Often enough, that means listening past
audience or stage noise captured by poorly directed in-house mics, or distant sound from
disintegrating tapes. In the case of this 1985 Lohengrin from Mulhouse, a different
accommodation must be made. The sound level has been set painfully high. Listeners can turn
down the volume, but that dulls the acoustic. Your reviewer made the adjustment best suited to
his hearing, and gladly, because the performance is quite exciting.
The cast list doesn’t boast starry names, but the voices are all suited to their roles. Heikki Siukola
gets the lengthiest section of Andrew Palmer’s well-written notes, describing a varied and
interesting career. His strong yet sweet voice encompasses the role’s demands, although in a
highlight such as “In Fernem land,” some might miss a touch of individuality in expression.
Evelyn Brunner’s effective Elsa also lacks that quality, and once or twice one questions if it is the
drama or the musical line that is stretching her voice.
As is so often the case, the Ortrud and Telramund steal the show. Nadine Denize, based on this
recording, had a large voice, with a secure and potent top. From her very first utterances,
Ortrud’s malevolent strength comes through. Ekkehard Wlaschihia matches Denize for intensity.
The Rhin-Mulhouse orchestra is led by Theodor Guschbauer, who does not dilly-dally. This is a
Lohengrin that pushes forward with tragic momentum. Gala did well to choose this performance
for release, but in their zeal to fill up the third CD with more music, they have broken up the last
two acts at awkward places.
The further selections are from a 1977 Bayrischen Staatsoper Don Carlos, with a much more
renowned cast than the Wagner. Ruggero Raimondi sings Filippo, Raina Kabaivanska is his wife,
Franco Tagliavini, his son Carlos, and Renato Bruson sings as Carlos’s friend Posa. Nadine
Denize is the connection to the Wagner; all the selections, about 40 minutes worth, feature her.
Denize’s Eboli is as powerful as her Ortrud, though unsurprisingly her large instrument feels just
a bit unwieldy in the “Veil song.”
Unfortunately, conductor Francesco Molinari-Pradelli’s leaden pulse and dull rhythms makes this
performance much less than its cast promises. Buy the set for the dynamic, urgent Lohengrin, but
be careful with the volume.
Chris Mullins
image=http://www.operatoday.com/Lohengrin_Gala.png
image_description=Richard Wagner: Lohengrin
product=yes
product_title=Richard Wagner: Lohengrin
product_by=Keikki Siukola; Evelyn Brunner; Ekkehard Wlaschihia; Nadine Denize; Byung Woon Kang; Pierre Le Hemonet; Lucien Mertz; Jens Kiertzner; FranÁois Richert; Merih Kazbek; Choeur de líOpera du Rhin; Orchestre Symphonique du Rhin-Mulhouse; Theodor Guschlbauer (cond.)
Live recording: Mulhouse, October 26, 1985
product_id=Gala 623 [3CDs]
price=$16.99
product_url=http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Drilldown?name_id1=12732&name_role1=1&comp_id=3418&genre=33&bcorder=195&label_id=262