Ring Cycle at last

[JimD]

Yes. Sorry that wasn't clear. I'm still quite surprised that so many people don't know of this site.

[Flosshilde]

I prefer to buy CDs but at those prices I might be tempted to download - the only problem is that I might be tempted to download too much

[Mandryka]

I would also steer you in the direction of Janowski. Some people bemoan the lack of a 'personal view' from this condutor, but I think this is refeshing - MJ doens't attempt to 'impose' himself on the score, like some others. HIs cast is strong, too, even if I don't care much for Theo Adam's Wotan.

[Stunsworth]

Except that they are mp3 downloads, not on CD

And at a pretty low bitrate for mp3s these days

[Beef Oven]

I'd advocate a learning curve on DVD, DrT. Shan't engage in self-indulgence re my collection but my favourite all-round performance of the complete Ring cycle is a 4 DVD set on Warner Classics - search around for competitive pricing - which was recorded at the Bayreuther Festspiele in June/July 1991/92. Widescreen and surround sound plus the distinct advantage of subtitles. Daniel Barenboim conducts Harry Kupfer's production with a distinguished cast which includes John Tomlinson in his prime (Wotan), Anne Evans (Brunhilde), Siegfried Jerusalem (Siegfried), Poul Elming (Siegmund) Nadine Secund (Sieglinde) and Matthias Holle(Hunding). DVD 1 has a bonus feature in which Daniel Barenboim and John Tomlinson discuss the production. Highly recommended - just for starters! I get the same frisson in writing about this experience as I would with any theatregoer visiting "Hamlet" for the first time.

Spot-on, great suggestion.

[JimD]

A question which I am not techie enough to answer (so please keep any answers simple!): how does the sound from a CD and that from a DVD compare (assuming the sound from both is directed through a stereo system).

[Black Swan]

There is allot of excellent advice here. I'm wondering the Forums thoughts on Elder/Halle. I attended Gotterdamerung 2 years ago and bought the recording. I have Solti on CD. I am wondering about the Halle Walkure any advice would be welcome.

John

[amateur51]

There is allot of excellent advice here. I'm wondering the Forums thoughts on Elder/Halle. I attended Gotterdamerung 2 years ago and bought the recording. I have Solti on CD. I am wondering about the Halle Walkure any advice would be welcome.

John

I'm very tempted by the Hallé/Elder but I'm waiting for the price to come down a bit (pretty please )

Maybe it's available to listen to on Spotify?

[Stanley Stewart]

# 21 I am also a non-techie, JimD, so there will be an instant meeting of minds! I now have a Sony Bravia 32" widescreen TV which also delivers a surprisingly rich and resonant sound - a vast improvement all-round from the era of the cathode ray tube of old. It would be invidious to compare it with top- of- the- range audio equipment but I really prefer the combination of picture and sound, as a near as damn it three dimensional experience, and it's usually a pleasure to follow the convoluted narrative of the Ring cycle with the advantage of subtitles, too.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

And then, there's always this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m69aPAo1rXE

[Stanley Stewart]

Yes, indeed, fh. It's only a few months since I transferred a VHS Hi-Fi (please note) to DVD: The Farewell Concert,
(1984), Anna Russell, which also includes The "Ring Cycle" analysis - a quite superb antidote to any po-faced solemnity. How often did my younger self climb the steps of London's Coliseum Theatre, armed with Kobbe, to hear Reggie Goodall conduct the Sadler's Wells production. In Anna Russell's analysis, gobbledygook takes on a new context. What we used to call 'a scream'! This recording now sits alongside a DVD transfer of 'The Quest for Reggie Goodall" on my shelves. Good companions.

[perfect wagnerite]

I'd advocate a learning curve on DVD, DrT. Shan't engage in self-indulgence re my collection but my favourite all-round performance of the complete Ring cycle is a 4 DVD set on Warner Classics - search around for competitive pricing - which was recorded at the Bayreuther Festspiele in June/July 1991/92. Widescreen and surround sound plus the distinct advantage of subtitles. Daniel Barenboim conducts Harry Kupfer's production with a distinguished cast which includes John Tomlinson in his prime (Wotan), Anne Evans (Brunhilde), Siegfried Jerusalem (Siegfried), Poul Elming (Siegmund) Nadine Secund (Sieglinde) and Matthias Holle(Hunding). DVD 1 has a bonus feature in which Daniel Barenboim and John Tomlinson discuss the production. Highly recommended - just for starters! I get the same frisson in writing about this experience as I would with any theatregoer visiting "Hamlet" for the first time.

Very strongly thirded. This is a great Ring - both visually and musically. John Tomlinson's Wotan is one of the great operatic assumptions of our time - both vocally and dramatically - and rest of the cast is pretty good too. Barenboim gives what to my ears is as complete a performance of this cycle as you will hear on a modern recording and the sound is admirable. Of all the recordings I have encountered this is the one that comes closest to the thrill of hearing Wagner in the theatre.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

how does the sound from a CD and that from a DVD compare (assuming the sound from both is directed through a stereo system).

Good question. I presume that a good DVD/BluRay player can give sound quality equal to a CD, but my own DVD player isn't anywhere near as good as my CD equipment. Any suggestions, anyone?

[umslopogaas]

#26 Stanley Stewart. Ah, Anna Russell, that name brings back memories, a school friend had the LP that had her analysis of 'The Ring' and we laughed loud and long over it. Which is interesting, because at the time neither of us had any knowledge of Wagner's music. Apparently, to have a good laugh you just need the right stimuli, not any knowledge of the subject. Which come to think of it, is a bit worrying ...

"The scene opens in the river Rhine. [EMPHATIC CAPITALS] IN IT!!"

And my memory may be playing me tricks in more than one direction, because it was a long time ago and I cant be a***d to look up the libretto, but isnt there a point where Siegfried falls in love with Gutrune because she's the first woman he's met in this whole endless epic who isnt his aunt?

Brunnhilde was his aunt, I seem to recall. Most of the women in 'The Ring' are, thanks to Wotan's procreative facility.

Still, to look on the bright side, he must have got plenty of socks for Christmas.

Must track down the CD.

[Pianorak]

. . . Must track down the CD.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07E5sLsJQe0