Also sprach Zarathustra op.30
1. Einleitung		1:40
2. Von Den Hinterweltlern	3:39
3. Von Der Grossen Sehnsucht	2:20
4. Von Den Freuden Und Leidenschaften	2:01
5. Das Grablied		2:06
6. Von Der Wissenschaft	4:08
7. Der Genesende	4:53
8. Das Tanzlied		8:14
9. Nachtwandlerlied	4:18

10. Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche op.28
11. Salome, Tanz der sieben Schleier op. 54

Berliner Philharmoniker
Sir Georg  Solti - conductor

Decca was celebrating Solti's fifty years with the label when this live release came out in 1997; it was taped in the Berlin Philharmonie the year before, when the conductor was 83. In old age Solti, like Bernstein, preferred to be recorded in concert, but results could be mixed. The fieriest of conductors had banked his fires, for good and ill. When Solti was on, as in the second Meistersinger or the Mozart Requiem, one hears really superb musicianship, vigorous but seasoned. When he was off, the performance lost focus and wandered, as in some of his late Shostakovich recordings. On this occasion I hear many wonderful things. The Gramophone complained at the time that the strings sounded steely and recommended that readers opt instead for the earlier Strauss recordings from Chicago packaged as a bargain Double Decca. I can only shake my head. The transfers in that two-fer are piercingly shrill and glaring. This newer recording is far more listenable on my system.

As for the performances, they have a layer of crudeness removed. Also Sprach Zarathustra begins with grandeur but no wallowing or dawdling -- it's one of the most direct readings I know, and all the better for it. The Berliners play with robust magnificence. For Karajan they found more delicacy and nuance, but this isn't Debussy. Letting this music be as rousing and vulgar as it wants to be is fine with me. the only notable flaw is that Solti's phrasing is somewhat stiff at moments, but his ability to handle massive orchestral forces hadn't diminished at all. The two fillers to this relatively short (58 min.) CD are Till Eulenspiegel and the Salome's Dance of the Seven Veils. Till is marvelously played, with affection and no hint of pushing. As for Salome, I walked off the dance floor long ago, but this bit of lurid eroticism is also played with world-class skill, and Solti avoids excessive slinkiness (unless that's your thing).

As someone who has stood by Karajan's Strauss forever, this autumnal Solti concert came as a great and agreeable surprise. --- Santa Fe Listener, amazon.com

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Also sprach Zarathustra op.30
1. Einleitung		1:40
2. Von Den Hinterweltlern	3:39
3. Von Der Grossen Sehnsucht	2:20
4. Von Den Freuden Und Leidenschaften	2:01
5. Das Grablied		2:06
6. Von Der Wissenschaft	4:08
7. Der Genesende	4:53
8. Das Tanzlied		8:14
9. Nachtwandlerlied	4:18

10. Tod und Verklärung op.24

Glenn Dicterow – violin
New York Philharmonic
Giuseppe Sinopoli – conductor

Richard Strauss was arguably the greatest composer of what we often call the "symphonic tone poem." Often composed with extremely large orchestras in mind, not to mention often brooding subject matter, these tone poems, composed at the height of late German romanticism near the end of the 19th century and into the first decades of the 20th century, were not only incredible orchestral showcases, but also pieces that laid the groundwork for many of the biggest works of the ensuing hundred years, from Schoenberg's "Gurrelieder" onward. Two of Strauss' best-known tone poems are paired together on this fine recording made by the New York Philharmonic in 1989 under the direction of Giuseppe Sinopoli.

Strauss often described himself, rather self-deprecatingly, as being a "first-rate composer of second-rate music." But there's definitely nothing second-rate about either "Death And Transfiguration" (composed in 1890) or "Also Sprach Zarathustra" (composed in 1896), both of which share not only the typically large-scale orchestrations of Strauss' musical approach, but are also philosophical and metaphysical meditations on matters of life and what lies beyond. "Zarathustra", derived from Friedrich Nietszsche, of course, has been a part of the concert repertoire ever since its opening Dawn passage was used in imposing fashion by director Stanley Kubrick in his 1968 sci-fi classic 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY; while "Death And Transfiguration" is a brooding, shocking, but ultimately uplifting study at the last few hours of a man's life, and how his transfiguration to another life allows him to find in the heavens the serenity that is not always attainable on Earth.

Sinopoli, who would enjoy a significant tenure in the 1990s as the principal conductor of Strauss' favorite orchestra, the Dresden State Orchestra, prior to his untimely death in April 2001, ably conducts the New York Philharmonic in this Deutsche Grammophon recording. The demands of Strauss are by no means beyond them (they've recorded "Zarathustra" on at least two occasions, in 1970 with Leonard Bernstein, and in 1980 with Zubin Mehta), but they are given the added boost of Sinopoli's intrinsic knowledge of the composer. The sound quality is up to both the first-rate standards of both the D.G. engineers and the Avery Fisher Hall concert venue where this recording was made.

Even if one has plenty of recordings of these Strauss masterpieces, one can't go wrong with this particular Strauss recording, showcasing one of the world's great orchestras and an underrated conductor. --- Erik North, amazon.com

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01 -09. Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30
10. Till Eugenspiegels lustige Streiche Op.28/Till Eugenspiegels Merry Pranks
11. Salome Op. 54 - Tanz der sieben Schleier/Dance of the Seven Veils
12. Don Juan Op. 20

Wiener Philharmoniker
Herbert von Karajan – conductor

The Dude tiptoes gently around Karajan’s old stamping ground. I’ve always wondered why someone as personally banal and bourgeois as Richard Strauss was attracted to anyone as abstruse and obscurantist as Nietzsche. Even that stylish populariser of philosobabble, Alain de Botton, found interpreting him challenging. Nietzsche’s Manichean view of humanity as either übermensch (superman) or untermensch (sub-human) in Also Sprach Zarathustra has obviously unsavory undertones. Any inaugural recording of someone with the Berlin Philharmonic is a curiosity in itself. In Dudamel’s case, I was intrigued as to whether he would passively succumb to the (admittedly) powerful aura of this sublime ensemble and the sounds they produce and then slip into auto pilot. Fortunately not. His Zarathustra is, in parts, quite intimate, even tender, and radiates an overarching unity with orchestral sections achieving a genuine dialogue. He resists the temptation to create a series of tawdry highlights. Unlike Karajan (and Böhm, of all people) he resists the ‘Hollywoodisation’ of some of the opening chords but, even so, I’ll admit the work doesn’t completely work for me.

The fugue in the section bizarrely named The Convalescent (a man freed from the bondage of desire) is slow and learned, using all 12 notes of the chromatic scale but here, Dudamel and his Berliners manage the occasional wink at the pretentiousness of the proceedings. Similarly, in the Dance Song, easily the cheesiest part of the entire work, where it seems as though the cast of Der Rosenkavalier are about to arrive. The sound is standard live Philharmonie ie. excellent.

The remaining works don’t detract from the overall quality of the enterprise but are not on the same level: Dudamel’s Don Juan is more James Mason than Errol Flynn and Till Eulenspiegel doesn’t have quite the humour of Karajan, who was and remains without peer in this music. Nonetheless, a distinguished release. --- Greg Keane, limelightmagazine.com.au

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Also sprach Zarathustra op.30
1. Einleitung		1:40
2. Von Den Hinterweltlern	3:39
3. Von Der Grossen Sehnsucht	2:20
4. Von Den Freuden Und Leidenschaften	2:01
5. Das Grablied		2:06
6. Von Der Wissenschaft	4:08
7. Der Genesende	4:53
8. Das Tanzlied		8:14
9. Nachtwandlerlied	4:18

10. Don Juan Op.20 - Tondichtung nach Nikolaus Lenau

Berliner Philharmoniker
Herbert von Karajan - conductor

The readings from Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic are exquisitely played and splendidly recorded. Von Karajan's way with the music is supple, suave, and dashingly characterful, and his tempos are faultlessly judged. The orchestra is at its best, remarkable for the silky transparency it brings to the texture and the fascinating detail of the solo work--not least, the flute solos by James Galway, then a member of the BPO. The recording has been optimally transferred and presents a solid image. ---Ted Libbey, Editorial Reviews

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CD1
1. Prologue - Orchestral Introduction	Staatskapelle Dresden	 2:19	
2. Prologue - "Mein Herr Haushofmeister!"	Albert Dohmen	5:55
3. Prologue - "Du allmächtiger Gott!"	Anne Sofie von Otter	6:12
4. Prologue - Hast ein Stückerl Notenpapier?	Jürgen Commichau	3:43
5. Prologue - Ist schon geschehn. Wir sind bereit	Michael Howard	8:26
6. Prologue - Nein, Herr, so kommt es nicht	Anne Sofie von Otter	5:17
7. Prologue - "Ein Augenblick ist wenig"	Natalie Dessay	5:06
8. Prologue - "Sein wir wieder gut" - "Musik ist eine heilige Kunst"	Anne Sofie von Otter	3:02
9. Opera - Overture	Staatskapelle Dresden	3:43
10. Opera - "Schläft sie?"	Christiane Hossfeld	3:53
11. Opera - Wo war ich? Tot?	Deborah Voigt	3:15
12. Opera - Ein Schönes war: hiess Theseus - Ariadne	Deborah Voigt	7:01
13. Opera - "Lieben, Hassen, Hoffen, Zagen"	Stephan Genz	2:15
14. Opera - "Es gibt ein Reich"	Deborah Voigt	6:02
15. Opera - "Die Dame gibt mit trüben Sinn" - "Wie sie sich schwingen"	Christoph Genz	5:00

CD2
1. Opera - "Großmächtige Prinzessin"	Natalie Dessay	11:10
2. Opera - "Hübsch gepredigt! Aber tauben Ohren!" - "Eine Stör- rische zu trösten"	Stephan Genz	8:01 
3. Opera - "Ein schönes Wunder!"	Andris Liepa	3:40
4. Opera - "Circe, kannst du mich hören?"	Ben Heppner	6:08
5. Opera - Theseus! Nein, nein!	Deborah Voigt	10:35 
6. Opera - Das waren Zauberworte!	Deborah Voigt	3:14
7. Opera - "Gibt es kein Hinüber?"	Deborah Voigt	7:51

Prima Donna (Ariadne) – Deborah Voigt 
Compositor – Anne-Sophie Von Otter 
Zerbinetta – Natalie Dessay
Tenor (Baco) – Bem Heppner
Professor de música – Albert Dohmen
Mordomo – Romuald Pekny
Oficial – Klaus Florian Vogt
Professor de dança – Michael Howard
Peruqueiro – Matthias Hennenberg
Lacaio – Jürgen Commichau
Arlequim – Stephan Genz
Scaramuccio – Ian Thmpson
Trufaldino – Sami Luttinen
Brighella – Christoph Genz
Naiade – Christiane Hossfeld
Driade – Angela Liebold
Eco – Eva Kirchner

Staatskapelle Dresden
Giuseppe Sinopoli – director

What a pity that this is Giuseppe Sinopoli's valedictory; it leaves us to imagine how glorious the rest of his Strauss opera readings may've been. Here, in the composer's most transparent, un-sentimental score, Sinopoli gets playing from the Dresden forces that makes everything Strauss and Hoffmansthal were driving at absolutely clear. The low strings at the start are deep and rich (bravo to the engineers, by the way--they deserve an award), the winds, which love to comment on the characters, are always audible and mostly witty, the stage-pit correspondence is never less than ideal, and the racket required of the limited number of instruments in the last part of the opera never has seemed more potent.

The opening dialogue between the music master and major domo is taken annoyingly slowly--how perfectly we get to dislike the pretentious major domo (in the snide person of Romuald Pekny)--immediately! The whole prologue is then of a piece: the running back and forth is vivid and the mounting anxiety of the composer, made absolutely real by Anne Sophie von Otter, never has been better; indeed her performance is one for the books. And then on to the opera: Deborah Voigt is absolutely lovely, singing with warmth and commitment, easily the equal of those stars of the so-called "Golden Age"; Natalie Dessay is in a class by herself, the voice bigger and richer than most Zerbinettas--but both her pyrotechnics and interpretation (what a fox!) are magnificent. And in Ben Heppner we at last find a tenor who can handle Strauss' almost impossible line: his voice rings out like a true hero, he's vocally secure enough to pay attention to the words, and he partners Voigt like Nureyev did Fonteyn. The Harlekin of Stephan Ganz is ideally perky, and the rest of the cast is top-notch, with the manic outcries of Naiad, Dryade, and Echo suitably melodramatic. This Ariadne goes to the top of the list--recommended to all lovers of Strauss and great singing, and, possibly, the performance that might convert non-Ariadne lovers to true fans. ---Robert Levine, ClassicsToday.com

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CD1
1. R. Strauss: Daphne, bucolic tragedy in one Act - Orchestereinleitung - "Kleontes!" / "Adrast"	Hans Braun	6:41
2. R. Strauss: Daphne, bucolic tragedy in one Act - O bleib, geliebter Tag!	Wiener Staatsopernorchester	7:58
3. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Leukippos, du?	Fritz Wunderlich	5:27
4. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - "Daphne!" / "Mutter!" / "Wir warten dein"	Wiener Staatsopernorchester	5:12	
5. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Ei, so fliegt sie dahin	Fritz Wunderlich	4:26
6. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Seid ihr um mich, der Hirten alle?	Chor der Wiener Staatsoper	4:44	
7. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Ich grüße dich, weiser, erfahrener Fischer	Chor der Wiener Staatsoper	3:47	
8. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Was führt dich her im niedern Gewande?	Wiener Staatsopernorchester	10:18

CD2
1. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Dieser Kuß - dies Umarmen	Chor der Wiener Staatsoper	8:33	
2. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Trinke, du Tochter!	Rita Streich	1:49	
3. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Furchtbare Schmach dem Gotte!	Rita Streich	1:48
4. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Zu dir nun, Knabe!	Fritz Wunderlich	2:45
5. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Jeden heiligen Morgen	Fritz Wunderlich	5:22
6. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Unheilvolle Daphne!	Wiener Staatsopernorchester	8:32	
7. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Was erblicke ich?	Wiener Staatsopernorchester	6:36	
8. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Daphnes Verwandlung "Ich komme - ich komme"	Wiener Staatsopernorchester	4:53	
9. R. Strauss: Daphne - Opera in 1 Act, Op.82 - Mondlichtmusik	Wiener Staatsopernorchester	5:09

Hilde Gueden (Soprano)
Harald Pröglhöf (Bass) 
Ludwig Welter (Bass)
Rita Streich (Soprano)
Kurt Equiluz (Tenor)
Hans Braun (Bass),
Fritz Wunderlich (Tenor)
Paul Schöffler (Baritone)
Vera Little (Alto),
Erika Mechera (Soprano)
James King (Tenor)

Wiener Symphoniker
Karl Böhm – conductor

Böhm's Daphne recording, made at a festival performance in Vienna in 1964, is another Strauss classic and here, in the opera dedicated to him and of which he conducted the first performance in 1938, he is peerless. The EMI/Haitink of a few years ago (nla) came nowhere near it, even though Böhm makes some irritating cuts. Yes, there are the inaccuracies inseparable from live recording, balance is not as it would be (or should be) in the studio, and there are stage noises, but what a performance, that's what counts, and it sounds much better on CD than on the LPs many of us have treasured for years.

This is Strauss's most lyrical opera and occupies a special place in the affections of his admirers. 13Ohm's unfolding of the marvellous orchestral score, from that first oboe melody to its final metamorphosis, is the work of a master-interpreter—one has only to hear his majestic phrasing of the cellos' Peneios melody (full score, page 90) to recognize that. Hilde Gueden's Daphne is a lovely performance, sung with an engaging innocence, as befits this mysterious heroine, but also with the soaring richness that the part requires in its most dramatic passages, such as the duet with Apollo, sung by James King with power and conviction. He has never possessed a voice notable for its tonal beauty, but he is really rather impressive here.

For tonal beauty, however, there is Wunderlich as Leukippos, making something exceptionally expressive out of every phrase. Schafler's Peneois must have been better a few years earlier, but it has a noble dignity one would be hard-pressed to equal today, and Vera Little copes well with all but the lowest notes of the Erda-like part of Gaea. --- Gramophone [10/1988]

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1. Part 1
2. Part 2
3. Part 3

Octavian.....................Tatiana Troyanos
Princess von Werdenberg......Teresa Zylis-Gara
Baron Ochs...................Otto Edelmann
Sophie.......................Judith Blegen
Faninal......................William Dooley
Annina.......................Shirley Love
Valzacchi....................Andrea Velis
Italian Singer...............Luciano Pavarotti
Marianne.....................Marcia Baldwin
Mahomet......................Kendall Quinn
Princess' Major-domo.........Nico Castel
Orphan.......................Linore Aronson
Orphan.......................Nadyne Brewer
Orphan.......................Elvira Green
Milliner.....................Suzanne Der Derian
Animal Vendor................Charles Kuestner
Hairdresser..................Marc Verzatt
Notary.......................Andrij Dobriansky
Leopold......................Glenn Bater
Lackey.......................Richard Firmin
Lackey.......................Frank Coffey
Lackey.......................Cecil Baker
Lackey.......................Edward Ghazal
Faninal's Major-domo.........Robert Schmorr
Innkeeper....................Charles Anthony
Police Commissioner..........Philip Booth

James Levine - conductor

 Metropolitan Opera House.March 27, 1976 Matinee Broadcast

Some regard Der Rosenkavalier as Strauss' finest opera, and indeed, it has remained consistently popular since its premiere in 1911. Composed during 1909 and 1910 -- immediately after Elektra, Strauss' first collaboration with dramatist Hugo von Hofmannsthal -- Der Rosenkavalier is an original story, conceived jointly by Hofmannsthal and Strauss through extensive correspondence. It represents an intentional departure from Elektra (an adaptation of Sophocles' play) in both substance and tone, and the result is one of the most sophisticated libretti ever written -- full of subtle exchanges and turns of literary phrase. While the story was to have been a farce hinging upon the revelation of the character Mariandel as Octavian, Hofmannsthal developed the libretto into a more complex plot in which the primary narrative concerns the shifting relationship between the Marschallin and Octavian.

Hofmannsthal cast the drama in three acts, a more traditional scheme than Elektra's extended one-act plan, and perhaps a nod to the work's eighteenth century setting. Strauss also makes use of a conspicuously conservative musical idiom, eschewing the frankly dissonant and often abrasive textures he had used in both Elektra and Salome. At the same time, the orchestration of Der Rosenkavalier is both richer and marked throughout by delicate and shimmering sonorities. Strauss uses waltzes throughout the score to evoke a sentimental mood and to denote the middle-class sensibilities of Baron Ochs. Waltz themes are integral to each act, and the opera's orchestral waltz sequences, along with the more formal Rosenkavalier Suite (1945), remain popular as independent concert works. The opera's most impressive music occurs in the Act Three Trio between Oktavian, Sophie, and the Marschallin. Here, Strauss uses the three women's voices to convey the emotions of a young ingenue, her youthful suitor, and the mature Marschallin to great effect, the orchestra providing a telling underscoring. The static quality of the Trio creates an elegiac mood that at once combines the expression of youthful love with mature restraint.

Der Rosenkavalier, premiered in Dresden in January 1911, was received with great enthusiasm. The opera has remained a fixture of the stage, as evidenced by new productions in every decade since. Strauss attempted to recapture Der Rosenkavalier's popular appeal in his subsequent stage works; while some, like Arabella (1929-1932), are outstanding, they never eclipsed the successful alchemy of text and music that has ensured Der Rosenkavalier's permanence. --- James Zychowicz, Rovi

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1. Act I
2. Act II
3. Act III

Der Kaiser - Johan Botha 
Die Kaiserin - Emily Magee 
Die Amme - Michaela Schuster
Der Geisterbote - Ashley Holland
Hüter der Schwelle des Tempels - Dusica Bijelic
Stimmen der Ungeborenen - Ana James / Kiandra Howarth / Nadezhda Karyazina
Erscheinung eines Jünglings - David Butt Philip
Die Stimme des Falken - Anush Hovhannisyan
Eine Stimme von oben - Catherine Carby
Barak, der Färber - Johan Reuter 
Färberin - Elena Pankratova 
Der Einäugige - Adrian Clarke
Der Einarmige - Jeremy White
Der Bucklige - Hubert Francis
1. Stimme der Wächter der Stadt - Michel de Souza
2. Stimme der Wächter der Stadt - Jihoon Kim
3. Stimme der Wächter der Stadt - Adrian Clarke

Chor und Kinderchor Royal Opera House Covent Garden
Orchester Rolyal Opera House Covent Garden
Semyon Bychkov – conductor

Royal Opera House Covent Garden March 2014

The Royal Opera is marking the 150th anniversary of Richard Strauss's birth with a new version of his most massive, most ambitious and, for some, most tendentious stage work. New, that is, to London: Claus Guth's production of Die Frau ohne Schatten is shared with La Scala, Milan, where it was first seen two years ago. It has been brought here with almost the same principals – of the five main singers, only the Barak, Johann Reuter, is new. That familiarity with the detail of the staging and with the hugely demanding score itself is a huge bonus; when matched with a conductor of Semyon Bychkov's Straussian pedigree in the pit, the result is a performance that is musically exceptional in every respect, whatever one thinks of the dramatic treatment.

In a work already overloaded with magic and allegory, Guth tilts and twists Hugo von Hoffmanstahl's libretto and adds extra psychological layers of his own. He makes it all – I think – a sexually charged dream in the mind of Emily Magee's Empress, who is seen at the beginning of the opera in bed in the timeless, mahogany-veneered surrounds of Christian Schmidt's basic set, fussed over by nurse, husband and doctor, and she is rarely off-stage after that.

As the opera goes on, a revolve at the back of the stage provides regular Magritte-like glimpses of other realities, but the visual contrast between the worlds of the two childless couples, the fairytale shimmer around the Emperor and the Empress, and the grungy drudgery of the life of Barak and his wife, is more or less abolished. Barak has changed his occupation, too. Instead of the dyer of the original, he's now a tanner, bloodily working away at a gazelle skin (heavily symbolic, of course) in a couple of scenes, and perhaps more in keeping with the sombre, monochrome look of the design. Video projections – a hovering kestrel, a hand caressing the flank of a deer, a shoal of fish – supply some of the detail absent elsewhere. The action is also haunted by three animal-headed figures (gazelle, falcon, and a rather sinister, heavily horned ram, who is perhaps the Spirit King Keikobad, the Empress's father), while the unborn children who materialise in the final scene have young gazelle's heads, too.

The programme includes the director's own glossary of all this symbolism, but it also uses Hoffmanstahl's original synopsis, which is less helpful. The score is cut even more than it usually is in the theatre, and in the third act especially, the description of the action includes passages that have been omitted; a work whose convolutions are never that easy to follow is unnecessarily made more so. There is always, though, the gorgeously sumptuous score to rely on, and whether transcendently lyrical or fiercely confrontational, Bychkov and the Royal Opera House Orchestra never fail it, even though from where I was sitting the necessity of placing some of the percussion in the stalls circle turns a few passages into concertos for castanets.

The cast doesn't disappoint either, with even the smaller roles, such as Ashley Holland's dragon-winged Spirit Messenger, taken with real distinction. Magee is a warm, often radiant Empress, perhaps less vulnerable than she might be at times, but more than a match for Johan Botha's statuesque, sturdily sung Emperor. Elena Pankratova is Barak's Wife, less shrewish, more coquettish than some, just as Reuter makes Barak himself, a less boorish figure than he can be; their duet at the beginning of the third act is rapturously done, and Michaela Schuster's Nurse is a class act, too, wonderfully mingling malevolence and allure. For singing and playing like this, you can forgive the production a great deal. --- Andrew Clements, theguardian.com

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1. Act I
2. Act II
3. Act III

Jon Frederic West – Der Kaiser
Inga Nielsen – Die Kaiserin
Alan Titus – Barak, Der Farber
Luana DeVol – Die Farberin
Reinhild Runkel – Die Amme
Eike Wilm Schulte – Der Geisterbote

Orchestra & Choir Teatro alla Scala
Giuseppe Sinopoli – conductor

Milano, 14.04.1999.

Die Frau ohne Schatten ("The Woman without a Shadow"), the third of Richard Strauss' collaborations with Hugo von Hofmannsthal, is an ambitious mixture of operatic elements, both musically and dramatically. The story is part parable, part quest, and part human drama in which love and character are put to the test; the readiest comparison is to Mozart's The Magic Flute (Hofmannsthal, in fact, was the first to make the connection), with its veneer of comedy removed. Based on a fairytale by Wilhelm Hauff, Die Frau ohne Schatten traces the fortunes of a childless fairy empress whose desire for a "shadow" (fertility) drives her to consider stealing the desired qualities from an unhappy mortal woman. However, she cannot bring herself to do so, and eventually gains her own shadow by developing kindness and understanding.

Hofmannsthal created a libretto of such symbolic and textual complexity that he himself had trouble keeping it straight -- in fact, he wrote a concurrent prose version that allowed him to develop the themes more fully; this prose explanation sometimes accompanies the opera in performance to assist audiences. The correspondence between the librettist and Strauss shows that the composer, at times, often did not "get it" either.

The richness and complexity of Hofmannsthal's writing inspired Strauss to compose one of his densest scores, packed with intricate leitmotifs and exploiting his orchestrational talents to the fullest. In fact, it is perhaps only Strauss' ability to exploit the colors and textures of the orchestra that prevents Hofmannsthal's tale from lapsing into silliness; how many composers can pull off a chorus of unborn children that sings through the mouths of fish frying in a pan without straying into unintentional comedy?

Die Frau receives regular performances, but it has never established itself in the hearts and minds of opera-goers in the same was as Strauss' other stage works. Certainly this is partly due to the cryptic libretto, but it is also a testimony to the difficulty of the vocal writing. The role of the emperor calls for a true heldentenor, and the singers often have to compete with an orchestra of formidable size: Strauss employs quadrupled woodwinds, extensive percussion and divided strings -- two sections each of violas, cellos, and basses. Having said that, however, Strauss frequently deployed the orchestra with exceptional restraint, often creating chamber-like sonorities that remind a listener of his later Capriccio.

Though Die Frau cannot rival the composer's earlier Elektra for sheer musical and harmonic audacity, it isn't far behind. He concocts sounds and sonorities that would seem brazen removed from their context, but which meld so well with their dramatic context as to recede into the greater musical tapestry. Whereas in Elektra Strauss sought to draw attention to his adventurous musical choices, here he puts them fully at the service of more subtle dramatic concerns. Highlights of the score include the passages sung by the Emperor's falcon -- marvelously birdlike -- and the Watchmen's hymn from the end of the first act. ---Rovi

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1. Act I
2. Act II
3. Act III

Peter Coleman-Wright - Jupiter
Jörg Schneider - Mercurius
Gary Rideout -Pollux
Anne Schwanewilms - Danae
Monique Krüs - Xanthe
Michael Hendrick - Midas
Brian Galliford - König
Ruud Kok - König
Harry Teeuwen - König
Jeroen van Glabbeek
Ingrid Kaiserfeld - Semele
Claudia Patacca - Europa
Anette Seiltgen - Alkmene
Jolana Fogasová - Leda
Matthias Beutich
Thomas Müller
Martin Schubert
Mirko Tuma
Concertgebouw Orchestra
Edo de Waart – conductor

Amsterdam 12.10.2002

Richard Strauss' three-act opera, Die Liebe der Danae, is written to a libretto by Josef Gregor, after an outline by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Along with Daphne, Die Aegyptische Helena, and Elektra, Die Liebe der Danae belongs to a line of operas in which Strauss dealt with tales from classical antiquity, and especially its compelling female characters. Moving from the successful and poignant story of Daphne, Strauss chose to present the sensual story of Danae, who was confined from human contact by her father, but eventually seduced by the god Zeus, who came to her in a shower of gold. In his version of the story, Hofmannsthal intended to draw parallels between the golden shower of Zeus and the golden touch of the legendary Midas.

In taking up this story, Strauss reminded the librettist Joseph Gregor that he and Hofmannsthal had in mind a German-language equivalent to Offenbach's La belle Hélène, called Danae oder die Vernunftheirat (Danae, or the Marriage of Convenience). Gregor's conception of the plot differed, however, from Hofmannsthal's published scenario, and Strauss rejected several drafts before approving one for Gregor to complete. In working with Gregor, Strauss seemed, at best, uncomfortable, and during this time consulted the conductor Clemens Krauss about the opera. In fact, Strauss continued to solicit Krauss' opinions for almost all of his operatic projects in the coming years.

Rehearsals began for Die Liebe der Danae after the successful premiere of Capriccio, a work Strauss had finished after he completed the score for Die Liebe der Danae. While it was planned that Die Liebe der Danae would open the Salzburg Festival in 1944, the only performance during Strauss's lifetime was an open dress rehearsal on August 16th of that year. Only in 1952 did the work receive its premiere (August 14, at Salzburg).

In style, the work recalls the score of Daphne, but it suffers somewhat in comparison, largely due to the quality of the libretto. The commingling of legends has, perhaps, more academic fascination than dramatic purpose, and the ensuing problems in dramaturgy makes it a difficult work to stage. Nevertheless, Die Liebe der Danae is performed on occasion, and it stands as a testimony to the craftsmanship of Strauss in his later years. The autumnal spirit of the final act serves as homage to Strauss's inspiration in the music of Wagner, since it recalls the character of Wotan in the Ring. At the same time, the final scene is sometimes seen as Strauss's affectionate farewell at the end of his own career. --- James Zychowicz, Rovi

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