Thielemann's way with Wagner

By Alexander Hall, 07 February 2017

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“cellos and basses that bask in the sheen of a mahogany-like richness”

Reviewed at Elbphilharmonie: Grand Hall, Hamburg on 6 February 2017

Wagner, Die Walküre: Act 1

Wagner, Götterdämmerung: Dawn

Wagner, Götterdämmerung: Siegfried's Rhine journey

Wagner, Götterdämmerung: Siegfried's Death and Funeral March

Wagner, Götterdämmerung: Brünnhilde's Immolation

Staatskapelle Dresden

Christian Thielemann, Conductor

Anja Kampe, Soprano

Stephen Gould, Tenor

Georg Zeppenfeld, Bass

Schumann from the inside out: Yunchan Lim and Staatskapelle Dresden

SangKwon Lee, 1st February

Yunchan Lim seldom seeks the spotlight in a reflective, conversational account of Schumann's Piano Concerto, conducted by Myung-whun Chung.

*****

High-caliber Schumann and Mahler at Dvořák’s Prague

Frank Kuznik, 14th September

Daniele Gatti and Kirill Gerstein offer fresh, invigorating takes on two warhorses with the Staatskapelle Dresden.

*****

Thielemann bids farewell to Dresden with an excellent new FroSch

Ako Imamura, 27th March

David Bösch directs a creative and thoughtful new production of Die Frau ohne Schatten at the Semperoper in Christian Thielemann's final opera as Principal Conductor.

*****

Detlev Glanert's Die Jüdin von Toledo premieres at the Semperoper

Zenaida des Aubris, 10th February

Robert Carsen stages the world premiere production of Glanert's opera, based Franz Grillparzer's 1851 play, in stringent, minimalist style.

*****

Moving singing, but missed opportunities in Dresden’s new Aida

Zoltán Szabó, 17th March

Katharina Thalbach offers a traditional staging at the Semperoper, with fine vocal performances led by Krassimira Stoyanova, Francesco Meli and Oksana Volkova.

***11

Prom 63: Explosive Rachmaninov from Yuja Wang

Stephen Pritchard, 5th September

Outstanding playing from soloist and Staatskapelle Dresden makes this a Prom to remember.

*****

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Alexander Hall

Alexander Hall divides his time between London and Hamburg, where he had a career in academic administration and teaching. He reviews for Bachtrack and Opera Today, and has also reviewed for Classical Source. A connoisseur of the great orchestras of the world, his musical memories stretch back to Karajan/Berlin Phil, Mravinsky/Leningrad Phil, Bernstein/Vienna Phil, and he has seen most of the great conductors from the past, including Böhm, Klemperer, Kubelik, Ormandy and Szell.

Tread softly but carry a big stick: Thielemann's way with Wagner