Twilight Of The Gods: The Essential Wagner Collection

Wagner: Götterdämmerung - Live (1942) Bayreuth / conducted by Elmendorff / Record Label=Music & Arts / ASIN: B00004SCE8 ********************************************* --------------------------------- As Twilight Falls....Germany 1942 --------------------------------- This "Götterdämmerung" performance is among the best I’ve heard, and the theme of the opera (‘The Twilight of the Gods’): the crumbling of an old order, the saga of war and betrayal, makes the ‘historicity’ of this war-time concert (a live recording from the Bayreuth festival in Bavaria from 1942) an incredibly interesting recording. ...  Read the complete review

Debuusy once said it was a shame that composers hadn't recognised that Wagner, who they took for a new dawn, was actually a sunset. And this just about somes Wagner up. He is one of the crowning glories of the Romantic language, but his achievements brought the language to a point where it collapsed under its own weight. Possibly Mahler and Strauss managed to eek just a little more out of it, but Wagner's music at least signalled the end. The basic premise of his musical language was a realisation that any note could become a leading note, thus it become possible to slide around keys in a completely unprecedented way, and harmony became a great deal more ...  Read the complete review

Wagner is a giant of a composer and his works reflect this. Born in 1813 he was to grow up and be remembered not for his greatness as a composer, but mostly for a single composition, the Ring Cycle which is actually a work of many parts and needs to be performed over many nights. It is so long it and involved that the first work, the ring of the Nibelungen, was started in 1853, and the last part, Gotterdammerung, was not finished until 1874). It is based on the myths and legends and is an epic work telling the complex stories of the Gods and heroes. It is not only the story which is epic, but also the music. It is written in a grand scale with a large orchestra and ...  Read the complete review

I can't pretend to know Wagner's music all that well, there is a vast amount and it is all pretty hard going though very rewarding. I have the whole of The Ring of the Niebelung (The old Decca/Solti set, I joined Britannia to get this at £20!). As far as the storyline goes, if you are into such things as The Lord of the Rings, you will like this. But as I say, it is hard going, this is no background music, you have to pay attention and then it will come through to you. I have to admit, however, that what grabs me is the orchestration, it is wonderful. I've often wondered what it would be like to hear just the orchestra without the ...  Read the complete review

Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries is another great piece of music for the uninitiated into the world of classical music, another one of those you didn't know you knew. Ever seen an Eddie Izzard show? If yes then you definately know it. This piece is extraordinarily written so that you can actually envisage the Valkyries marching out to war, determined to succeed, the quieter moments being the worried "is the enemy in sight?" type of moments you get in films. If you only ever listen to one Wagner work make it this one because it is without doubt the best. ...  Read the complete review