Birgit Nilsson RIP
Birgit Nilsson has died at the age of 87. She was one of the greatest singers of the second half of the twentieth century.
I am (just) old enough to have heard her live. It was as Strauss’s Elektra at Covent Garden in the 1970s. Gwyneth Jones was Chrythosemis – so the decibel levels were sky-high - and the performance was unforgettable.
Nilsson was the epitome of the Hoch-Dramatische soprano. She had a voice with both steel to it but also a hint of northern sunlight. She seemed vocally to be utterly tireless. Yet she was not just a ‘noise machine’: often she revealed great dramatic insight and subtlety.
Probably her most famous recording is her Bruennhilde on the Decca “Ring”. Yet for me that is not her best Wagner. I prefer her recording of the Ring conducted by Karl Boehm. She responds brilliantly to Boehm’s more vital and dramatic conducting and the effect of this being a live recording (recorded at the Bayreuth Festival) gives the whole thing a thrilling edge.
Well away from Wagner, there is a fantastic live recording of “Turandot”: a performance from La Scala Milan in 1964 with Franco Corelli as Calaf and Galina Vishneskaya as Liu. Goose-bumps all the way!
Undoubtedly my favourite commercial recording is her “Elektra” with Solti. This is a part that suited her extraordinary talents like no other. The strength of the voice and its slightly metallic edge suit the deranged daughter of Agamemnon to perfection. Listen to her opening solo and be amazed.
I am (just) old enough to have heard her live. It was as Strauss’s Elektra at Covent Garden in the 1970s. Gwyneth Jones was Chrythosemis – so the decibel levels were sky-high - and the performance was unforgettable.
Nilsson was the epitome of the Hoch-Dramatische soprano. She had a voice with both steel to it but also a hint of northern sunlight. She seemed vocally to be utterly tireless. Yet she was not just a ‘noise machine’: often she revealed great dramatic insight and subtlety.
Probably her most famous recording is her Bruennhilde on the Decca “Ring”. Yet for me that is not her best Wagner. I prefer her recording of the Ring conducted by Karl Boehm. She responds brilliantly to Boehm’s more vital and dramatic conducting and the effect of this being a live recording (recorded at the Bayreuth Festival) gives the whole thing a thrilling edge.
Well away from Wagner, there is a fantastic live recording of “Turandot”: a performance from La Scala Milan in 1964 with Franco Corelli as Calaf and Galina Vishneskaya as Liu. Goose-bumps all the way!
Undoubtedly my favourite commercial recording is her “Elektra” with Solti. This is a part that suited her extraordinary talents like no other. The strength of the voice and its slightly metallic edge suit the deranged daughter of Agamemnon to perfection. Listen to her opening solo and be amazed.
posted by Alnwickian at 10:12 pm
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home