Die Meistersinger von Nuremburg download from Glyndebourne

[Osborn]

I watched Act 3 live and thought Finley's performance a tour de force, brilliant and utterly memorable.

But I see from posts to date that R3 pundits find his eyes are too close together, that he's too small, that he can't walk properly, wrings his hands too much and the voice is thin and a bit feeble.

On reflection I liked the silent long interval with digital countdown and appreciate how excellent the unobtrusive camerawork was, unfailingly finding the right pace and right framing at the right time. Someone put an awful lot of effort into understanding the score and minutiae of the production. Bravo, and maybe the BBC could try and do better in this year's televised proms.

[Chris Newman]

Osborn, I would rate the stature of Gerald Finley (physically, vocally and intellectually) as almost the same as Norman Bailey as Sachs. Finley is more mellifluous and firmer but Bailey was warmer as a person: both were valid. The interpretation is completely different but how true to life and likeable they both make Hans Sachs. This production emphasised the Sachs/Eva relationship and what this generous man let pass.

I do agree about the niceness of the waffleless interval. BBC please note. That is why I enjoy concerts televised from France and Germany on Arte Live Web.

I have just rewatched Act 1. OK, the voice/picture image is rather out of synch but I must now praise the Magdelene, Michaela Selinger: lovely mezzo.

I do hope the production makes it to DVD. I enjoy it even more as I watch it again. A production to treasure.

[Bax-of-Delights]

Watched it on the cinema screen at Brighton.
I'd been brought up with the Karajan box set and I've only ever seen it once before, live, at the ENO in the 70's.

I was totally engrossed by this production and thought Finley and Krantze demanding of my attention when they were on stage. I had expected some periods when I might lose concentration (i.e. doze off!) but this was never the case. Watching on screen one was able to catch the little in-jokes (the Wagner bust that Sachs leant on) which would probably be lost from anywhere but from the front of the stalls.

Loved it!

[Flosshilde]

I've tried watching it online (not live), & downloaded the first act, but the picture quality is dreadful - very slow refresh rate (is that the right term) so that at times it looks as if the performers don't want to be recognised.

The set, from what I could see of it, certainly had the 'wow' factor!

[Bryn]

There are two levels of quality available. I find the higher definition option fairly acceptable (the file size is around double that of the lower definition one that I suspect you are referring to. The audio component of the higher quality version appears to be around 128kbps aac. Not great, but bearable.

[At the higher definition, the file sizes are around 800MB for Act 1, 550MB for Act 2, and 1.15GB for Act 3. There are plenty of compression artefacts but the frame rate appears to be 25fps.]

[Osborn]

This production emphasised the Sachs/Eva relationship and what this generous man let pass.

I do agree. I found the 'pinched shoe' episode v moving and was near a tear! Their mutual affection was wonderfully tender and Finley conveyed Sach's inner turmoil and dignity v well..

[Bax-of-Delights]

For information Meistersinger is available for another 7 days here:

http://glyndebourne.com/livestreaming

[RobertLeDiable]

I particularly enjoyed Kranzle's Beckmesser - beautifully acted and sung. Finley, I'm equivocal about. I admire him generally but though he too acted extremely well, I don't think the voice is quite right for this role. Probably it works in a smallish theatre like Glyndebourne, but it wouldn't have the depth you'd need in, say, Covent Garden. The big problem, vocally, was Walther. It was possibly the worst sung assumption of the role I've heard. The prize-song was pretty lamentable, and his general lack of line and faulty intonation was distressing. Odd piece of casting.

Much of the production I liked, though that enclosing unit set became a bit oppressive. I don't know what McVicar was playing at with the joke drawers popping out. That seemed a ludicrously out of place piece of pantomime farce - but generally his direction of the characters was good, and I liked the poignant treatement of Beckmesser at the end.

The orchestra played well, but for me much of Jurowski's conducting was utterly bloodless, and from the overture on he confirmed for me that what he's good at is detail, without being able to see the woods for the trees, at least in this repertoire. The WNO production was far better musically. More convincing and moving dramatically as well.

[Bax-of-Delights]

Much of the production I liked, though that enclosing unit set became a bit oppressive. I don't know what McVicar was playing at with the joke drawers popping out. That seemed a ludicrously out of place piece of pantomime farce - but generally his direction of the characters was good, and I liked the poignant treatement of Beckmesser at the end.

Agreed about the pantomime drawers. It got a laugh but one did wonder about the juxtaposition of the touching and effective unveiling of Sachs' family portrait with this strange little interlude with Beckmesser trying to keep the drawers on the shelves. I'd be interested to hear the director's explanation of this episode.

[Chris Newman]

I am a little concerned that Marco Jentzsch (Walter von Stolzing) is singing the same role over the next few weeks at the Komische Oper in Berlin. Whilst not a top drawer Walter (sorry to slide drawers into the conversation again) he has potential. Unlike RobertLeDiable I felt that Jetzch was more confident in the set piece arioso numbers in each act. It was mainly in the dialogue where support and pitch sagged. His singing teacher needs to work on his passagio. I hope that the conductor (Patrick Long) is as sympathetic as Jurowski with the volume.

I read also that Jentzsch is replacing Christopher Ventris in Prom 15 on the 26th of July in Liszt's "A Faust Symphony" with Jurowski and the LPO.

[JRussell]

How do you download the opera? Is it directly from the Guardian website?

[Chris Newman]

The links are down this Guardian Website page on the left. It should expire later today:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/classicalmusicandopera

Otherwise go to Guardian website > Culture > Music and you will go to the page with the links.

bws

Chris

[RobertLeDiable]

Sorry, but the prize song is such a crucial component in the climax of the third act that you can't have it sung so sloppily and with such poor sense of line and build-up as it was in this production. Glyndebourne isn't a provincial German house. It should be able to cast better than this, especially when you consider that it's possible to get away with smaller voices there than you might normally need for Wagner in a big theatre.

[Flosshilde]

Glyndebourne isn't a provincial German house.

No, it's a provincial English house.

[RobertLeDiable]

No, it's a provincial English house.

It's actually a distinguished international festival with a great history, and certainly shouldn't be provincial in its choice of singers.