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Wagner: Das Rheingold

Wagner: Das Rheingold

For: $52.98

This, the third installment in the first stereo Ring (once thought lost), from the stage of the Bayreuth Festival in 1955, is as impressive and crucial to any collection as the previously released Siegfried and Die Walküre. Joseph Keilberth, whose devotion to Wagner was so great that he died conducting the second act of Tristan, leads an incredibly tight performance--almost jaunty in its storytelling. The opening chord, depicting the Rhine, is not played softly as marked; it does rather plunge us into the action with more energy than usual. The singing is universally remarkable. Hans Hotter's Wotan towers in its snideness and potency, while the Fricka of Georgine von Milinkovic is more subtle and alluring than we're accustomed to. Gustav Neidlinger's Alberich is, as on so many other recordings in which he sings this role, something to reckon with--a despicable but wretched character. The giants of Ludwig Weber and Josef Greindl have probably never been bettered; Paul Kuen's Mime is articulate and creepy and Rudolf Lustig's Loge is wily and clearly, cleanly sung. The only stain on this recording is the dreadful hissing noise given off by something called a "Mixtur-Trautonium," an electronic device invented to simulate the sound of the Nibelungs' anvils in Nibelheim. It's a distraction, but it can be lived with. This set is a must-have, and the extraneous noise during that scene is small price to pay for a performance this thrilling. --Robert Levine

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Reviews

Love it (75%)  |  Hate it (12%)  |  On the Fence (13%)  |  Didn't Rate it (0%)
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From: Amazon Posted: Apr 30, 2008 Type: User Review A Ring Newbie Review

First off, there is no way that I am going to sound as erudite and learned as these other reviewers. I am not well versed in the ways of this music and have only begun to discover this treasure trove called Der Ring Des Nibelungen. All I can...
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5.00 Star Rating
5.00/5
From: Amazon Posted: Feb 10, 2008 Type: User Review A major disappointment

I'm so glad that I didn't listen to "Das Rheingold" from this "Ring" until the very last, because I agree with Andre Filippe Vital. This is in many ways a disappointing recording and the weakest link of this "Ring."

It isn't so much...
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2.00 Star Rating
2.00/5
From: Amazon Posted: Jan 11, 2008 Type: User Review More variable than the other Ring installments from Keilberth

Once you are used to the high standards of Keilberth's best Wagner (in the case of the 1955 Ring cycle, the best is Siegfried and Gotterdammerung), a sloppy Rheingold comes as a bit of a letdown. I see that other reviewers are praising it as equal...
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3.00 Star Rating
3.00/5
From: Amazon Posted: Jan 10, 2008 Type: User Review More variable than the other Ring installments from Keilberth

Once you become accustomed to the high standards of Keilberth's best Wagner (in the case of the 1955 Ring cycle, the best is Siegfried and Gotterdammerung), a sloppy Rheingold comes as a considerable letdown. I see that other reviewers are...
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3.00 Star Rating
3.00/5
From: Amazon Posted: Jan 07, 2008 Type: User Review Wagner's Rheingold, Keilberth 1955 Bayreuth recording: wonderful stuff

This is a truly wonderful recording, and a pleasure to listen to. The whole thing, from opening to end, feels like a single continuous breath, and the details are no less stunning.
May I ask:
Why was it not released for 50 years? (and...
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5.00 Star Rating
5.00/5
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