Customer Reviews

Ovts/Preludes

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Say what you will about your favorite recording of this or that Wagner opera. There has never been a better long term Wagner "cycle" than the one that came from the partnership between Sir Georg Solti and the Wiener Philharmoniker. This collection of orchestral excerpts is, in its own way, every bit as worthwhile.

Here in two discs (for the price of one no less) we have a great sampling of what makes Wagner's music so moving and magical. Just listen to the preludes from Tristan and Parsifal or the Funeral March from Die Götterdämmerung--this is stuff that revolutionized how we think of music.

Some might quibble that an average of 61 minutes of music per disc is a little stingy--especially when some of the usual suspects (The Ride of the Valkyries springs most readily to mind) have been left out. Some might also find the sound in need of a bit of cleaning. I'd agree.

But I'd also give this recording my heartfelt recommendation. These pieces in the expert hands of Solti and the VPO are well worth having. Don't hesitate to get a copy for yourself.

An excellent recording! The power, intensity and emotion never stops. This is Soltis' music and the Vienna Phil. know how to play it for him.