This is a partial discography of Parsifal , an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner.
Parsifal was expressly composed for the stage at Bayreuth and many of the most famous recordings of the opera come from live performances on that stage. In the pre-LP era, Karl Muck conducted excerpts from the opera at Bayreuth which are still considered some of the best performances of the opera on disc (they also contain the only sound evidence of the bells constructed for the work's premiere, which were later melted down by the Nazis during World War II). Hans Knappertsbusch was the conductor most closely associated with Parsifal at Bayreuth in the post-war years, and the performances under his baton in 1951 marked the re-opening of the Bayreuth Festival after the Second World War. These historic performances were recorded in mono sound, originally issued but now no longer available on the Teldec label, and reissued in 2003 on Naxos Historical. Knappertsbusch recorded the opera again for Philips in 1962 in stereo, and this release is often considered to be the classic Parsifal recording. [1] There are also many "unofficial" live recordings from Bayreuth, capturing virtually every Parsifal cast ever conducted by Knappertsbusch.
Amongst the studio recordings, those by Georg Solti, Herbert von Karajan and Daniel Barenboim (the latter two both conducting the Berlin Philharmonic) have been widely praised. [2] The von Karajan recording was voted "Record of the Year" in the 1981 Gramophone Awards. Also highly regarded is a recording of Parsifal under the baton of Rafael Kubelík. Originally recorded for Deutsche Grammophon but never released, it is now available on the Arts Archives label.
On the Saturday 14 December 2013 broadcast of BBC 3'S CD Review – Building a Library, music critic David Nice surveyed recordings of Parsifal and recommended the 1980 recording by the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Rafael Kubelik (conductor), as the best available choice. [3]
This is a partial filmography of Parsifal (1882), an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner. In addition to the productions of the complete opera listed below, there is a 1998 documentary directed by Tony Palmer, titled: Parsifal – The Search for the Grail. It was recorded in various European theaters, including: the Mariinsky Theatre, the Ravello Festival, Siena, and the Bayreuth Festival. It contains extracts from Mr. Palmer's stage production of Parsifal starring Plácido Domingo, Violeta Urmana, Matti Salminen, Nikolai Putilin and Anna Netrebko. It includes interviews with Domingo, Wolfgang Wagner, Robert Gutman and Karen Armstrong. The film exists in two versions: (1) a complete version running 116 minutes and officially approved by Domingo, and (2) an 88-minute version, cut as a result of being censored in Germany as being too "political", "uncomfortable" and "irrelevant". [5]
Parsifal is a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is freely based on the 13th-century Middle High German chivalric romance Parzival of the Minnesänger Wolfram von Eschenbach and the Old French chivalric romance Perceval ou le Conte du Graal by the 12th-century trouvère Chrétien de Troyes, recounting different accounts of the story of the Arthurian knight Parzival (Percival) and his spiritual quest for the Holy Grail.
The Bayreuth Festival is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of stage works by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived and promoted the idea of a special festival to showcase his own works, in particular his monumental cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen and Parsifal.
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music. One of the most famous Lieder performers of the post-war period, he is best known as a singer of Franz Schubert's Lieder, particularly "Winterreise" of which his recordings with accompanists Gerald Moore and Jörg Demus are still critically acclaimed half a century after their release.
Elisabeth Grümmer was a German soprano. She has been described as "a singer blessed with elegant musicality, warm-hearted sincerity, and a voice of exceptional beauty".
Leopoldine Rysanek was an Austrian dramatic soprano.
Jonathan Stewart Vickers,, known professionally as Jon Vickers, was a Canadian heldentenor.
Hans Knappertsbusch was a German conductor, best known for his performances of the music of Wagner, Bruckner and Richard Strauss.
Ramón Vinay was a famous Chilean operatic tenor with a powerful, dramatic voice. He is probably best remembered for his appearances in the title role of Giuseppe Verdi's tragic opera Otello.
Gundula Janowitz is an Austrian lyric soprano singer of operas, oratorios, lieder, and concerts. She is one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century and was pre-eminent in the 1960s and 1970s.
Gerhard Stolze was a German operatic tenor.
Inge Borkh was a German operatic dramatic soprano. She was first based in Switzerland, where she received international attention when she appeared in the first performance in German of Menotti's The Consul, in Basel, in 1951. In 1952, Borkh became a member of the Deutsche Oper Berlin and the Bavarian State Opera in Munich. She appeared at leading opera houses in Europe and the Americas, and at festivals such as Bayreuth and Salzburg. Trained first as an actress, she was admired for both singing and stage presence, especially in the Richard Strauss roles Salome and Elektra. She also performed in contemporary opera, such as the premiere of Josef Tal's Ashmedai at the Hamburg State Opera in 1971. Her recordings include complete operas and recitals. Borkh was awarded the Hans-Reinhart-Ring, the highest honour for theatre professionals in Switzerland.
Martha Mödl was a German soprano, and later a mezzo-soprano. She specialized in large dramatic roles such as Isolde, Brünnhilde, and particularly Kundry, and is considered, along with Astrid Varnay and Birgit Nilsson, one of the three major postwar Wagner sopranos. She was among the preeminent Wagner sopranos—and most compelling singing actresses—of the twentieth century. She was celebrated for her highly individualized interpretations, exceptional acting ability, intense stage presence, and "rich, sexy voice."
Gustav Neidlinger was a German bass-baritone, known as a performer of Wagner's villains, especially Alberich and Klingsor, from the early 1950s to the early 1970s. Born in Mainz, Neidlinger studied at the Frankfurt conservatory, where he was trained by Otto Rottsieper. He debuted in 1931 at the Stadttheater in Mainz, where he sang until 1934. In 1934 and 1935, he performed at the Stadttheater in Plauen, Sachsen. From 1935 to 1950, he was a member of the Hamburg opera, where In 1937 he took part in the world premiere of the opera Schwarzer Peter by Norbert Schultze. In 1950, he joined the Stuttgart Staatsoper, where he became very popular and was, in 1977, named an honorary member. In Stuttgart, he sang in Igor Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress. In 1956 he moved to the Vienna Staatsoper, where he had sung as early as 1941. He also sang at the Paris Opéra (1953–67) and at Covent Garden in London in tandem with the Stuttgart ensemble. He was honored with the title German Kammersänger in 1952.
This is an audio and video discography of Tristan und Isolde, an opera by Richard Wagner which was first performed on 10 June 1865 in Munich.
Peter Edward Andry, was a classical record producer and an influential executive in the recording industry, active from the 1950s to the 1990s.
The four operas of Richard Wagner's cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen together take about 15 hours, which makes for several records, tapes, or CDs, and much studio time. For this reason, many full Ring recordings are the result of "unofficial" recording of live performances, particularly from the Bayreuth Festival where new productions are often broadcast by German radio. Live recordings, especially those in monaural, may have very variable sound but often preserve the excitement of a performance better than a studio recording.
Gerd Nienstedt was a German and Austrian opera singer, bass and bass-baritone. After an international career at major opera houses and the Bayreuth Festival, he was also a theatre director, stage director and academic voice teacher.
Marga Schiml is a German opera singer who sings mezzo-soprano and alto. She has appeared at major European opera houses and festivals, such as the Vienna State Opera, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Hamburg State Opera and La Scala, at the Salzburg Festival and the Bayreuth Festival. She is also an academic voice teacher.
The Bayreuth premiere cast of Parsifal lists the contributors to the new productions of Richard Wagner's inaugural stage play Parsifal, including the premiere, which took place on 26 July 1882 at the Bayreuth Festival.
Hilde Scheppan was a German operatic soprano and academic teacher. She was engaged for 20 years at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin and made guest appearances at the Bayreuth Festival from 1937 to 1958. She performed roles in Wagner's stage works in productions by Heinz Tietjen both in Berlin and Bayreuth. After World War II, she first continued work in Berlin, but then moved to the Staatsoper Stuttgart. She taught as a professor of voice at the Hochschule für Musik Nürnberg and the Musikhochschule München.
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