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Wagner: The Ring of the Nibelung ( Das Rheingold / Die Walküre / Siegfried / Götterdämmerung) (Boulez/Chereau Ring Cycle)
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Format | Box set, Classical, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Full Screen |
Contributor | Peter Czegley, Peter Hofmann, Gwendolyn Killebrew, Jeanine Altmeyer, Patrice Chéreau, Gwyneth Jones, Carmen Reppel, Karen Middleton, Matti Salminen, Richard Wagner, Donald McIntyre See more |
Language | German |
Runtime | 13 hours and 52 minutes |
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Product Description
Product description
Anello Del Nibelungo (L') / Der Ring Des Nibelungen (8 Dvd)
Amazon.com
The first opera (the prologue) in Wagner's Ring Cycle, Das Rheingold, is a beautifully conducted and thoughtfully staged performance. As soon as the clouds of mist have dissipated, while the daring, long-held opening chord is still reverberating, the screen clears to show not only the River Rhine and the three maidens (dressed like prostitutes in this production) assigned to guard the gold hidden there. It also shows an enormous dam (not mentioned in Wagner's text). This is the underwater base of a hydroelectric plant, and its presence tells us two things immediately: that this production takes the story out of the vaguely medieval fantasy world in which Wagner had placed it, and that a basic theme of the four-opera cycle would be power. Alberich, the Nibelung, is willing to renounce the love of women, after stealing the gold from the Rhine, to become the ruler of the world. Another basic theme is greed. The cast is uniformly excellent. The approach of stage director Patrice Chereau carefully balances realism, symbolism, and fantasy. The two giants (Matti Salminen and Fritz Hübner) tower over the gods who are waiting to enter the newly constructed Valhalla; Loge (brilliantly played by Heinz Zednick) appears in a burst of flame; the subterranean lair of the Nibelungs looks something like a prison and something like a mass-production sweatshop. In contrast, the gods look like members of a rather aimless leisure class. Freia, the goddess of youth (Carmen Reppel), whose fate is one of the basic items in the plot, is presented as a lovely but helpless beauty queen. Pierre Boulez conducts this episode. like the entire cycle, with power and precision.
Wagner's ideas of "racial purity" reach a logical conclusion in Act I of Die Walküre. Siegfried, the tragic hero of the cycle, is begotten in an adulterous, incestuous mating of Siegmund (Peter Hoffmann) and Sieglinde (Jeanne Altmeyer), a twin brother and sister. No miscegenation here. Siegfried will not be seen until the next opera in the cycle. For now, the Valkyries (after their famous, musically spectacular ride) are asked to protect Sieglinde, his pregnant mother-to-be, until he can be born. His father is killed in a fight with Hunding, Sieglinde's brutish husband, with Wotan intervening against his will to help the wronged spouse. Wotan has been forced by his wife Fricka, who is the goddess of marriage, elegantly played by Hanna Schwartz. Her victory is a striking display of Wotan's diminishing powers. Brunnhilde, Wotan's daughter and leader of the Valkyries (Gwyneth Jones), disobeys a paternal prohibition, rescues Sieglinde and hides her in safety to wait out her pregnancy. For this, she is punished by losing her divine status and being left asleep for years, surrounded by a circle of magic fire, until a hero (Siegfried, who has not yet been born) will come to rescue her. This episode is extremely well-sung, with particularly notable work by Hoffmann, Altmeyer, Schwartz, Jones and Donald McIntyre as Wotan, while conductor Pierre Boulez and director Patrice Chéreau work smoothly together to define the opera's overall form and continuity.
Siegfried is the most eventful of the four Ring operas: the hero of the cycle grows to maturity, forges his father's broken sword Notung, kills the dragon Fafner and the dwarf Mime, takes the cursed ring, frees Brunnhilde from the spell that has kept her asleep, and falls in love with her. It is all presented, powerfully and as efficiently as the self-indulgent text will permit. Not seen in the cycle's previous operas are Manfred Jung (Siegfried) and Norma Sharp (the Forest Bird), the central figure of the cycle and one of the most peripheral. Sharp is lovely in her brief appearance. Jung is the most controversial bit of casting in the cycle; his voice and acting have been criticized, but they seem to be up to the standard for this role, Perhaps the criticism really applies to Siegfried, who is neither intelligent nor compassionate, but a naive youth who knows nothing of the world and has never seen a woman. Jung conveys these qualities effectively. Wagner's ideal hero turns out to be a bit of a proto-Nazi in his own naive way, swaggering arrogantly, killing the dragon Fafner and the dwarf Mime with hardly a second thought, and blithely assuming that he deserves all the good fortune that comes his way. Wagner may have thought he was inventing another sort of hero, but this Siegfried rather faithfully reflects his creator's personality. Jung's characterization faithfully follows the text of the opera and it is compelling for those who can take their Wagner without illusions, those who have come to terms, for example, with the self-centered, unsympathetic personality that emerges from his wife Cosima's voluminous and blindly adoring diaries.
According to director Patrice Chereau, "Götterdämmerung undoubtedly presents a world in which no values exist any more... a world in which it is difficult for anyone to believe in anything any longer." It is truly, as its title proclaims, "The twilight of the gods." Siegfried is tricked, drugged, and treacherously murdered by power-hungry humans, deceived into betraying Brunnhilde, who remains faithful without hope. An air of weariness and decadence pervades the action and much of the music (though the score includes two of Wagner's finest instrumental inventions: Siegfried's Rhine journey and his funeral music.) A new note is the introduction of a chorus of humans (effectively used by Chereau) for the first time in the cycle. The heyday of the gods is over; now, world domination is sought by a human family, the Gibichungs. The cursed ring is stolen from Brunnhilde, who has kept it as a token of Siegfried's love. Siegfried, who has taken the ring in disguise, has been drugged and deceived into wooing Gutrune, a Gibichung. Brunnhilde is forced to marry Gunther, another Gibichung, but still faithful to Siegfried she commits suicide on his funeral pyre. The fire spreads to destroy Valhalla. The ring, snatched from Siegfried's dead hand, is dropped into the Rhine, where it is restored to its rightful place, and the situation returns to the normality of the time before Das Rheingold. The Gibichungs, new to the cycle, are well-portrayed by Franz Mazura and Jeanne Altmeyer, and Fritz Hübner is impressive as the treacherous Hagen. Gwemdolyn Killibrew stands out as Brunnhilde's ally Waltraute. As always, Pierre Boulez conducts with a clear vision of the total work. --Joe McLellan
Product details
- Aspect Ratio : 1.33:1
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- MPAA rating : NR (Not Rated)
- Product Dimensions : 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 8.8 ounces
- Item model number : 044007340578
- Director : Patrice Chéreau
- Media Format : Box set, Classical, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Full Screen
- Run time : 13 hours and 52 minutes
- Release date : October 18, 2005
- Actors : Gwyneth Jones, Donald McIntyre, Peter Hofmann, Jeanine Altmeyer, Gwendolyn Killebrew
- Dubbed: : German
- Subtitles: : English, Spanish, German, French, Chinese
- Language : German (DTS 5.1), German (PCM Stereo), Unqualified (DTS ES 6.1)
- Studio : Deutsche Grammophon
- ASIN : B0009F2EPU
- Writers : Richard Wagner
- Number of discs : 5
- Best Sellers Rank: #90,363 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #1,087 in Performing Arts (Movies & TV)
- #2,560 in Opera & Vocal (CDs & Vinyl)
- #3,254 in Special Interests (Movies & TV)
- Customer Reviews:
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Supplier did perfect, great product, condition as advertised if not better
As for Boulez, he conducted the piece as if it were Mahler, which I mean as a compliment. That is, he conducted to bring out the details of the score transparently, and he allowed huge dynamics: in addition to the expect Wagner loudness, this Ring has real pianissimo sections. When Wagner thinned out the orchestration, Boulez kept the sound lean and chamber-like. By and large, he also supported the big climaxes effectively, although in Rheingold, Donner's invocation of the storm was much more thrilling in the classic Solti recording from the '60s.
I do not consider myself an expert on operatic singing, but I have to praise Gwyneth Jones' Brünnhilde. She produces a huge sound where needed, but what impressed me most was her superb pitch, even when singing fortissimo. In general, the singers were also expected to be actors in this production and they did an adequate job, although the performances were mostly too "big" for a television production; they appeared to be calibrated for a performance addressing an audience in the house.
If one considers the conducting, singing, orchestra, and stage production, I would give this 4 1/2 stars. What brings it down to four stars is what is by now dated picture quality. It was shot on standard-definition video in 4:3 aspect ratio. State-of-the-art broadcast video in 1980 was Plumbicon tube-type cameras and analog videotape, most likely 1" type-C. Given the year and the venue, I would guess that the production was shot in 625-line 50 Hz PAL. (If so, the standards conversion to 525-line NTSC on the DVD was flawless.) Based on the accompanying documentary, the video appears to have been switched in real time during the performance, which is an impressive achievement.
Because of the tube-type cameras, there are halos around bright lights (like candle flames), and some colored trails when such lights move. As for picture detail, I watched the DVDs on an Oppo BD-93 player, which has the excellent Marvell video processor chip. I set the detail enhancement all the way to "6" (fairly extreme) and noise reduction to "1." The Oppo was able to tease out quite a bit of texture and detail from the picture, but overall I was a bit saddened that this already-expensive production had not budgeted the extra money for a 35mm film shoot, which would have allowed an eventual HD Blu-ray (or even Ultra Blu-ray) release of this most worthy piece of Bayreuth history.
Again relying on equipment that can be seen in the documentary, the audio appears to have been recording multitrack on 2" tape (probably 24-track), which allowed the luxury of getting proper balances in post-production. By and large the sound here is fine, although I would have preferred that the voices be a bit less forward in some parts so that Wagner's magical orchestra could be a more equal partner to the singers.
Speaking of the documentary, it was excellent -- well researched, not only with fascinating insights about how the production came about, but also with a mini-history of Ring productions over the years in Bayreuth. Admirably, it did not whitewash the Hitler years but put the behavior of the Wagner family during that time in perspective.
Finally, some impressions of the work itself. As there have been rivers of ink spilled on this subject over the last 160 years from writers far more capable than I, take it for what it's worth. But seeing this Ring reinforced my opinion that Wagner could have definitely used a collaborator on the libretto to deal with plot holes, to make character choices and behaviors more credible, and to tone down some over-the-top moments. I acknowledge that the main themes of the Ring are the toxic power of love to induce irrational and self-destructive behavior, and what happens when a lawgiver becomes corrupt and gives in to greed and hubris. Even so, the operation of the Ring's plot requires exceptional stupidity on the part of many of the principals. Donner and Froh are scarcely realized characters who behave like reactive stooges. Loge's strategy to capture Alberich was not exactly what you would call subtle. Why did the other gods permit Wotan to indulge his depression and "burn down the house" at the end, given that Wotan's spear had already been shattered (taking away his power) and that his wife Fricka was seen in "Walküre" as being a very strong character who could manipulate Wotan even when he still was fully powered up? Why didn't it immediately occur to Brünnhilde that Siegfried has been enchanted when he started treating her incomprehensibly badly after previously pledging himself to her heart and soul? And was there ever a "hero" who was dumber, brattier, more thuggish, and more gullible than Siegfried?
That said, the glory of the Ring is the music, particularly the orchestra, which is a "character" more important than any of the principal singers. It is ever-present, always commenting, underlining the action and thoughts of the characters. By the time we get to Goetterdaemmerung, it is close to miraculous in its subtlety and the density of subtext and information it conveys to the attentive listener. Boulez really gets this, and this is why his performance is so praiseworthy.
To sum up, I highly recommend this DVD. The picture quality is good enough to get an perfectly adequate impression of the staging and performances, which themselves are almost entirely praiseworthy. And the original analog sound recording is fully up to the task of conveying these performances to the viewer.
Top reviews from other countries
Non capisco perchè non fare la versione in Bluray.
Patrice Chéreau s'est plongé dans le livret, a beaucoup écouté Pierre Boulez, a interrogé certains des chanteurs, en particulier Donald McIntyre (Wotan/Wanderer) avec qui il a longuement discuté de l'œuvre, lui demandant même comment il la représenterait s'il avait la responsabilité de la mise en scène, au grand étonnement de Sir Donald.
Le grand mérite qu'il a eu, et la nouveauté que Chéreau a apportée dans la mise en scène d'opéra est qu'il a convaincu les chanteurs de se laisser guider comme des acteurs de théâtre jouant une épopée de l'ère industrielle pré-moderne. Nous ne sommes plus dans la légende, nous sommes dans la réalité de la vie. Ceci l'a conduit à choisir des chanteurs qui soient physiquement crédibles dans les rôles qu'ils interprétaient, et à leur demander de vivre leur personnage au lieu simplement de les chanter. Sa formation d'homme de théâtre l'a conduit aussi à amplifier en quelque sorte les idées de Wagner, et à apporter des éléments symboliques qui étayent les idées de Wagner. N'oublions pas que celui-ci disait toujours à ses chanteurs lors des répétitions: "Faites du Nouveau" ou "n'hésitez pas à apporter du nouveau". Il savait parfaitement que son Ring dépassait les possibilités de mises en scène de l'époque, et il savait que les mises en scènes qu'il a vues étaient totalement inadaptées à son œuvre quand elles n'étaient pas ridicules.
C'est ainsi qu'il n'hésite pas à faire travailler ses chanteurs assis, debout, couchés, à genoux, selon la situation et l'intensité qu'il veut donner à leur interprétation. C'est ainsi aussi qu'en réalité il fait participer le spectateur à l'action de cette gigantesque épopée en lui donnant aussi des symboles puissants qui en expliquent le côté novateur.
A titre d'exemple, les "sbires" de Hunding qui accentuent la solitude de Siegmund, ou la toilette des héros que Brünnhilde fait à Siegmund quand elle lui annonce sa mort prochaine, ou Wotan qui soulève sa fille comme pour la mettre au lit après l'avoir endormie et qui l'embrasse sachant qu'en faisant ce geste il n'est plus le Dieu des dieux, ou encore l'apparition protéiforme d'Erda au troisième acte de Siegfried, cette Erda qui est en fait l'inconscient collectif de Jung, ou enfin la façon indigne dont Brünhhilde est amenée humiliée par Gunther, le visage caché par ses cheveux, et qui ne relève la tête que lorsqu'elle entend le nom de Siegfried dont elle découvre la trahison. Nombreux sont les symboles par lesquels Chéreau nous fait rentrer dans cet univers finalement tellement humain...
Sur le plan vocal, comme toute production d'opéra, la version parfaite n'existe pas. Dans le cas cette cette version, les chanteurs sont tellement liés à l'apparence physique de leur personnage, qu'il est difficile d'avoir LE chanteur qui remplit toutes ces conditions. Si - à mon avis - Donald McIntyre domine la distribution, c'est non seulement à cause de ses qualités vocales, mais aussi de sa prestance sur scène. De même, Gwyneth Jones est tellement crédible - et poignante - dans son incarnation de Brünnhilde, qu'on ne peut que lui pardonner ses vibratos excessifs. René Kollo a été le meilleur Siegfried, mais ses conflits avec Boulez l'ont fait quitter la production, et il est certain que Manfred Jung n'est pas au même niveau. Mais encore maintenant, il est difficile de trouver LE bon Siegfried, à la fois scéniquement et vocalement. Jeanine Altmeyer est une remarquable Sieglinde, et elle joue son personnage de façon poignante. Peter Hofmann était aussi un époustouflant Siegmund, physiquement et vocalement, auquel seul a succédé Jonas Kaufmann.
Un autre aspect de cette production du Ring, intéressant à connaître, est le nombre et la violence des réactions qu'elle a suscitées. Patrice Chéreau a reçu des menaces de mort. Winifred Wagner était folle de rage après lui, l'ayant traité de Communiste avec le pire des mépris. Elle a même dit que si elle le rencontrait, "elle le tuerait" disait-elle. Elle a aussi refusé de voir la production pratiquement jusqu'à la fin. Elle a refusé de rencontrer Chéreau qui avait demandé à la connaître. Boulez a même été conspué par les musiciens qui ne voulaient plus travailler avec lui. Le décor du troisième acte de la Walkyrie (le mont Cervin) était une catastrophe sur le plan acoustique, mais il était déjà construit quand la production a commencé. D'ailleurs Donald McIntyre avait déjà soulevé le problème avec Chéreau, mais celui-ci lui avait dit que la production avait déjà couté tellement cher que... il fallait faire avec.
Les huées à chaque représentation n'ont pas cessé les deux premières années, a tel point que finalement, Wolfgang Wagner a convoqué Pierre Boulez, Donald McIntyre, Gwyneth Jones et Patrice Chéreau, leur disant qu'il envisageait de laisser tomber cette production vu les réactions négatives qu'elle entraînait. Donald McIntyre a été le premier à dire que lui voulait continuer, et que c'était la meilleure production du Ring où il avait chanté. Gwyneth Jones lui a immédiatement emboité le pas, et finalement ils ont tous réussi à convaincre Wolfgang de continuer. Celui-ci ne demandait pas mieux, et il a fait changer le décor du Cervin pour cette muraille incurvée qui a aussi soutenu la voix des chanteurs. Depuis, le succès ne s'est plus démenti, et, à la dernière représentation en 1980, il y a eu une heure et demie d'applaudissements et de rappels... c'est-à-dire plus longtemps qu'un acte du Ring.
De plus c'est la première fois que l'on a fait un enregistrement vidéo du Ring, et la première fois que la salle du Festspielhaus a servi de studio d'enregistrement, car ce n'est pas l'enregistrement d'une des représentations.
Avec le temps et l'éclosion du DVD, j'ai pratiquement toutes les versions du Ring. Chacune a ses qualités, mais aucune n'arrive au niveau de profondeur de la compréhension de l'œuvre que celle de Chéreau. On comprend aussi que pour un metteur en scène, proposer une mise en scène à Bayreuth aussi intéressante que celle-ci ne doit pas être simple... Et si maintenant nous avons des versions d'opéras qui sont aussi variées, je pense que c'est à Patrice Chéreau que l'on doit ce véritable tournant dans la conception du genre opéra. Non seulement il est à l'origine de ce renouveau, mais il est aussi, indirectement, à l'origine de l'apprentissage de la technique du chant d'opéra. Si Nisson, Crespin, Pavarotti restent des références éternelles, on voit maintenant des voix d'une puissance étonnante chez des hommes et des femmes restées minces et élégants. Il faut voir Angela Denoke interpréter Kundry, Waltraud Meier interpréter Isolde, Nadja Mikael interpréter Salomé, ou Jonas Kaufmann interpréter Siegmund, Parsifal ou Werther...
Pour moi ce Ring de Chéreau reste LA référence de la Tétralogie...