Kirsten Flagstad - The Supreme Wagnerian Soprano
This 5 CD set, devoted to the famous Norwegian soprano Kirsten Flagstad, is a further release in the EMI Classics ICON series.
Kirsten Flagstad (1895-1962) enjoyed a successful career singing opera and operetta in Scandanavia, and was considering retirement when she was catapulted to international fame in 1935 after a sensational appearance at the Metropolitan Opera in New York singing Sieglinde, Isolde and Brunnhilde.
From 1935 until her retirement from the stage in 1953 she was the leading Wagnerian soprano of her day. Her powerful, radiant voice and seemingly inexhaustible vocal stamina were ideally suited to the most taxing roles in Wagner’s operas and she was universally acclaimed, especially as Isolde and Brunnhilde. She scored a particular success at Covent Garden and sang there under the three most famous Wagner conductors of the time: Reiner, Beecham and Furtwangler.
The first CD in the set opens with a group of Baroque arias by Handel, Bach, Purcell and Gluck that show off to advantage Flagstad’s superb voice and impeccable musicality. The remainder of this CD consists of Arne Dorumsgaard’s attractive arrangements of classical arias and songs from the collection Canzone scordate.
In her concert repertoire, Flagstad specialised in Norwegian songs and made many recordings of the vocal music of Grieg as well as other Scandanavian composers like Alf Hurum, Ole Bull and Christian Sinding, all of whom are represented on CD 2.
The third CD beings with a group of songs by Schubert, Beethoven, Bridge and Dorumsgaard, after which Flagstad gives a superb account of the five Wesendonck Lieder that Wagner wrote while composing Tristan und Isolde. This CD concludes with Elisabeth’s prayer ‘Allmacht’ge Jungfrau’ from Tannhauser and ‘Siegmund! Sieh’ auf mich’ in which Brunnhilde tells Siegmund of his forthcoming death in the second act of Die Walkure. Siegmund is sung by the tenor Set Svanholm, who was one of Flagstad’s regular partners in the theatre and on disc.
The remaining two discs include extensive excerpts from Siegfried, Gotterdammerung and Tristan und Isolde, with Set Svanholm as Siegfried and Ludwig Suthaus as Tristan. The complete recording of Tristan und Isolde, conducted by Wilhelm Furtwangler, is considered to be one of the finest opera recordings ever made. ( EMI )
Tracklist
CD 1
George Frideric Handel 1685-1759
1 Fronde tenere...Ombra mai fu (Serse, Act I)
George Thalben-Ball organ
Philharmonia Orchestra / Warwick Braithwaite
2 I know that my redeemer liveth (Messiah)
Philharmonia Orchestra / Warwick Braithwaite
Johann Sebastian Bach 1685-1750
3 Erbarme dich, mein Gott (St Matthew Passion)
Manoug Parikian violin - Geraint Jones harpsichord
Philharmonia Orchestra / Walter Susskind
Henry Purcell 1659-1695
4 Thy hand, Belinda...When I am laid in earth (Dido and Aeneas, Act III)
Philharmonia Orchestra / Warwick Braithwaite
Christoph Willibald Gluck 1714-1787
5 Che faro senza Euridice (Orfeo ed Euridice, Act III)
Philharmonia Orchestra / Walter Susskind
Johannes Cruger 1598-1662
6 Auf, auf mein Herz mit Freude
Georg Bohm 1661-1733
7 Geh’ ein, mein Leib, in deine Kammer
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach 1714-1788
8 Die Gute Gottes
9 Busslied (An dir Allein)
10 Passionslied
11 Preis sei dem Gotte
Johann Sebastian Bach
12 Vergiss mein nicht
13 O finstre Nacht
14 Liebster Herr Jesu
15 Komm, susser Tod
16 Dir, dir Jehova
Wolfgang Franck 1641-1700
17 Wie seh’ ich dich, mein Jesu, bluten
18 Sei nur still
19 Auf, auf! zu Gottes Lob!
Giacomo Carissimi 1605-1674
20 Soccorretemi ch’io moro
Johann Lohner 1645-1705
21 O Ewigkeit
Gerald Moore piano
CD 2
Norwegian Songs
Edvard Grieg 1843-1907
1 En Drom Op.48 No.6 orch. Kleven
2 Tak for dit Rad Op.21 No.4 orch. Kleven
3 Varen Op.33 No.2
4 Fra Monte Pincio Op.39 No.1
5 Guten Op.33 No.1 orch. Gunstrom
6 Eros Op.70 No.1 orch. Reger
7 Ved Rundarne Op.33 No.9 orch. Kleven
8 Ein Traum Op.48 No.6 orch. Kleven
9 En svane Op.25 No.2
10 Den Sarde Op.33 No.3
Philharmonia Orchestra
Warwick Braithwaite (1, 2, 4-9)
Walter Susskind (3)
11 Med en vandlilje Op.25 No.4
12 Prinsessen (1871)
Gerald Moore piano
13 Lanfs ei A Op.33 No.5
14 Mens jeg venter Op.60 No.3
Gerald Moore piano
15 Med en primulaveris Op.25 No.4
16 Og jeg vil ha mig en Hjertenskjar Op.60 No.5
Edwin McArthur piano
17 Modersord Op.15 No.4
18 Solveigs Sang (Peer Gynt, Act I)
Orchestra
Alf Hurum 1882-1972
19 Blonde natter Op.13 No.1
Edwin McArthur piano
Sigurd Lie 1871-1904
20 Sne
Eyvind Alnas 1872-1932
21 Lykken mellem to mennesker
Eyvind Alnas piano
Ole Bull 1810-1880
22 Saterjentens Sondag
Edvard Grieg
23 Millom Rosor Op.39 No.4
Orchestra
Agathe Backer-Grondahl 1847-1907
24 Mot kveld Op.42 No.7
Orchestra
Christian Sinding 1856-1941
25 Majnat Op.22 No.3
Piano
CD 3
Franz Schubert 1797-1828
1 Die Allmacht D852
2 Fruhlingsglaube D686
3 Wanderers Nachtlied II D768
Gerald Moore piano
Ludwig van Beethoven 1770-1827
4 Die Ehre Gottes aus der Natur Op.48 No.4
Edwin McArthur piano
Richard Strauss 1864-1949
5 Seitdem dein Aug’ Op.17 No.1
6 Cacilie Op.27 No.2
Frank Bridge 1879-1941
7 Love went a-riding
Edwin McArthur piano
Arne Dorumsgaard 1921-2006
8 Gudrid stod ved stoveglas Op.11 No.2
9 Natt Op.4 No.1
10 Regn Op.6 No.2
11 Hjuring-lokk Op.8 N0.5
12 Spinnvettir Op.10 No.1
13 Baan sull Op.11 No.1
14 Alle mann hadde fota Op.21 No.2
Gerald Moore piano
Richard Wagner 1813-1883
Wesendonck-Lieder
15 I. Der Engel
16 II. Stehe still!
17 III. Im Treibhaus
18 IV. Schmerzen
19 V. Traume
Gerald Moore piano
20 Allmacht’ge Jungfrau (Tannhauser, Act III)
Philharmonia Orchestra / Issay Dobrowen
21 Siegmund! Sieh’ auf mich (Die Walkure, Act II)
Set Svanholm tenor
Philharmonia Orchestra / Karl Bohm
CD 4
1 Heil dir, Sonne! (Siegfried, Act III)
Set Svanholm tenor
Philharmonia Orchestra / Georges Sebastian
Gotterdammerung
2 Zu neuen Taten, teurer Helde (Prologue)
Set Svanholm tenor
Philharmonia Orchestra / Georges Sebastian
3 Helle Wehr! Heilige Waffe! (Act II)
Set Svanholm tenor
Philharmonia Orchestra / Hermann Weigert
4 Starke Scheite schichtet mir dort (Act III)
Philharmonia Orchestra / Wilhelm Furtwangler
CD 5
Tristan und Isolde
1 Doch nun von Tristan! (Act I)
2 Horst du sie noch- (Act II)
3 Isolde! Tristan! Geliebter (Act II)
4 O sink hernieder, Nacht der Liebe (Act II)
5 Mild und leise wir er lachelt (Act III)
Blanche Thebom mezzo-soprano (1-4)
Ludwig Suthaus tenor (3, 4)
Philharmonia Orchestra / Wilhelm Furtwangler
