Aktuelles

26. August 2008

Neuausgabe von Wagners "Ring des Nibelungen" bei OpusArte als Gesamtausgabe

WELT AM SONNTAG: "Haenchens sensationelle Interpretation (...) einfach faszinierend; GRAMOPHONE MAGAZINE Editor's Choice: "Götterdämmerung" (OKTOBER 2006) und "RECORDING OF THE MONTH" wurde die DVD-Aufnahme von "Siegfried" (musicweb-international). Rezensionen loben die vollständige DVD-Ausgabe "Der Ring des Nibelungen" in höchsten Tönen:

Ruhrnachrichten, 24. 7. 2013

Wagners "Ring" für daheim
Vergleich der verschiedenen Aufnahmen auf dem Schallplattenmarkt.

Nicht nur in Bayreuth wird derzeit eifrig an einem neuen „Ring des Nibelungen“ geschmiedet. Auch in der Schallplattenindustrie spielt Wagners vierteiliger Opernzyklus eine große Rolle.

Visuell hochwertig und mit einer intensiven Körpersprache hat Pierre Audi die Tetralogie zum Jahrtausend-Wechsel in Amsterdam inszeniert, nun von Opus Arte veröffentlicht. Auch musikalisch kommt man hier gut auf seine Kosten, da Hartmut Haenchen eine gelungene Interpretation vorweisen kann, die nur in Jeannine Altmeyer als Brünnhilde einen vokalen Schwachpunkt hat.
Ganze Rezension hier
Christoph Broermann

www.amazon.de, 23. Juli 2013

Ein künstlerisch hervorragender Ring - Dirigat und Regie überzeugen !

Hartmut Haenchens Nibelungenring Dirigat ist exzellent. Die Gesangsleistungen überzeugen!
Kurt Rydl als Hunding (Walküre) und als Hagen (Götterdämerung) herausragend.
Graham Clark als Mime darstellerisch und gesanglich superlaiv ! Die Lichtregie ist
farblich wundervoll ! Ein grossartiger Ring !
Richard Schnaitl
5 Sterne

Wiener Zeitung, 20.12.2007

Wer keine Karte für die "Walküre" bekommt, kann "Ring"-Liebhabern anderes schenken: rare DVD-Aufnahmen
Frohe Weihnachten für Wagnerianer

Dem "Ring" begegnet man am besten in der Oper – oder auf DVD.
Klassiker und Geheimtipps von Audi, Chéreau, Schenk.

Wien. Im Zuge der "Walküre"-Premiere an der Wiener Staatsoper ist ein richtiger Hype um Richard Wagners "Ring des Nibelungen" entstanden. Der vielleicht auch in den Weihnachtsgeschenken seinen Niederschlag finden will. Ein paar Tipps für "Ring"-Freunde und alle, die es werden wollen.
Dem "Ring" begegnet man am besten auf DVD, Wagner dachte szenisch. Ohne Bühne, nur akustisch genossen, ist die Musik immer noch genial. Aber es fehlt etwas.

Konservativer "Ring"

Wer es konservativ mag, greift am besten zum "Ring" aus der Met. Otto Schenk hat eine Märchenbuch-Inszenierung ohne Deutung geliefert, Dirigent James Levine sorgt für behäbige bis bleischwere Tempi, das Ensemble übt sich in lautstarkem Wagner-Gesang, wie er früher Gang und Gäbe war. Eine Auferstehung des Wagner-Stils von gestern (Deutsche Grammophon, 7 DVDs, ca. 110 Euro).

Einen wesentlich aufregenderen "Ring" ebenfalls konservativerer Machart lieferte Pierre Audi für Amsterdam. Es sind wunderbare magische Bilder, in denen der Mythos erzählt wird. Audi verwandelt die Szene in Poesie und trägt das Epos mit klarer Stimme vor. Nur die Verlagerung des Spiels in den Raum kann die DVD nicht ganz wiedergeben. Musikalisch ist alles nahezu ideal, vor allem dank Hartmut Haenchen, der einen sehr analytischen und doch leidenschaftlichen Wagner dirigiert. Auch die sängerischen Leistungen sind atemberaubend, nur Jeannine Altmeyer als Brünnhilde ist etwas überfordert (wird nicht als komplettes Paket angeboten, insgesamt ca. 180 Euro).

www.amazon.com Mai 2008

The third part of the Amsterdam cycle continues the fine form established from the first two productions. The set is striking in not only it's sheer size but it's simplicity. The second act comes alive with uses of a balcony and a flying fox and the first act also has a really great look about it.
John Brochelor's final outing as Wotan (or The Wanderer) is as good as his others. He portrays the world weary and tired head of the Gods with superb clarity and pathos. His scene with Erda (played by Anne Gjevang) is quite hypnotic, whereas in other productions it pretty much is a stagnant moment of the act.
Despite the bee-keeper hats that most of the cast wear (and the reappearance of the genitalia shaped Giant Fafner from Rheingold) the costumes are great. Graham Clark virtually steals everything not nailed down as Mime. His performance harkens back to some of the finest performers in the role- Stolze and Zednick come to mind. His menacing actions and facial exprerssions show the real villan and leaves us in no doubt who to is the real menace here.
Heinz Kruse provides a solid performance as Siegfried despite looking far too old (but then again, any singer even beginning to tackle the role of Siegfried should be at least 40) and perhaps a little chunky. As William Berger once noted, is there really anyone who is the perfect Siegfried?
Jeannine Altmeyer does a fine job in her brief stint as Brunnhilde at the end of the evening and the final duet is gloriously sung and staged.
One of the more curious decisions in this production is to have a male treble, Stefan Pangratz, singing the role of the woodbird. Whilst he's certainly nimble and very good at acting the part, his voice cannot handle Wagner's intricate lines all that well and it comes across as a little hokey.
All along, conductor Hartmut Haenschen keeps a tight rein on the Rotterdam Philahrmonic and the entire performance just rockets along (all three acts clocking in under 80 minutes each!) without losing the clarity and focus needed to highlight Wagner's complex score.
This was certainly the most invigorating of the three operas so far and with one more to go, I can't wait for the final installment.
Rodney Hrvatin

Fanfare Magazin 27. Mai 2007

Götterdämmerung
Director Pierre Audi has the orchestra back in an open pit surrounded by the stage, allowing conductor Hartmut Haenchen to be frequently in view. As with Die Walküre, Haenchen’s band is the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra—he had the far-from-negligible Residentie and Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestras for Rheingold and Siegfried, respectively. The orchestral playing throughout is excellent: as just one example, listen to the bass clarinet solo followed by the sequential entrance of the eight horns in the passage leading into the second scene of act II. The Funeral March, Götterdämmerung ’s most famous set piece, is thrilling.
Andrew Quint

www.operatoday.com, 13.März 2007

Walküre
The redeeming factor therefore must come from all things musical and honours surely go to the orchestra which plays magnificently for Haenchen. The Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra is the second Amsterdam orchestra and plays most of the productions at Het Muziektheater. Once a year the more famous Concertgebouw orchestra takes over and though the sound may be a little more brilliant it always strikes me as an orchestra on an outing while the Philharmonic’s warm sound and disciplined reading is more suited to opera. Haenchen prefers a transparent and lighter reading than usual. During these Ring performances he was the first to use the new Richard Wagner Gesamtausgabe and this results in an energetic reading, doing away with some of the slow tempi which were so loved by the German conductors of the thirties.

Götterdämmerung, 13.März 2007
Hartmut Haenchen proves once more to be a master at the helm of his orchestra. He doesn’t milk the score for effect but Siegfried’s Rheinfart is beautiful in his quick silvered handling while the funeral music has one sit up and marvel once again at Wagner’s inspiration and orchestration. Haenchen gives his singers time to breath without hurrying them and the report between pit and scene is excellent. There seems to have been no incidents and if there were, the editing was done professionally.
Jan Neckers

Scherzo, Heft 4 2007

...merced al trabajo de Haenchen, que se revela como un intérprete formidable del autor de la Tetralogie y se apunta además un tanto al ser el primero en grabar el Anillo en la edición de la Neue Richard-Wagner-Gesamtausgabe.... magníficamente trazada, en cambio, por Haenchen, gran protagonista de esta realización de uno de los hitos de la cultura accidental.
Enrique Martinez Miura

Welt am Sonntag, 30. April 2006

(...) Haenchen leistet Großes
Allein Haenchens sensationelle Interpretation sorgt für Vorfreude auf die nächsten Teile. So direkt, so unmittelbar hat Wagner noch nie geklungen, ohne dabei an Substanz einzubüßen - einfach faszinierend.
Friedrich Pohl

www.dvd.reviewer.co.uk

In the fourth and final part of the epic cycle, Der Ring des Nibelungen, the treachery and betrayal which leads to Siegfried’s death also heralds the downfall of the gods and the return of the gold to the Rhine. This stunning production of The Ring from Het Muziektheater Amsterdam blends the lyrical, mythical and philosophical qualities of Wagner’s work into a profound unity. Pierre Audi’s stage direction is inspired and amazing sets by George Tsypin and wonderful costumes by Oscar-winning Eiko Ishioka complement singing and playing of great intensity from the cast and the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra under Hartmut Haenchen’s visionary musical direction. This is a Ring to remember. This production of The Ring of the Nibelung is based on the new Complete Edition of the works of Richard Wagner.

www.classicalcdreview.com

At last we have a contemporary treatment of Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen that doesn't insult audiences. This production is based on the new "Complete Edition of the works of Richard Wagner," and considerable discussion is given to the numerous (thousands it states) minor changes based on Wagner's notes after the time of the premiere. I doubt most listeners would be aware of these except for faster tempi than usual ("Don't drag...it's not an aria!" Wagner said referring to Brünnhilde in Götterdämmerung). What is important in these performances is the imaginative staging—the stage circles into the audience with the orchestra pit in the center but at only a slightly lower level than the "stage." Sets by George Tsypin are basic but believable, costumes designed by Eiko Ishioka are imaginative and appropriate (the DVD cover shows Brünnhilde's), and Pierre Audi's stage direction is compelling.

All of this is remarkably impressive visually but would be for naught if the singing didn't do justice to Wagner's masterpieces—and generally it does, considering the state of Wagnerian singing today. John Bröcheler's Wotan/Wanderer is uniformly strong, and there is a welcome appearance of Chris Merritt as Loge, a role far removed from the tenor's earlier high-tenor parts that brought him fame, but right for him now. Henk Smit and Graham Clark as Alberich and Mime, vividly portray these disreputable characters. Renihild Runkel is a solid, vocally secure Fricka, Anne Gjevang a strong Erda. Nadine Secunde's Sieglinde gets better as Walküre progresses; by the time of "O hehrstes Wunder!" in Act III she is in excellent form. Likewise, Jeannine Altmeyer's Brünnhilde, rather stressed in her Battle Cry, improves in Act III and her big scene with Wotan is superb. John Keyes isn't a true heldentenor, but he copes well with the demanding role of Siegmund, and visually he is totally convincing. This is the finest batch of Valkyries I've ever heard; no question that one or two of them will be singing major Wagner roles sometime soon. The orchestra (Hague Residentie Orchestra for Rheingold, Netherlands Philharmonic for Walküre), are excellent, and conductor Hartmut Haenchen proves to be a fine Wagnerian conductor. The 5.1 surround sound is full and rich with fine balance between orchestra and singers, photography is superb with the camera almost always in the right spot. I look forward to Siegfried and Götterdämmerung; this is an admirable Ring,
R.E.B. May 06

www.musicweb-international.com

When I reviewed Das Rheingold in the same cycle just a couple of months ago I was eventually won over by the production as a whole, even though I was less impressed by the singing (see review).

The present production is even more sparse with the action taking place on a kind of running-track surrounding the orchestra which itself is immersed in the middle of the stage but fully visible. The players remain an integral part of the action as well as producing an orchestral sound that challenges and even surpasses most of what is encountered on competing versions, whether it be sound only or DVDs. I have to admit that I am not fully updated on all the different versions of this opera that are currently available and so I will concentrate on a description and an assessment of the present issue with some references to other versions that I am familiar with. Some readers may have read my reviews - on Seen and Heard - of the ongoing new Ring from Stockholm Royal Opera, where Die Walküre was premiered at the end of February. I saw it a few weeks later and was enthralled. This “peeled off” production is a world apart from the Stockholm version but to my mind both are thought-provoking alternatives. The Dutch performance has a lot to its credit, not least the quality of timelessness – if that is what it is. The absence of references to milieus and epochs forces the viewer to focus on the interactions and conflicts between the main characters and that is the real strength of this performance.

The focus on the orchestra also pays dividends, as I hinted at the beginning and it is a pleasure to wallow in the sound of this well-rehearsed band. Listen to the lush string sound, especially in the first act love music which rarely has been so sensually and, dare I say, sexually coloured. Hartmut Haenchen may not be known as a Wagnerian, but just as in Das Rheingold, he won me over fairly early in the first act. Not from the very beginning though, since the stormy prelude seemed a notch too fast and too streamlined. Maybe it was all too well-rehearsed and had lost something of the raw power of nature. In this respect no recording that I have heard surpasses the old Furtwängler, which I hope will be released in Naxos’s ongoing series of classic opera sets. The rest of the performance feels absolutely right. The only problem with the placing of the orchestra is that some of the soloists do not always manage to be heard properly at climaxes; Haenchen obviously has no wish to hold back. This afflicts, most of all, Jeannine Altmayer’s Brünnhilde, who, although creating a wonderful portrait of Wotan’s favourite daughter, lacks the ultimate steel and, more seriously, is rather weak at the bottom of her register. However with such glorious playing one can gladly sacrifice a note or two of the soprano part. Sets and backdrop are practically non-existent. The costumes get pride of place and even they are not very stirring. Sieglinde looks at first like a run-away nun. Brünnhilde makes her first entrance in a dark-brown tight-fitting jogging-dress. When she takes on her duties as a Walküre, she adds metallic wings, which her sisters also wear in the third act. Wotan, in a red knee-length coat, has a kind of metal armour covering his right shoulder and part of his arm, maybe indicating that he is half-God but also half-human. Anyway, when he gets really private and personal in his exchange of thoughts with Brünnhilde in the third act, he removes the armour. Fricka, all white, has aged considerably, becoming frail and stumbling along on crutches, but when Wotan in anger tears them away from her she is fully capable of walking at full speed. She uses all her means to rule poor Wotan.

Much of the performance is filmed in close-up and since most of the principal singers are also good actors this enhances the feeling of presence and involvement. Reinhild Runkel is very impressive indeed as Fricka, her eyes very telling. She sings her part much better than she did in Das Rheingold, maybe partly because here she sounds her looks (or looks her sounds). Nadine Secunde, who was also Barenboim’s Sieglinde in the Bayreuth production from 1992, has lost some of her sonority and adopts an annoying wobble which becomes prominent when the voice is under pressure. That said, she has retained, and even developed, her insight in the role and at more restrained moments, which are legion, her reading of the part is extremely touching. John Keynes, a name new to me, also has a wobble, which initially is troublesome but either I got used to it or else he managed to keep it better in check as the performance progressed. In spite of these shortcomings he makes a good Siegmund, deeply involved, creating a nuanced portrait of his character and singing with a manly voice with a great deal of brilliance. He delivers a glowing spring song. As Hunding Kurt Rydl is imposing, black-voiced and threatening.

Jeannine Altmeyer has been around for some time now; she was Brünnhilde on the first digital Ring, released in 1983. Even then she was regarded by some critics as too light-voiced. The same criticism could be posed seventeen years later. It is still a beautiful voice, fairly unscathed by the passing years and she has stage presence. In the final duet with Wotan she is very vulnerable and touching. The real pillar of strength is, however, John Bröcheler as the Chief of the Gods. He is a singer in the John Tomlinson mould, maybe not quite as big-voiced and somewhat drier of tone but he is still powerful, intense and untiring. In the final scene he grows to heroic and tragic heights and from In festen Schlaf verschliess’ ich dich he gains even more dignity. Leb’wohl du kühnes, herrliches Kind up till the very end is great singing indeed with an added sonority and warmth that is heart-rending.

In sheer vocal terms the Barenboim version may be even more recommendable but the visual impact of this Spartan production is such that it will not be easily forgotten. It is recorded in surround sound. I heard it in ordinary stereo, which sounded excellent, and there is a good booklet. There is also an introduction to the opera. All in all this a quality product.
Göran Forsling

www.dvd.reviewer.co.uk

"Haenchen generally takes things at a fairly brisk pace which creates a nice flow (...) The orchestral playing is excellent. I’m looking forward to the rest of this particular Ring."
Alan Titherington

www.bbc.co.uk

At the opposite extreme to the kitsch of the Met's cycle, comes Pierre Audi's production from Amsterdam, only the first part of which has so far been issued. Audi has done away with conventional sets and uses wood, metal, stone and glass blocks to create spaces in which the action can happen. It is a very technical production with something always being built. The placing of the orchestra is also unconventional. For much of the cycle, there is a vast runway from the stage around the orchestra and back to the stage, so that the orchestra is in the middle of the action. On other occasions, Audi has the orchestra actually on the stage. Both sitings give the singers occasional problems seeing the conductor and there is also some pushing to get over the orchestral sound. John Brocheler is, at times, a dry-voiced Wotan, but there is a striking Alberich from Henk Smit and the ever-reliable Graham Clark is Mime. Conductor Hartmut Haenchen doesn't hang around, driving the score forward relentlessly. But there's enough going on here to make one look forward to the complete cycle being issued on DVD.

Production: 4 stars  from 5
Music: 4 stars from 5
Richard Fawkes

www.musicweb-international.com

Most interestingly, Audi wanted to bring out the integral drama in the music. At Bayreuth, Wagner hid the orchestra in a pit below the stage. For Audi, the music is so important that he wants the orchestra to be part of the action in a visible, physical sense, too. The audience thus is seated around the orchestra who are visible at all times. This creates a different, but very dynamic acoustic. Surprisingly, the singers found it enjoyable even though they were facing the orchestra. Graham Clark said that when you’re "eyeball to eyeball" with audience and musicians, your focus adapts. The conductor, Hartmut Haenchen adds that many Wagnerian singers shout and ruin their voices. This new arrangement allowed them to sing "with" the orchestra. Moreover, the orchestral players loved it, as they could hear better what was going on on-stage and gauge their responses more sensitively. Indeed, this was a very well played Rheingold, the prelude and non-vocal passages illuminated by the extra prominence, and the clear enthusiasm of the musicians.
In all, this is a production to study for its insights. The spare set and the visible orchestra concentrate attention on what is happening in the drama, and on its psychological, philosophical ideas. Ultimately, this is much more in keeping with Wagner’s dearest wish, that his operas should make people think, than any amount of Teutonic kitsch.
Anne Ozorio

www.klassiekezaken.nl

de muzikale prestaties van dirigent Hartmut Haenchen die Wagners muziek slanker, eleganter, transparanter dan ooit liet klinken.
Doron Nagan

www.audio-muziek.nl, Mai 2006

Das Rheingold / Die Walküre
De eerste Nederlandse productie van Der Ring des Nibelungen werd inderdaad de gebeurtenis waarop iedereen gehoopt had. Dat sprak niet voor zich en ik kan me voorstellen dat in het verleden menig plan voor een 'eerste Ring' werd verworpen vanwege de (te) hoog gespannen verwachtingen. Wat dat betreft hebben theaters waar deze cyclus tot het standaardrepertoire behoort het heel wat makkelijker. Er was dan ook een Pierre Audi voor nodig om deze klus te klaren: een regisseur die erin slaagde een volledig origineel concept te creëren, dat enerzijds nieuw en nooit eerder vertoond was, maar anderzijds de essentie van Wagners werk in stand hield door niet modieus te gaan 'interpreteren'. Deze eerste Ring mocht geen controverse oproepen tussen 'oude wagnerianen' en aanhangers van het 'nieuwe muziektheater', en daarin is Audi wonderwel geslaagd. Zijn ruimtelijke aanpak, ondersteund door de suggestieve, bij tijden oogverblindende decors van George Tsypin, fabelachtig mooi belicht door Wolfgang Göbbel, zorgde ook voor een Ring die alleen in Het Muziektheater mogelijk is en ondersteunde daarmee de essentie van Wagners eigen dramaturgie. Het theater met een ware zeggingskracht kan alleen maar bedoeld zijn voor een bepaald publiek op een bepaalde plaats. Een inwisselbare reisproductie die overal vertoond kan worden, wordt al snel tot een puur esthetische ervaring of op zijn minst tot een bevrediging van verwachtingen - artistieke prostitutie dus.

Sinds de première op 4 september 1997 is over Audi's productie van Das Rheingold al uitvoerig bericht, maar het fascinerende is dat de voorstelling na al die tijd (voor mij betekent dat zes voorstellingen en twee tv-uitzendingen) nog steeds blijft boeien, ondanks het feit dat Audi in deze 'vooravond' soms wal al te abstract bezig is met het leggen van een dramatisch fundament. Sommige personages komen nauwelijks uit de verf en het gebeurde me meer dan eens dat ik de zaal uit kwam en me bijvoorbeeld niets meer herinnerde van Fricka, een rol die muzikaal toch zeker niet kleurloos genoemd kan worden, en die ook in het verhaal enkele malen prominent aanwezig is. Het lijkt of Audi zich zo sterk concentreerde op de machtsstrijd rond Wotan, Loge, de Nibelungen en het goud, dat de 'nevengoden' (met uitzondering van Erda) tot marionetten gereduceerd werden. Aan de andere kant moet ik ook zeggen dat het een paar voorstellingen heeft geduurd eer ik me dat realiseerde - zo overweldigend kwam het visuele aspect in de zaal op mij over. Dat overweldigende en ook de technische complexiteit van deze productie valt in de huiskamer duidelijk af te zien aan deze dvd-uitgave, gebaseerd op de NPS-opname uit 1999. (Een andere kant van de medaille is, dat ik in Het Muziektheater tot twee keer toe een 'Rheingold met pauze' mocht meemaken, omdat de techniek het liet afweten.)

Ook muzikaal blijft deze Ring imponeren ("Auch musikalisch bleibt dieser Ring imposant"), al moet ik daarbij een paar kanttekeningen maken. Op dit punt prefereer ik namelijk de voorstellingen van vorig jaar, toen Hartmut Haenchen, mede doordat hij de hele Ring met 'zijn ' NedPhO kon spelen, een niet alleen gerijpte, maar ook intensere weergave gaf van de partituur dan in 1999, toen hij verschillende orkesten tot zijn beschikking had. Ook de solisten waren vorig jaar op punten beter, en dan denk ik vooral aan de Wotan van Albert Dohmen en de Fricka van Doris Soffel. Geen kwaad woord echter over John Bröcheler en Reinhild Runkel, al gaat de erepalm hier toch naar Chris Merritt (een messcherpe Loge), Graham Clark (de meest gedetailleerde mime die ik ooit gezien heb) en Henk Smit. Vooral Smit verdient een gouden lijstje, omdat hij tegen het einde van zijn toch al grootse carrière hier nog even een Alberich neerzette waarmee hij deze vileine dwerg tot het ware centrum van het drama maakte.

Over de technische verzorging kan ik kort zijn. De kwaliteit waarmee de NPS beeld en geluid vastlegt (of laat vastleggen) staat internationaal op eenzaam niveau en de vrijwel perfecte weergave via de dvd (in normaal stereo en dts) maakt dat ook hier weer eens duidelijk. Sterker nog: nooit eerder had ik zo sterk het gevoel dat een voorstelling bijna voor het beeldscherm gemaakt was! Bij wijze van uitzondering is trouwens ook het meegeleverde boekje met naast enkele foto's een gedegen toelichting van Hartmut Haenchen de moeite waard. De ruimte die op de tweede cd overbleef, werd ingeruimd voor de vijftig minuten durende documentaire die Roeland Hazendonk maakte over deze absoluut unieke productie van Der Ring des Nibelungen.
Paul Korenhof

The Netherlands Opera's production of Wagner's Ring Cycle has been a perplexing experience on DVD.
Sometimes providing great insight, sometimes appearing completely devoid of thought, it is certainly worth watching once but I don't think I'll be playing it repeatedly.

www.musicomh.com 1. Juni 2006

Götterdämmerung
The conductor Hartmut Haenchen has referred to the new edition of the Complete Wagner Edition for the production, often creating greater clarity of textures and bringing out the classical lines that form the composer's complex harmonic language. The Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra is the real star of the show, conjuring up the River Rhine, magic fire and the Hall of the Gibichungs far better than the monstrous set ever could.
Dominic McHugh

www.cvs-mediatheques.com über "Siegfried"

Wertung: 4 Sterne

www.musicweb-international.com über "Siegfried" ausgezeichnet als Recording des Monats:

Evaluating Wagner is very different from evaluating other composers. His works aren’t well assessed in a formulaic manner. Understanding how the drama works at deeper levels is crucial to any perceptive assessment. Siegfried poses special challenges. Despite being a unified work, the Ring’s individual operas are quite distinct. Siegfried is, in some ways more intense because it centres on three figures, the Wanderer, Mime and Siegfried. The whole drama pivots on what these figures represent, throughout Wagner’s entire worldview. Unlike, say, Das Rheingold, where unexceptional singing from minor characters is not critical, the core performances in Siegfried make or break the opera.

The present performance is wonderful because of Graham Clark. His Mimes vary with different productions because he understands the importance of integrating character development with the overall interpretation. Here, his Mime is strikingly complex. Part insect, part human, this Mime is a troglodyte who scrapes an existence living off others, like a parasite. Jealousy consumes him yet he is unable to do anything original of his own to get ahead. Instead, he takes from others, thinking that somehow, by stealing what they have, and then destroying them, he can triumph. Even Alberich, in comparison, has greater integrity, despite his evil. Clark’s every movement enhances the depiction of Mime as parasite. His hands twitter the way ground beetles twitch; his head moves like an insect sensing the air for spoils or danger. His costume, by the award-winning Eiko Ishioka, is a fantastical conflation of tramp and dung beetle, complete with scaly, hairy nether regions. Alberich’s sexuality caused him to attack the Rhinemaidens and later engender Hagen. Here, Mime uses his equivalent of pubic hair in the potion he mixes to poison Siegfried. It is brilliant, subtle touches like this which bring out the deep levels in the drama which make the Ring the powerful work it is, details completely lost in superficial and clichéd work.

One of Wagner’s preoccupations was the contrast between direct action and derivative action. Secondary producers, such as Alberich, who used other people’s labour to profit were tainted. Wotan, despite his failings, was essentially a seeker after first-hand knowledge and experience. Hence the interaction between the Wanderer and Mime dramatises two completely opposed ways of living. Wherever the Wanderer may be journeying, he’s observing and learning, and willing to impart knowledge, while foregoing the comforts of hearth and home. Mime won’t share with him willingly - so different from Sieglinde’s hospitality - and only lets him stay for what he might get in return. As the Wanderer says, Mime wastes his questions on subjects he already knows about because he isn’t actually interested in anything but himself. John Bröcheler’s Wanderer is a charismatic figure, dressed in black veils. His voice is resonant with gravitas: this Wanderer is no passive observer but all too aware of the danger Mime and Alberich represent. The contrast between Bröcheler’s singing and Clark’s is delicious, both completely in character and in superb form.

Heinz Kruse has the voice for Siegfried, if not the looks. On the other hand, Siegfried doesn’t "have" to be a paragon of youthful perfection. He is a simple-minded innocent after all, without graces, who, without the destiny ordained for him might have just been another boorish yokel. His words of hate for Mime may sear the text, but Kruse’s Siegfried lives for the moment, and doesn’t feed on bitterness - a Niebelung trait. I was much less convinced by the Waldvogel, sung by Stefan Pangratz. We may be more accustomed to the role sung by a woman, but dramatically it works well with an androgynous character. Pangratz’s voice though, trained in Bach and counter-tenor repertoire, doesn’t quite convey the mystery of who the bird is, and why it knows so much. Perhaps the idea was to stress the fragility of Siegfried’s new knowledge? Or the vulnerability of the natural world? Or is it in deliberate contrast to the subterranean grotesquery of Mime and Alberich? Does it refer to the idea of beauty glimpsed by the earthbound Fafner and Fasolt? Given that it raises so many significant interpretative insights, I’m inclined to agree that the use of a male voice in the part is very much in keeping with the spirit of the music drama overall. There are plenty of straightforwardly beautiful female Waldvogels, so in the context of this production, this has its merits.

In my earlier review of Das Rheingold in this cycle I wrote of Audi’s decision to bring the orchestra on stage, integrating the music directly with stage action. In Das Rheingold, the idea worked very well, focusing attention on the drama and music, not the trappings of scenery. Real Wagnerians have known for decades that the cycle is based on ideas, not on specific mythology, but Teutonic kitsch has a stultifying stranglehold on popular misconception. Audi’s "no set" set should be a required antidote for newcomers to the cycle. As in the earlier opera, putting the orchestra on-stage inspires glorious playing. Haenchen is superb, galvanising a tight, precise and very animated performance. It’s faster paced than usual and surprisingly lucid.This is a Siegfried to listen to, as well as watch - though missing Clark’s Mime would be a shame. But because Siegfried is more concentrated than Das Rheingold, it works less well having the orchestra on stage. At moments the intensity of the interplay between Mime, Siegfried and the Wanderer is interrupted by the sight of the conductor or a musician in the background. Nonetheless this is an admirable production, very highly recommended.
Anne Ozorio

www.dvd-reviewer.co.uk

And so we come to the end of another Ring, which is markedly more successful and satisfying than that the Barcelona production (also reviewed).
Audi’s staging for this last chapter is more reserved than the others, leaving a large section of flat stage behind the orchestra (a lot easier for the chorus to move around on), but still keeping the sweep of the ring structure around the band, seemingly moving it up and out of the rear of the theatre. I’m sure it all looked a lot more impressive live, but you still gain a hugely interesting viewpoint on the whim of the TV director.

The costumes by Eiko Ishioka are, as usual, very impressive, and his idea of Hagen’s army being completely faceless is a little unnerving. Also, the Rheinmaidens are still dressed in their skin-tight rubber suits, but I really wish they weren’t.

Musically, Hartmut Haenchen produces just the right amount of dramatic intensity, and the Netherlands Philharmonic play very well indeed, although overall, I preferred the sound of the Rotterdam Phil in their parts of the cycle. The larger orchestra interludes though (notably the Rhein journey and the funeral music) are as good as you would want them with very little on stage to get in the way of the music (there is definitely no surfing down the Rhein nonsense in last year’s ENO production)..

Again, Heinz Kruse is a marvellous Siegfried vocally, but his acting leaves much to be desired, with barely a flicker of an expression on his face throughout. He doesn’t even seem remotely startled about being killed, but I’m sure a slight smile crossed his lips when meeting Brünnhilde again following his treachery. So there is hope I suppose.

Kurt Rydl (Hagen) gives a storming performance, and is a vast improvement over his Hunding in ‘Die Walküre’ (ironically enough, the character that kills Siegfried’s father), and is almost matched by Wolfgang Schöne (Gunther) who also has a hugely powerful voice, but with a slow vibrato you could drive a bus through.

It was also great to see Anne Gjevang sing Waltraute following her role as Erda in the previous operas. She does a fine job, despite having to go through some rather embarrassing choreography when attached to her Valkyrie wings.

Jeannine Altmeyer (Brünnhilde) is wonderful. She was considered to be at the peak of her Wagnerian powers over a decade before this recording, but had obviously not lost any of her form. Her performance here beats everything else she has done in this Ring (she sounded a bit croaky in ‘Die Walküre’), and her final immolation scene is hugely emotional, but it’s a great shame the fire effects we have seen throughout the cycle weren’t put to use.

Despite the woeful lack of worthwhile extras, this is a fitting conclusion to a fine Ring Cycle, and one which certainly stands up well against the growing number of DVD versions being made available.

www.musicweb-interational.com

On the morning after I had watched this Siegfried I read Anne Ozorio’s excellent MusicWeb review (see link below), a commentary I would urge every reader with an interest in this opera to study, since it is not only an evaluation of the recording in question but also an in-depth analysis of the work and this production’s interpretation of it.
The site made it a RECORDING OF THE MONTH, a view I wholeheartedly share. Since almost any opinion in my notes is synonymous with Anne’s I might just as well finish my review here. However I will make a few comments to further underline my enthusiasm.
This Ring production, directed by Pierre Audi, goes straight to the kernel of the music and the inherent conflicts, by dispensing with traditional sets and thus making it timeless. Placing the orchestra fully visible at the centre-stage further distances the drama from any references to reality. Since the whole cycle is more a matter of ideas I believe that Wagner himself would have liked this production in spite of the rejection of the detailed stage instructions accompanying his libretto.
I was a little sceptical when I started watching Das Rheingold but was finally won over and for each opera the concept has grown on me. Siegfried definitely had me hooked from beginning to end.
The orchestra play magnificently under the clearly inspired and inspirational Hartmut Haenchen. He is fairly swift and there is tremendous power at climaxes. This is helped by a recording that is analytical but, thanks to the acoustics of Het Muziektheater, Amsterdam, also has warmth: important in this out-door opera. The singing and acting is generally on a par with the orchestral contribution. However one character is head and shoulders above the rest, at least figuratively speaking: Graham Clark’s Mime, who nearly outdoes Siegfried. I wonder if there is a greater character-tenor around than Clark. Every gesture, every expression, every inflection is spot-on. The opera is worth seeing for Clark alone and if there was a vote for best acting on DVD this year, mine would definitely go to Graham Clark. Henk Smit, as his brother Alberich, is also a splendid actor and – am I just imagining things – he sings better than in Das Rheingold. Carsten Stabell’s thundering bass makes him a formidable Fafner and John Bröcheler has few, if any, superiors as Wotan. He too is a great actor, looking uncannily like the ageing Sean Connery. Vocally he is in the John Tomlinson mould; praise indeed. He is also Wotan in the new Australian Ring produced by Melba, the first instalment of which, Die Walküre, is in my review pile and will be onsite quite soon. Brünnhilde is, in this opera, almost a comprimario role, spending much of the 4½ hours asleep on the rock. When finally she is awakened she sings the final duet with Siegfried with silvery tone. And Siegfried? Well, this role has been notoriously difficult to cast for many years but vocally Heinz Kruse must be among the top contenders. His is a powerful voice, steady and sonorous, not unlike the great Wolfgang Windgassen in his heyday. He can produce soft lyrical tone as well. Quite a find! His acting however is hardly spectacular and it is instructive to compare his forging scene with Graham Clark’s. Clark is intense, purposeful, concentrated, full of life, whereas Kruse dutifully hammers his sword. We can’t get everything and we have to be grateful for a Siegfried who sings where all too many bark their way through the role.
This Siegfried is also my “Recording of the Month”. Now, on to Götterdämmerung. It is also waiting its turn in the stack.
Göran Forsling

The Dallas Morning News 17.Juli 2006
Musical values outweigh the annoying staging

DVD surveys of Wagner's Ring of the Nibelung just keep coming out, one after another. Pierre Audi's staging for the Netherlands Opera opened with a visually striking Rheingold that also happened to be one of the most consistently satisfying on musical grounds. At the other end of the Amsterdam cycle, this 1999 Götterdämmerung is a mix of arresting and annoying.
Designer George Tsypin supplies an abstract mix of curvaceous walls and ramps à la Frank Gehry. Wolfgang Göbbel's lighting is stunning. Eiko Ishioka's costumes range from 18th-century aristocratic (for the Gibichungs) to Mongolian warlord (for Siegfried) to S&M master (for Hagen). Alas, the production as a whole lacks focus.
The Norns get no rope to break, Siegfried no funeral procession, Brünnhilde a paltry excuse for an immolation; there's no suggestion of the burning Valhalla. What there is is a lot of silly hyperactivity. The Gibichung vasals do quasi-aerobics dancing, Waltraute flaps her art deco wings, and both Norns and Rhinemaidens twitch their fingers so much you want to yell, "Stop that!"
Again, though, musical values are impressive. Heinz Kruse is anything but a glamorous Siegfried, but his gleaming tenor soars stirringly through the role's challenges. Jeannine Altmeyer's top notes aren't always the most secure, and her low range could use more beef, but for the most part she's a very good Brünnhilde. Anne Gjevang is a hard-toned Waltraute, but she's not onstage that long.
The rest of the principals are good to very good: Kurt Rydl's Hagen, Wolfgang Schöne's Gunther, Eva-Maria Bundschuh's Gutrune and Henk Smit's Alberich, plus mellifluous Norns and Rhinemaidens. Nestled in the middle of the set, the orchestra plays stirringly for Hartmut Haenchen, who's certainly taken to heart Wagner's repeated warnings against lollygagging.
By SCOTT CANTRELL

www.operacritiques.free.fr 10.4.2006

Ce qui fait le prix de cette version, disons le tout de suite, c’est la direction d’orchestre tout simplement formidable de Hartmut Haenchen. D’un orchestre qui n’est pas le plus enivrant sur le plan des sonorités, le chef allemand tire une lecture admirable par sa richesse de traits, sa précision, ses contrastes, ses nuances, pour une vision éminemment poétique et théâtrale, avec un soutien constant à ses chanteurs.

Das Opernglas, Heft 10, 2006

....Über möglichen kritischen Anmerkungen steht jedoch Hartmut Haenchen, denn seine Sicht auf die Partitur muss sich keineswegs hinter anderen wichtigen „Ring“-Ergebnissen der 90er-Jahre verstecken (z.B. denen von Levine, Barenboim, Mehta oder Haitink). Basierend auf einem akribischen Partiturstudium und dem aktuellen Stand der Wissenschaft, dirigiert er mit eher zügigen Tempi und einem schlanken Musizierstil, der nicht mit Unemotionalität verwechselt werden sollte.
Manche Details klingen unter seiner Leitung im positiven Sinne anders, vor allem in der „Walküre“.....Technische Meisterleistungen und ausdrucksstarke Bilder prägen denn auch neben dem Dirigat den Gesamteindruck.
M.Wilks

http://richard_wagner.tripod.com

The Amsterdam Ring
The 1999 Ring at the Muziektheater was the first full cycle produced in Amsterdam after 50 or so years. Das Rheingold was presented in 1997 and Die Walküre the year after, in preparation for the four cycles staged last June.

The production was an exuberant sometimes audacious exercise subject as such to excesses and pitfalls. The production team was more than usually multinational with Director Lebanese Pierre Audi, Stage Designer Russian George Tsypin, Lighting Director German Wolfgang Göbbel, Costume Designer Japanese Eiko Ishioka and Choreographer Iranian Amir Hosseinpour.
The (Non) Concept:
The team's manifesto was the move away from "concept" productions and back into the mythical context of the tetralogy. The message was conveyed in several ways: the stage was made expansively vast to evoke impressions of cosmic creation. It was at all times open with just a reminder of the curtain, a metallic rectangle covering only a miniscule fraction of the open space. To gain the additional stage space the proscenium was extended at the sacrifice of the pit and the first 2-3 seat rows. By necessity if not by design, the orchestra was positioned in full view on the stage. There were no boundaries between the performers, the musicians and the audience, neither between the stage and the amphitheater. Strangely enough this blending did not appear incongruous even when cavemen and people in tails were next to each other on the stage or Alberich descended into the audience. Primal elements--water, wood, metal and stone--were brought in as well to create the theme for each successive music drama. Reminders of animal origins were added here and there: Alberich's maleness display to the Rhinemaidens; Mime's disguise into a hairy, waspy insect with spidery fingers and his performing a bodily act of dominance over dead Fafner's body; Hagen's sniffing Siegfried upon his arrival at the Gibichung's Hall.
To symbolize adversity as a central theme of the Ring the orchestra's positioning on stage rotated from one drama to the next in a counterclockwise direction. Another reminder of the Ring's doomed destiny was the gradual elimination of exits from the stage until in Götterdämmerung there was but one left. The steep stage surfaces upon which the action took place were to represent the precarious, life--on the edge fate of the protagonists. The cleverly but perilously suspended on each side of the stage "Adventure Seats" reserved for the intrepid rock climbing crowd who watched the events from Olympian heights, contributed to impart a sense of imminent danger.
Regrettably, the grandiose background led eventually to audience fatigue if not alienation. As the setting was not always matched with equal grandiosity from the performers it detracted from the intensity of the drama and yes, sometimes from the music.
The Orchestras:
Hartmut Haenchen had the difficult task to direct three orchestras: the Residentie Orkest in Rheingold, the Netherlands Philarmonic in Walküre and Götterdämmerung, the Rotterdams Philarmonic in Siegfried. He did so with ease and firm control, managing to convey unity and articulate clearly the motives. The cavernous stage and the rotating positioning of the orchestra presented acoustical problems partly resolved by the use of overhanging panels which doubled on occasion as, scenery parts. There were great moments, particularly by the Rotterdams strings. There were also disappointments such as the almost inaudible hammering at the Nibelheim, the lack of lustre at the conclusion of Götterdämmerung.
Das Rheingold had a flowing, seamless quality, having been revised after earlier presentations. It was the most polished of the four Ring parts.

The Rhinemaidens, clad in red, garrish, curve exaggerating snorkeling outfits, swam on a steep, transparent platform representing the Rhine. Cudos are due to Alberich (Henk Smit) for his velvety baritone and his perfect rendering of the anti-hero's role. He filled the gamut of frustrated lust at the Rhinemaidens' cruel teasing to spasms of rage at his humiliation and victimization by Wotan. The struggle between the two when in the second act they played tug pulling on the rope with which Alberich was tied up, created electric tension. The curse was chilling, vocally and dramatically. In comparison, John Bröcheler was a pale Wotan, lacking majesty, consumed by greediness and his own anxieties. Loge (Chris Merritt) sported the Nibelungs' flattened cranium to insinuate that-- according to the readers of the Scriptures--he was himself half-Nibelung. He was tepid, tying and untying knots on his scarf to symbolize his machinations. Loge's name deriving from the Greek word logos (reason) should suggest a nobler interpretation of the role.

The giants (Peter Mikulas as Fasolt and Carsten Stabbel as Fafner) were vocally authoritative and imposing in gray, foam rubber suits closely emulating all anatomical contours and with high head gear which gave them the necessary mass and placed them in another rank than the elaborately costumed Gods and the E.T.-like earth coloured, head flattened Nibelungs.
This was the only production I know of, where Wotan did not keep dancing around or brandishing the spear which was instead suspended free in mid-stage, touched only in crucial moments, when it was used to slay Fasolt, for example.
Alberich's metamorphosis into a dragon was most effective with projector lights as eyes.
Katerina Haka-Ikse

www.bergmann.nl
Der Ring des Nibelungen in de regie van Pierre Audi staat voor het internationale niveau dat De Nederlandse Opera in de afgelopen decennia heeft bereikt. Deze maand verschijnt het eerste deel van het magistrale vierluik op dvd. Ter ere daarvan blikt Audi openhartig terug op zijn persoonlijke geschiedenis met Wagners magnum opus. Pierre Audi, sinds 1988 artistiek directeur van De Nederlandse Opera, was twaalf jaar oud toen hij voor het eerst een opera van Wagner bijwoonde. Die werd opgevoerd in München, in 1969, op de avond van Neil Armstrongs landing op de maan. De kleine Pierre moest er flink moeite voor doen. Zijn vader had meer belangstelling voor de verrichtingen van de Amerikaanse astronaut. ‘We kregen er zelfs ruzie over,’ vertelt Audi op zijn kantoor in Amsterdam, maar uiteindelijk werd het toch Tristan und Isolde. ‘Ik weet nog hoe verbaasd mijn vader was over de intensiteit waarmee ik de opera volgde. Tot de laatste noot was ik volledig gebiologeerd. Toen we na afloop op straat liepen, zagen we de beelden van de maanlanding op tv’s in de winkeletalages. De combinatie van deze twee evenementen op dezelfde avond is me altijd als iets heel bijzonders bijgebleven.’ Ook zijn kennismaking met Wagners muziektheaterepos Der Ring des Nibelungen, een aantal jaren later, maakte grote indruk. ‘Eind jaren zeventig zag ik in Covent Garden de Ring van Goetz Friedrich en in 1980 die van Patrice Chéreau in Bayreuth. Ik was meteen geraakt door het mysterie van de muziek en de mythische aspecten in het verhaal. Het was alsof je moest binnendringen in iets dat gesloten was. Ik vond het prachtig dat de muziek en het verhaal de tijd namen om zich te ontvouwen. Het was een totaalervaring. Nooit gedacht dat ik de Ring ooit nog eens zelf zou regisseren.’ Dat is precies wat er in 1997 in Amsterdam gebeurde. Audi, toen al negen jaar artistiek directeur van De Nederlandse Opera, nam zijn gezelschap en het publiek mee op avontuur met de allereerste integrale productie van Der Ring des Nibelungen in Nederland. Dat was niet alleen een historische daad, maar daarnaast een taak van herculisch formaat. Audi regisseerde de cyclus én hij realiseerde de vier opera’s binnen één jaar, iets waar zelfs operahuizen met eeuwenlange ervaring meer tijd voor nodig hebben. In juni 1999 werd de cyclus viermaal integraal uitgevoerd en vastgelegd op beeld. Nu verschijnt hij op vier dvd’s. Pierre Audi is er blij mee: ‘Het gaat toch om de eerste Nederlandse Ring, om een historisch document. Tijdens de reprise in september hebben we gezien dat hij nog sterker is geworden. Een goede Ring groeit met de tijd.’ Het scheelde weinig of iemand anders had de primeur gehad. Aanvankelijk was de spraakmakende Duitse regisseur Klaus Michael Grüber door Audi benaderd. Maar hij bedankte, beducht voor de zware taak. Het was de toenmalige chef-dirigent van de Nederlandse Opera Hartmut Haenchen die Audi overhaalde om zelf de Ring gestalte te geven. Immers, als artistiek directeur van het gezelschap kende hij het bedrijf als geen ander, en dat is cruciaal bij het opzetten van zo’n complex werk. ‘De Ring is het vlaggenschip van een operahuis,’ stelt Audi. ‘Het opvoeren van de vier extreem lange opera’s die ook nog eens buitensporig veeleisend zijn op het gebied van orkestspel, zang en theatertechniek, vergt het uiterste van een gezelschap.’ Het resultaat werd in de pers alom geroemd. De kosmische decors van George Tsypin, de tijdloze kostuums van Eiko Ishioka, de muzikale prestaties van dirigent Hartmut Haenchen die Wagners muziek slanker, eleganter, transparanter dan ooit liet klinken, en niet te vergeten de vertellende, licht verontrustende en expressieve personenregie van Pierre Audi maakten een enorme indruk. Audi is bij de voorbereidingen heel consciëntieus te werk gegaan. ‘Ik was me er heel erg van bewust dat dit de eerste Nederlandse Ring zou worden. De voorstelling zou als introductie moeten dienen voor mensen die het werk niet kenden en tegelijkertijd een nieuwe ervaring bieden aan degenen die al honderd uitvoeringen hadden meegemaakt. De kenner verrassen en de leek enthousiasmeren, dat wat het concept. Het is een eenentwintigste-eeuwse Ring geworden, zonder te veel high tech, zonder dat het eruit ziet alsof het op een Apple computer is gemaakt. Je zou het zelfs low tech kunnen noemen, met veel hout en roestig metaal. De oeroude ideeën zijn op een moderne manier georganiseerd. Ze worden gebracht als intiem theater. Want de Ring ís tenslotte heel intiem. De meeste scènes spelen zich af tussen twee of drie personen.’ Dat intieme blijkt ook door de plaats van het orkest. Audi situeerde het, tegen Wagners voorschriften in, óp het podium, ‘als een menselijke sculptuur’. Zo bracht hij publiek, orkest én zangers in één ruimte samen. ‘De zaal in het Amsterdamse Muziektheater heeft de vorm van een Grieks amfitheater. Die vorm wilde ik benadrukken. Want uiteindelijk is de Ring een soort Griekse mythe. Het publiek in het amfitheater zit letterlijk en figuurlijk gevangen ín deze mythe.’ Audi’s regie is verhalend, niet opdringerig en laat veel ruimte voor emoties: ‘Een verhaal vertellen is voor mij als regisseur heel belangrijk. Ik bén een verhalenverteller. Het verhaal is zelfs belangrijker dan de interpretatie, al combineer ik die twee aspecten wel. Maar het publiek moet het zelf interpreteren, ik wil de mensen niets opleggen. Een goede productie is er een die de mensen aan het denken en aan het voelen zet, zodat ze tot een eigen interpretatie komen. Daar houd ik van.’ Die verhalende regie zuigt de toeschouwer het mysterie van de Ring in. Daar ontvouwt zich de mythe aller mythen. Wagners thema’s zijn talrijk en reiken, ingepakt in goddelijke muziek, van het universele tot het persoonlijke, van filosofische kwesties tot dagelijkse menselijke beslommeringen. Zo zijn we getuige van echtelijke ruzies tussen oppergod Wotan en diens echtgenote Fricka en van een incestueuze verhouding tussen broer Siegmund en zus Sieglinde. Tegelijkertijd ontvouwt zich een spel over macht, hebzucht en het eeuwige getob over het menselijke bestaan. ‘Eigenlijk is de Ring een klassieke mythe over goed en kwaad, over macht en menselijkheid,’ zegt Pierre Audi. ‘We streven naar een goede wereld, maar die zal met geen mogelijkheid ooit gerealiseerd worden, ondanks het voortdurende gevecht met onze tekortkomingen en onze tegenstrijdigheden, met de condition humaine. Deze steeds terugkerende strijd vormt het eigenlijke verhaal.’ Het aspect van l’histoire se répète laat Audi zowel aan het begin als aan het einde van de cyclus zien. Als het vierluik met Das Rheingold begint, liggen er reusachtige raderen en tandwielen op de bodem van de Rijn. Aan het slot van Götterdämmerung, als de godenburcht Walhalla zestien muziektheateruren later in vlammen is opgegaan, liggen die er weer. Het is alsof Audi ons wil vertellen: kijk, die kapotte machinerieën waren er al eerder en die zullen er steeds opnieuw zijn. De onophoudelijke pogingen om aan de ellende te ontsnappen, dat eeuwigdurende perpetuum mobile vormt de eigenlijke reden van ons bestaan. (Doron Nagan, VKZ)

door Henri Drost
3 oktober 2005
De Nederlandse Opera is een van de speerpunten van het nationale cultuurbeleid. Deze herneming van Wagners Der Ring des Nibelungen bewijst hoe terecht dit is. Deze productie kan zich niet alleen met de internationale wereldtop meten, maar laat deze zelfs ver achter zich. Het stormachtige applaus dat dirigent Hartmut Haenchen en regisseur Pierre Audi in ontvangst mochten nemen terwijl de laatste klanken van het ‘Erlösungs-Motiv’ wegstierven, is dan ook volkomen verdiend.
Miljoenen noten, meer dan veertien uur muziek en een vuistdik libretto (door Louis Couperus betiteld als “povere dilettanten-arbeid”) heeft het publiek verspreid over vier avonden ondergaan. En dat terwijl de listige voorgod Loge al aan het einde van de proloog, of liever, de Vorabend, "Ihrem Ende eilen sie zu", zingt wanneer Wotan en zijn gevolg het Walhalla betreden. Het duurt echter nog een uur of twaalf voordat hij gelijk krijgt en het Walhalla vlam vat en de Rijn buiten haar oevers treedt. Van ‘haasten’ is dus amper sprake, maar vanaf het moment dat Wotan de door de Nibelung Alberich gesmede ring, het symbool van absolute macht, om zijn vinger schuift, is het einde der goden onafwendbaar.

Een einde waarnaar Wotan overigens al vanaf het einde van Die Walküre naar verlangt. Meer dan de onwetende Siegfried is de oppergod de ware tragische held van de hele operacyclus. Zelfs al neemt hij in Götterdämmerung, het slotdeel van de tetralogie, geheel niet meer deel aan de handeling, nog altijd overschaduwt hij alles wat er gebeurt. Regisseur Pierre Audi maakt van de goden echter geen afstandelijke wezens, maar echte mensen van vlees en bloed.

Revolutionaire decors
De al te menselijke karakters staan in scherp contrast met de immense decors, ontworpen door de Amerikaans/Russische ontwerper/architect Georg Tsypin. Het podium van het Muziektheater behoort tot de grootste ter wereld, de breedte is maximaal 32 meter, de maximale diepte is 48,5 meter, maar Tsypin trekt het decor tot ver in de zaal door. Hij heft zelfs de scheiding tussen zaal en podium op; het publiek kan de zangers bijna aanraken en in de speciale adventure seats maakt een deel van het publiek letterlijk deel uit van het decor. Helemaal revolutionair is de positie van het orkest, die radicaal breekt met de Wagner-traditie.
Het speciaal voor de Ring gebouwde Festspielhaus in Bayreuth is immers beroemd vanwege zijn volledig aan het zicht onttrokken orkest en dirigent. Niets mocht van Wagner afleiden van de handeling op het toneel. In het Amsterdamse Muziektheater bleek een dergelijk onzichtbaar orkest niet haalbaar. En dus werd gekozen voor een radicaal andere oplossing: de orkestbak is afgeschaft en tijdens de verschillende opera’s heeft het orkest een prominente, steeds wisselende, plaats in het toneelbeeld.

Transparante partituur
De bijzonder orkestopstelling heeft buitengewone voordelen voor de klankrijkdom van het orkest en bovenal voor de zangers, die in plaats van achter het orkest voor het orkest een aanzienlijk deel van hun partijen kunnen zingen. Haenchen kan zo pianissimi laten zingen die in een ander operahuis onmogelijk zouden zijn omdat de zangers niet over het orkest zouden komen. De meeste Wagner-zangers zijn getraind om hun stem over een grote afstand en over een groot orkest de zaal in te projecteren, wat in de slechtste gevallen leidt tot afstandelijk geschreeuw. Niets van dit alles in Amsterdam: sterker, niet eerder is zo’n intieme Ring opgevoerd.
Haenchen maakt bovendien gebruik van een 'opgeschoonde' partituur, waarin niet alleen alle door Wagner aangebrachte correcties na de wereldpremière in 1873 verwerkt zijn, maar bovendien de vele fouten die in een eeuw opvoeringspraktijk in de partituur geslopen waren zijn verwijderd. Het resulteert in een buitengewoon transparante Ring, wars van bombast of langdradigheid. In de lange monologen klinkt het Nederlands Philharmonisch Orkest bijna Italiaans, om in de lyrische passages over te schakelen naar een vol laat-Romantisch idioom, terwijl de orkestrale climaxen in de handen van Haenchen ook daadwerkelijk dat zijn: orgastische explosies van geluid die het publiek naar adem doen happen.

Louter topsolisten
Niet alleen dirigent en orkest leveren een uitzonderlijke prestatie. De solisten die voor deze Ring zijn gecontracteerd zijn zeer ervaren Wagner-zangers die optimaal gebruik maken van de in Amsterdam gecreëerde mogelijkheden. Vooral Graham Clark (Mime) en Kurt Rydl (Hagen) zijn angstaanjagend goed, maar zonder uitzondering lijken alle solisten boven zichzelf uit te stijgen. Hopelijk slaagt De Nederlandse Opera daarom in haar voornemen deze Ring ook op cd uit te brengen, want een sterkere rolbezetting dan deze is momenteel nauwelijks denkbaar. In Bayreuth zullen de nazaten van Wagner jaloers zijn.
Slechts driemaal wordt de complete Ring uitgevoerd. Gelukkig wordt in de wandelgangen gefluisterd dat de monumentale decors toch niet gesloopt zullen worden zoals lange tijd aangekondigd was, maar dat deze Ring in 2013 weer te zien zal zijn. Zonder enige twijfel ook dan het hoogtepunt van het operaseizoen.
Onvergetelijke beelden
Mocht De Nederlandse Opera niet slagen in een toekomstige herneming, dan resten de binnenkort te verschijnen dvd's en onvergetelijke beelden. Het begin van Das Rheingold, wanneer het theater in totale duisternis is gehuld en uit het niets de eerste noten weerklinken, visueel slechts begeleid door het lampje op het dirigeerstokje van Haenchen. Of de vlammen die uit het houten (!) decor springen tijdens de Walküren-rit (zie het 8WEEKLY-filmpje op de VPRO-site), het vogeltje in Siegfried, het strak gechoreografeerde koor in Götterdämmerung, de slotscène waarin Wotans speer opeens door het decor schiet. Het zijn slechts enkele beelden die door het hoofd spoken.
"Onvoorstelbaar in wat voor toestand zelfs iemand met het grootste incasseringsvermogen kan raken als hij de vier avonden die Der Ring des Nibelungen in beslag neemt, moet uitzitten,” schreef Claude Debussy. “Het is erger dan een obsessie: je wordt zelf een wandelend tetralogisch 'Leitmotiv'." Debussy heeft gelijk: na vier dagen is de toeschouwer volkomen van de wereld. Maar Wagner heeft ook gelijk. Zeker in de handen Haenchen, Audi en Tsypin is de Ring het ultieme 'Gesamtkunstwerk', waarin alle kunstvormen versmelten en dat superieur is aan… ja, aan wat eigenlijk niet?

Richard Wagner's tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen, in which Power and Love are presented as mutually exclusive ideas, is always a huge challenge for any opera house. Das Rheingold is the opening of this extraordinary production of The Ring from Het Muziektheater Amsterdam, with the orchestra taking its place both in the pit and on the astonishing stage.
The fantastic stage direction by Pierre Audi succeeds in forging a profound unity combining the lyrical, mythical and philosophical qualities of Wagner’s work. Breathtaking sets by George Tsypin, superb costumes by Oscar-winner Eiko Ishioka and the passionate performances of the soloists and Residentie Orchestra under the inspired guest conductor Hartmut Haenchen all contribute to an intense total experience that will leave a permanent impression. This production of The Ring of the Nibelungen is based on the new collected works of Richard Wagner.
John Bröcheler, Henk Smit, Graham Clark, Reinhild Runkel, Chris Merritt, Jürgen Freier / Residentie Orkest / Hartmut Haenchen
Stage Director Pierre Audi

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The Ring forged, a documentary introduction to Wagner’s Ring from Het Muziektheater Amsterdam, including interviews with Hartmut Haenchen, Pierre Audi and the principal cast


Cast Gallery & Synopsis

Die Walküre is the second part of Richard Wagner's gargantuan tetralogy, Der Ring des Nibelungen, concerning the irreconcilable struggle between Power and Love. The originality of this production from Het Musiktheater Amsterdam more than meets the perennial challenge of staging The Ring. Pierre Audi's stage direction, in which the orchestra is placed on the ring-shaped stage, succeeds in forging a profound unity between the lyrical, mythical and philosophical qualities of Wagner's work, complemented by George Tsypin's astonishing sets and wonderful costumes by Oscar-winning Eiko Ishioka. Impassioned singing, and intensely dramatic playing by the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra under the energetic baton of Hartmut Haenchen create a vigorous, almost intimate performance that will leave an indelible impression. This production of The Ring is based on the new collected works of Richard Wagner.
John Keyes, Nadine Secunde, John Bröcheler, Jeannine Altmeyer, Kurt Rydl, Reinhild Runkel
De Nederlandse Opera / Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra / Hartmut Haenchen
Stage Director Pierre Audi


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Cast Gallery & Synopsis
Introduction to Die Walküre with presenter Michael Zeeman, composer Peter-Jan Wageman and pianist Stephan Mickisch

In the third part of the epic cycle, Der Ring des Nibelungen, Siegfried pursues his path to manhood. As parental love dissipates and is replaced by romantic love and desire, Wagner reflects on the experience of human life and the fact of mortality. This remarkable production of The Ring, from Het Muziektheater Amsterdam, in which Pierre Audi places the orchestra on the symbolically ring-shaped stage, blends the lyrical, mythical and philosophical qualities of Wagner’s work into a profound unity. Astonishing sets by George Tsypin and fabulous costumes by Oscar-winning Eiko Ishioka, combined with passionate singing from the soloists and dramatic playing from the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra under the rigorous control of Hartmut Haenchen, create an intense and highly memorable experience. This production of The Ring of the Nibelung is based on the new Complete Edition of the works of Richard Wagner.
Heinz Kruse, Graham Clark, John Bröcheler, Henk Smit, Carsten Stabell, Anne Gjevang, Jeannine Altmeyer, Stefan Pangratz
Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra / Hartmut Haenchen
Stage Director Pierre Audi


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Illustrated Synopsis &Cast Gallery
Introduction to Siegfried, produced by the Dutch broadcaster VPRO with presenter Michaël Zeeman, composer Peter-Jan Wagemans and pianist Stefan Mickisch

In the fourth and final part of the epic cycle, Der Ring des Nibelungen, the treachery and betrayal which leads to Siegfried’s death also heralds the downfall of the gods and the return of the gold to the Rhine. This stunning production of The Ring from Het Muziektheater Amsterdam blends the lyrical, mythical and philosophical qualities of Wagner’s work into a profound unity. Pierre Audi’s stage direction is inspired and amazing sets by George Tsypin and wonderful costumes by Oscar-winning Eiko Ishioka complement singing and playing of great intensity from the cast and the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra under Hartmut Haenchen’s visionary musical direction. This is a Ring to remember. This production of The Ring of the Nibelung is based on the new Complete Edition of the works of Richard Wagner.
Heinz Kruse, Wolfgang Schöne, Henk Smit, Kurt Rydl, Jeannine Altmeyer, Eva-Maria Bundschuh, Anne Gjevang, Hebe Dijkstra, Irmgard Vifsmaier, Kirsi Tiihonen, Gabriele Fontana, Hanna Schaer, Catherine Keen
Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra / Hartmut Haenchen
Stage Director Pierre Audi


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Cast Gallery & Synopsis
Introduction to Götterdämmerung, produced by the Dutch broadcaster VPRO with presenter Michaël Zeeman, composer Peter-Jan Wagemans and Ronald de Leeuw

Pierre Audi’s Ring really shines!’ Wagner Society, NL


‘Amsterdam’s new Ring has begun very promisingly: the crucial architecture is already in place.’ The Independent


‘A blend of transparent stage direction, powerful images and colourful orchestral playing. P
ZURÜCK