Wagner;Richard Lohengrin [Import]

This is the best Lohengrin available. The Bayreuth forces under the direction of Woldemar Nelsson are excellent. The Bayreuth chorus is splendid throughout, and Lohengrin is an opera where the chorus performance is vital. The orchestra plays superbly except, perhaps, in the Prelude of Act I, which sounds less opulent than oither performances because of the fast tempo adopted by Nelsson. Peter Hoffmann is much better here than he was in the Metropolitan production. Karan Armstrong may have some vocal problems, mainly in the most dramatic moments of the opera, but her weaknesses convey the frailty of the character. In this aspect, she is a much more believable Elsa than Eva Marton, whose weighty voice does not suit the role. Leif Roar is a very good Telramund and so is Siegfried Vogel as the King. Elizabeth Connell is a surprise as Ortrud, both as a singer and as an actress. I did not expect so much from her in this role, but she is excellent. Of course, she cannot match the best Ortrud I have ever heard: Christa Ludwig in Rudolph Kempe's Lohengrin, available in CD (nor can Roar match the Telramund of Fischer-Dieskau for Kempe). But who can equal these two singers in these parts? Bernd Weikl is excellent in the small role of the Herald. Good image quality and superb sound. Highly recommended.

I recommend this DVD. I've heard and liked the music from Lohengrin for decades. I knew the story etc, but didn't understand how specific songs fit in the opera's action. I finally decided to get the opera on DVD so that I could understand how it all fit together, and so I could sit back and enjoy the entire show. I purchased this specific version of Lohengrin because reviews on Amazon recommended it - those reviews were correct, this DVD is great. One surprising break for me, there are sub-titles in English, German, French, and Spanish so that I could easily follow what was going on and associate specific songs and music with action in the opera - there's no need to understand sung German, or even German, to sort out what's going on. Now, finally, I can tie specific music and songs to the action in the opera, and I've got a great opera in my DVD collection that I can watch and listen to again and again.

Wagner's music is fantastic, of course, but the staging, acting, and singing were great as well. There's nothing second class about this DVD, it's the real deal. You'll watch it again and again. The music and imagery will echo in your memory the rest of your days, seriously.

I did have a few surprises. There is no explicit swan in the production - for those of you who haven't seen Lohengrin it turns out the swan is of some interest. Lohengrin arrives and departs from shadows and in darkness - too bad, both seemed like an opportunity for a grand entrance and departure. His entrance, as I recall, was at high-noon, when you'd expect a lighted entry. King Heinrich's apparel could have been more regal- perhaps a few self awarded medals. All of the above are zits, don't worry about them; the singing, acting, music, and staging are absolutely world class. Fantastic singers, great acting, great orchestration and staging. Go for it, you'll love it.

Look at it this way, you can spend $30 for 2 country/western CDs where you listen to some guy moaning about his truck breaking down in the barroom parking lot, or you can spend less than $30 for a 2 DVD set that will let you watch and listen to some of the best music in the world, sung by some of the best singers in the world, supported by a world class orchestra, well acted and well staged. Why are you waiting? This is a great deal. Ten years from now you won't remember a bit about the guys truck, but the music and imagery from Wagner's Lohengrin will still be echoing in your memory. Buy this DVD, watch and listen to the opera. You're gonna love it, trust me.

This may not be the most overwhelming performance but I like it. It's overall a straight forward production -- no "what does that mean" ideas. Hofmann is much better here than in the Met DVD with Eva Marton. I'm curious though if anyone else thought that disc 2 (with Act 3) seemed VERY slightly out of sync -- picture and audio. I just didn't feel right and after watching it very closely, I think that is the problem. This would definitely be my 1st choice of the 3 currently available. However, I will be interested in seeing the version from Baden-Baden that is due to be released by Opus Arte with Kent Nagano conducting.