du Wirst Es Tun?
10. Seid Ihr Von Sinnen
11. Ich Habe Ihm Das Beill Nicht Geben Konnen!
12. Es MuB Etwas Geschehn Sein
13. He! Lichter! Lichter!
14. Helft! Morder!
15. Elektra! Schwester!
16. Ob Ich Nicht Hore?
17. Sie Fahren Dahin Wie Die Scharfe Des Schwerts
18. Schweig, Und Tanze

Customer Reviews:

Sawallisch is the star.......2007-04-15

There have not been in my opinion, many great Elektras. It is a role that demands a superhuman voice, powerful throughout the range, but with secure unrelenting top notes as well. Dramatically we have had some great singers in the role-Varnay, Behrens, Rysanek in her film, but vocally they have been short on the requirements in one way or another.

Nilsson some would argue was a great Elektra. I will admit whe was formidable in the role, but it taxed even her great voice, and even she stated publicly she wasn't so sure if it was good for her voice. Her recording has some great moments, but there are times when I am not dramatically convinced.

There is only one woman who I believe could sing this role as Strauss intended, a soprano whom he admired personally in fact. I urge all of you to seek her out. She was Gertrud Grob-Prandl. Once you have heard this legenday heroic soprano sing this role, you will understand how Nilsson to me, sounds like she's falling asleep in the role!

Now for the current selection:

Marton comes under a lot of criticism in her studio recordings. Hers was not an easy voice to mike, and I believe she may have been intimidated by the studio setting. That said, this recording does exhibit SOME of the deficiencies of her singing in other studio recordings, but as a whole, this recording shows some of her best work.

Marton was once quoted as saying "I'm absolutley mad about Strauss". Indeed, her enthusiasm for this role is evident, and I believe she is more successful in this role than even Turandot. She is fully commited throughout, but especially so from the recognition scene on. Her big moments in the first half of the opera are quite good, but do display an occasional squally tone in the top register indicative of a singer trying to "reign it in". I believe that the engineer did indeed have the levels artificially boosted a bit, but I believe it was an attempt to allow the words to be clearly heard. Those who have seen Marton live in her dramatic prime know that this voice was not underpowered. If you are familiar with the dramatic soprano voice, you will recognize this "scaling back" quality she exhibits here.

From the recognition scene on however, a transformation seems to occur that shows all of the cast absolutley inspired by Sawallish's conducting. Marton finds real security in her top notes, some truly awesome in their power. The recognition scene in particular is I believe the finest on record-Marton's singing displays superb control-especially in her control of dynamics. Her singing is beautiful, powerful, even resplendent in this scene. You will not be unmoved by it.

Studer is magnificent. There are not enough adjectives to describe her performance-and unlike Marton, she does not "reign it in", letting her top notes soar over the orchestra. Lipsovek is also fine, with death screams that are absolutely terrifying. The first time you experience her murder, you will shake your head in amazement-it is not for the squeamish.

Sawallisch conducts magnificently, and build tremendous tension from the recognition scene until the finale. The two final notes stomp this fine performance permanently into my memory.

In all, a great performance-highly recommended, but look for the issuing of a complete Elektra with Grob-Prandl. THE Elektra of the century.

Not the best.......2003-09-11

Eva Marton is one of today's top dramatic sopranos but she is not the best recorded Elektra. I think that even Hildegard Behrens is better than Eva Marton. Behrens has a more radiant top register compared with Marton. Nevertheless, this is a very good Elektra performance. This is one of only two truly complete recordings of Elektra. Only the Solti Elektra with Nilsson under Decca and this Elektra is complete - every single note is there. All other recordings have been cut (yes, that includes other studio recordings). I don't like this recording as much as Solti's. Firstly, Eva Marton is no match for Birgit Nilsson. Eva Marton's top B's and C's are not as good. Also, listen to the final monologue of Elektra in the Elektra-Klytamnestra Duet - Marton sounds like she is whispering. Her performance is very tame and this is not in keeping with the text. Here Elektra is supposed to be making all kinds of threats at Klytamnestra not whispering tame words at Klytamnestra. Birgit Nilsson on the other hand is all fury and ready to strangle Klytamnestra - exactly what the text requires. Cheryl Studer on the other hand is a superb Chrysothemis. Her performance is magnificent. Sawallisch is a very good conductor but the orchestra sounds very recessed in the recording. Perhaps the engineers dim the orchestra so that Marton can be heard? But that makes the sound somewhat artificial.

At the end of the day, there are many other great performances of Elektra out there that you should sample before coming to this. Firstly, there is Birgit Nilsson's classic Elektra - absolutely stunning. Then there is Astrid Varnay's incredible Elektra in 1953 in super clear mono sound, almost like thin stereo. It was a studio recording made for broadcast - in other words it is a studio recording in superb sound. The Varnay set is available under Koch Schwann in Amazon. Priced at full-price it has the incomparable Leonie Rysanek as Chrysothemis in freshest and most thrilling voice. It is worth every cent and could match the Nilsson set in stereo!! It goes without saying that Varnay sings with more dramatic sense, more security of voice and more vocal heft than Marton. Strangely, the mono sound in 1953 is far better than this stereo digital in 1990, which makes you wonder whether at all recording technology has improved that much. Well, I suppose the technology has improved but the engineers or whoever does not seem to know how to use it to proper effect. Then you have Leonie Rysanek's Classic Elektra in the Goltz Friedich's film. It is available on DVD. Alternatively, there is an excerpt disc on Orfeo under the great singers of the century series. Just look for Orfeo great singers of century - Leonie Rysanek. Then of course, we have Inge Borkh in the Bohm set from 1960 under Deutsche Grammophon. All 4 singers I mentioned are better than Marton in my view. As for current Elektras, as good as Marton is, I think Behrens is a better Elektra. For that you can get her 1988 performance(Philips) with the incredible Christa Ludwig , ever so dramatic, or the 1995 performance (Naive) with Leonie Rysanek now as Klytamnestra !! Behrens has better top notes than Marton and the recorded sound is better on Philips and Naive. So, this makes a great 4th or 5th set, but as an only set or as a first set, it does not compare with the best. Of course, judgement is subjective. Perhaps you like Eva Marton whispering threats at her mother. Perhaps you do not like Birgit Nilsson's powerful voice. Then perhaps you can buy this as a first set of your Elektra. But I would stick to my Birgit Nilsson, Astrid Varnay and Leonie Rysanek for my primary listening.

Average customer rating: Brava Diva! a heavenly voice She does "O Mio Babbino Caro" beautifully.

A Portrait of Kiri Te Kanawa Giacomo Puccini , Giuseppe Verdi , Engelbert Humperdinck , Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Richard Strauss , Franz Schubert , Robert Schumann , Gabriel Faure , William Walton , London Philharmonic Orchestra , Gurzenich-Orchester , Paris National Opera Theater Orchestra , London Symphony Orchestra , Kiri Te Kanawa , Laurence Dale , and Richard Amner Manufacturer: Sony ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Fauré, Gabriel | ( F ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Humperdinck, Engelbert | ( H ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart | Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Puccini | Puccini, Giacomo | ( P ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Schubert | Schubert, Franz | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Robert Schumann | Schumann, Robert | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Verdi | Verdi, Giuseppe | ( V ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Walton | Walton, Sir William | ( W ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music | Cantatas | Romances Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music London Philharmonic Orchestra | ( L ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music National Philharmonic Orchestra London | ( N ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Paris Symphony Orchestra | ( P ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music | Cantatas | Romances Modern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Te Kanawa, Kiri | Divas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Classical Music | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music Opera & Vocal | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music Similar Items: Kiri Te Kanawa Classics Kiri Te Kanawa Sings Verdi and Puccini Arias Kiri Kiri! Her Greatest Hits Live Kiri Te Kanawa - Verdi & Puccini ASIN: B0000025YK Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

1. TOSCA: Vissi D'arte
2. Gianni Schicchi: O Mio Babbino Caro
3. La Traviata: E Strano...Ah, Fors'E Lui
4. Hansel und Gretel: Der Kleine Sandmann
5. Don Giovanni: 'Ah, Fuggi Il Traditor
6. Don Giovanni: 'Mi Tradi'
7. 'Morgen'
8. 'Ruhe, Meine Seele'
9. 'Gretchen Am Spinnrade'
10. 'Du Bist Wie Eine Blume'
11. 'Apres Un Reve'
12. 'Old Sir Faulk'
13. 'Daphne'
14. 'Through Gilded Trellises'

Customer Reviews:

Brava Diva!.......2006-10-21

Dame Kiri Te Kanawa sings some of her most famous pieces on this 1983 compilation album from CBS Masterworks. Most of the recordings date between 1979-1983, with no real variance in sound quality, and the disc is offered at a bargain price. Real vintage Kanawa, simply superb.

Dame Kiri performs the "Der Kleine Sandmann" from Humperdinck's "Hansel und Gretel"; "Mi Tradi" from Mozart's "Don Giovanni"; and "Vissi D'Arte" from Puccini's "Tosca". Also featured are pieces from Walton, Faure, Verdi and Schubert among others.

If you are just beginning to collect Dame Kiri recordings, or are confused where to begin, this CD is a good place to start.

[CBS Masterworks/Columbia MK 39208]

a heavenly voice.......2002-09-26

Dame Kiri Te Kanawa is one of the most talented opera singers of today. She delivers vocal justice to every track on this recording, especially such favorites as "O Mio Babbino Caro" and "Vissi d'arte." Her range is superb and her emotional expression is full of compassion. After hearing this CD, you will no longer think of opera as fat ladies trouncing around in helmets. Quite the contrary, these arias are simply sublime.

She does "O Mio Babbino Caro" beautifully........2000-07-23

I first heard Kiri Te Kanawa doing "O Mio Babbino Caro" at the beginning of the movie "A Room with a View." Beautiful! I have never been able to track down that rendition but this one is as good. She also does a wonderful job of the Verdi piece from La Traviata.

Average customer rating: Beautiful choral music from the master of orchestral color

Strauss: A Capella Choral Works Manufacturer: Chandos ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Motets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music A Cappella | Folk | Styles | Music Similar Items: Strauss: The Complete Songs, Vol. 1 ASIN: B000000ATC Release Date: 1994-01-04

Tracks:

1. Der Abend, Op.34,2: Evening
2. Hymne, Op.34,2: Hymn
3. Deutsche Motette, Op.62: German Motel
4. Die Gottin im Puttzimmer: The Goddess in the Boudoir
5. An den Baum Daphne: To The Tree Daphne

Customer Reviews:

Beautiful choral music from the master of orchestral color .......2007-02-12

These rare choral works of Richard Strauss are just as magnificent as his orchestral works. They are sublime pieces of music and if you haven't heard them before then by this CD. Exceptional choral singing from the Danish National Choir, recorded with a first-class Chandos recording.

Average customer rating:

Strauss - Complete Chamber Music, Vol. 5 Manufacturer: Arts Music ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Violin | Strings | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music ASIN: B000005APX Release Date: 1997-03-18

Tracks:

1. Vn Con in d, Op.8: I. Allegro
2. Vn Con in d, Op.8: II. Lento Ma Non Troppo
3. Vn Con in d, Op.8: III. Rondo: Prestissimo
4. Allegretto in E, AV 149
5. 'Daphne'-Etude in G, AV 141
6. Son in E flat, Op.18: I. Allegro Ma Non Troppo
7. Son in E flat, Op.18: II. Improvisation: Andante Cantabile
8. Son in E flat, Op.18: III. Finale: Andante-Allegro

Average customer rating: Major diva from the past Exceptionally Dramatic! Extraordinary Performance ...

Maria Cebotari sings Richard Strauss Manufacturer: Preiser Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music ASIN: B0000023RS Release Date: 1994-10-25

Tracks:

1. Salome: Ah! Du Wolltest Mich Nicht Deinen Mund Kussen Lassen
2. Feuersnot: Feuersnot!-Minnegebot
3. Der Rosenkavalier: Marie Theres'! Hab' Mir's Gelobt, Ihn Lieb Zu Haben
4. Daphne: Ich Komme Grunende Bruder
5. Taillefer. Ballade Von Ludwig Uhland

Customer Reviews:

Major diva from the past.......2005-10-07

Maria Cebotari was a big-time diva who flourished in grim times. This recording of both familiar and unfamiliar material is well worth hearing.

The infamous Amazon gremlins have clearly been camping out on this review site. It really would be nice to know just which Pfitzner performance of Beethoven was so good. And I've looked all over Amazon, but I can't find a single recording of "Madam Butterful," not even the beloved Spike Jones version. As for "Salame," there's not a slice to be found.

Exceptionally Dramatic!.......2005-10-06

[...] This recording is of Maria Cebotari. She was a great star in Germany before and during the time of Hitler, which for some can make her recordings less desirable. However, one should look at her artistry not the political background in which she sang. Not only did this incredible artist sing, she was also in movies, including a movie version of Madam Butterful. She was a exceptionally beautiful woman. She was also an extremely well prepared artist, knowing her music completely before even attending a rehearsal. Like the other famous "Maria" (Callas) she infused everything she did with dramatic truth. However, one great difference between the two artists is Maria Cebotari didn't have to create "ugly" sounds to do what she did.

Her voice is one of very dark coloration. It is not bright and sparkling, which lends itself perfectly to the heavy dramatic music she sang. Even though she sang Mozart, and extremely well, her most often sung composers were R. Strauss and Puccini. Here we are honored to hear her interpretations of Strauss opera. We begin the recording with the moving final scene from Salame. I have heard this opera by many singers, and have many modern recordings of the work (one of my favorite singers in this role is Jessye Norman). Though some would argue that her dark, nearly possessed, sound is not "girlish" enough for the character, I would beg to differ. She doesn't sound girlish at all, that is true, but any young women so obsessed with wanting a man she demands his head so she can kiss it is, well, anything but girlish.

Her other selections from Strauss are equally exciting. Some of them we may be more familiar with (from Rosenkavalier, and paired with other singers; how her voice works with them!) while others are less so. The extract from "Dafne" is remarkable. The opera itself is rather strange, but has some interesting music in it. The opera Feuersnot is not well known to most, but what we hear is something quite interesting. Cebotari infuses the music with that special something that really makes it take off. In this selection she is not singing alone, so one has more of a sense of what she would have been like on stage with her fellow singers. And by the way, her fellow singer is Karl Schmitt-Walter, who does a wondrous job in his part. He is a singer well worth finding other recordings of. The opera "Taillefer" is completely unknown to me. However, again with other singers really presenting something wonderful akin to a performance, we hear wonderful music and the inner drama. Again, Cebotari shines, not over-shadowing those she is singing with, but complementing their stellar performances, giving us a real presentation of her work.

I highly recommend this recording to anyone who wishes to hear a truly wonderful singing, one who is exceptionally dramatic, but never pushed or ugly in sound. She is truly a wondrous artist that is not as well known to those outside Germany as she should be.

Extraordinary Performance ..........2001-06-05

I heard this extraordinary recording first, last week, on the original 78. Yes, there is a higher than normal noise-floor but this fact should not deter one from listening to Pfitzner's startling, moving performance. Pfitzner, somehow, finds an optimistic, liquid, and lyrical voice for this pre-holocaust performance that is neither maudlin nor didactic. It is, instead, breath-taking in its sensitivity to Beethoven's sense of orchestral color. In his rendering of nature, Pfitzner is emotional engaging for his tempos and lyricism.

I sincerely wonder if any post-holocaust conductor would dare imbibe of the innocence why reveling in the passion Beethoven's extraordinary symphony suggests. This performance has caused me to re-think both how this symphony might be rendered as well as how we might recover Pfitzner's sense of lyrical optimism today.

Average customer rating:

Strauss Historic Recordings Manufacturer: Preiser Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Strauss | Strauss, Richard | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music ASIN: B00003E48O Release Date: 2000-06-27

Track Listings:

1. Strophes of the Night & Dawn
2. Tchaikovsky: Symphonies Nos. 4, 6 & 5/Overture 1812
3. The Age Of Purcell
4. The Italian Voyage
5. The Making of a Medium: Music Written for the Verdehr Trio, Vol. 3
6. The Making of a Medium, Vol. 2
7. The Rosalyn Tureck Collection, Vol. 4: Harpsichord Recital All Bach Program
8. Tibor Szász: Beethoven Piano Sonatas
9. Visions & Values
10. Voices of Change: American Contemporary Chamber Music

Track Listings

track listings

Track Listings

Six Plus

Stokowski: New York Philharmonic, Vol. 2

The Folk Lore of John Lee Hooker

Other Valentines

Surface Noise [Import]

The Best of the Delfonics [Import]

The Little Mermaid: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [Soundtrack]

Serge Kaufmann: Oeuvres orchestrales

Two Roads: Live in Australia [Live]

The Absinthe Groove

Telephone Free Landslide Victory [Extra tracks]

Trapdoor Fucking Exit

Sub Club Presents Subversion [Import]

El Calvario Triunfo

The Sky Could Send You