i was in my teens AND HEARD SOME RECORDINGS BY FLAGSTAD. I HAD NEVER HEAR A VOICE SO BEAUTIFUL BEFORE. i WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO SEE HER LAST CONCERT WITH THE SYMPHONY OF THE AIR AND THE ACTUAL SOUND OFF HER VOICE WAS OVERWHELMING.
The term "pulling at the heart strings" is an overused cliche'... but I can't think of anything that better describes the effect that her version of this song has. It makes vapour out of language, thought and reason and connects directly with what can only be described as the soul, the heart. It's achingly beautiful.
I adore Flagstad's artistry. Operaddict sorry if you think we are cold and snobby, but just to let you know that after the 2nd world war, when Flagstad was being refused work all over the world , particularly at the MET because of her husband's involvement in Norway's occupation government, Britain provided a platform where this great voice could be heard- at Covent Garden, at the Promenade concerts. The British took her to their hearts and she was forever grateful to them. A great artist!
Be very careful judging Flagstad on old recordings like this. The limitations of 1930s recording equipment cannot be trusted to capture her voice accurately. 30 years later even with the resources of Decca, sound engineers had tremendous difficulty recording Birgit Nilsson (during the Solti ring she had to rush backwards and forwards as the equipment could only capture her upper register if standing 3 meters away).
@houghtonga: These problems occured even later. I think it was in late 1960' or early 1970' - Philips's engineers were desperate, because they couldn't record Deutekom's voice. The recording was not only distorted, but her voice sounded really shrill, narrow and unnaturally. And that was 40 years later. I think these problems were related to many old-school sopranos, who didn't damped their voices to sound darker or bigger, but shaped their tones to pass thru the hall and utilize its acoustics.
@houghtonga This explains what I saw in a film I saw that was made during the recording of the Solti Ring. At one point, an assistant removed the music stand that stood before Nilsson, and she took a few steps forward, towards the microphones, then stepped back and the music stand was replaced. I always wondered why she did this, but the recording limitations you described explain it. Thank you.
@karlakor Please do not speak of Flagstad and Nilsson in the same breath. You are treating two different "universes". Flagstad was "the only one", "den enda", " den eneste" who was capable of interpreting Wagner's music-dramas according to the composer's intentions. As for that Swedish farm-girl from the South - well, someone had to try to sing those roles after Flagstad - but let us not give Nilsson more credit than she deserves, and not even posthumously.
@VivaRenata "Blablabla was the only one who was capable of interpreting the composer's music according to the his intentions". So stupid phrase in any case...
I am really loooking forward to meeting my dad when I get to heaven. But I am also looking forward to rewind through history and be in the audience as Flagstad sings her first Liebestod at the Met.
IMHO this is the best recording of Flagstad singing the Liebestod. There are better quality recordings that came later but her voice had lost something in later years, though she was still head and shoulders above everyone else and still brought tears to many in the audience. She recalled years later how a very bad bout with the flu in late 1936 caused her to temporarily lose her hearing. Flagstad was her own harshest critic, and always felt she was never quite the same after that.
The only thing I don't like about this video is the stupid polite clapping at the end, as though to say "Oh, that was very pretty, now on to the next one." Flagstad singing Isolde is way too good to applaud immediately after...
Other than that... yeah, I was speechless after hearing this. No words can be said.
@Operaddict So the British are cold and snobby? Please don't drag down opera videos with negative national stereotypes (which are often a sign of narrow-minded bigotry, and could be also applied to the US, but i happen to know decent Americans). Can't we have more admiration for all great singers, less belittling and insults? Flagstad was tremendous, of course. That's what we're here to enjoy.
@Operaddict Generalizations tend to say much about the people making them. In the 30's's, British people were naturally reticent about public displays of hero worship & hysteria. It was considered impolite to indulge in shouting & screeching. It isn't necessary to stand on your seat yelling; 'You hit that one outa the park, honey! You go girl!' In order to express your enjoyment. I'm sure the audience was both moved & captivated. Tito Gobbi thought Brit audiences were the best in the world.
I just love what Birgit Nilsson writes in her bio about Flagstad. There´s a big gap for Isolde between the 2nd act and her entrance in the 3rd. Nilsson said she tried to stay in character, keep the energy up and all that. Then she said that Flagstad used to order a cognac from the bar and knit socks for her family, and then go on stage and sing like.. LIKE THIS!!!
Till den kände gittaristen Cindie Velin. När Flagstads inspelning av Tristan und Isolde lanserades 1952 skrev den ökända och elaka recensenten från Chicago, Claudia Cassidy, att detta var en "Tristan for all the ages". Här hör du Flagstad i en tidig inspelning av Isoldes "Liebestod". Kram! ML
@langleywil Nothing against La Norman, she was a great soprano in the modern era, but to compare her to the greatest operatic voice of the last 100 years and say she far succeeds it is like comparing John Lennon to Mickey Dolenz. I think La Norman would agree with me, not sure what Mickey would say though. (:
@richard63545 We'll obviously disagree and you're probably right. La Norman is too modest to brag about herself. That's why they have fans...lol Flagstad was one of the best, but not the best. For me that would always be Jessye. I only wish that Norman had done this opera at the met...just once.
...after comparing her voice to the Grand Canyon..."The voice of Kiersten Flagstad was no less awe-inspiring: it was a grand and glorious monument to nature"....."The grace with which Kirsten Flagstad lived her life and, through her art, enriched the lives of countless others reminds me of the words of still another natural wonder - Leonardo da Vinci, who said: "Why not let your work be such that after death you become an image of immortality?" And so she did." Jessye Norman, April 1987
@langleywil There are two well known biographies of Flagstad, one by Edwin Macarthur and one by Howard Vogt. The forward to the one written by Vogt was written by none other than Jessye Norman in April 1987. In it she compares Flagstad's voice to a gift from nature akin to the grandeur of the Grand Canyon that succeeding generations can treasure thanks to these recordings. Norman also compares her to the great Leonardo Da Vinci. Norman calls her the greatest voice nature ever produced.
She is the ultimate Wagnerian soprano. Fabulous vocal ability and pure tonal quality. Like Caruso, Bjoerling, or Callas, you won't find another of her caliber.
I only wish I could have heard her together with Gundula Janowitz, that would be heaven to me. i lost my Flagstad LP's years ago, so i am very grateful to you for uploading this.
....well, I have heard the wonderful warm Traubel, Nilsson, Lehmann and many wonderful soprano voices in between....stunning superstars that you cannot forget...but as in 1962 when I heard this first, as a young kid, Flagstad deserves this role, to me she is the greatest of the great, soprano voice, regardless of a limitation here or there, still greatest....
in many ways she reminds me of Sutherland. they both had that sort of superhuman golden timbre that no one else could come close to. it's that Flagstad had a stronger lower register and Sutherland had a stronger upper register.
What is so astounding is this is the very end of a 4 and a half hour long opera, and Flagstad sounds so fresh, so easy, so expressive...as if it were the beginning. Her technique was flawless, and never flagged in her long, glorious career.
She may be the only heroic soprano that can make Wagner arias have the glide of lyric. This can only be done with a voice with natural metal in her voice a matural power.
@Operaddict It's a little known fact that Flagstad would nod off on stage on occasion during the 3rd act when Isolde lays dead, or so Tristan thinks, while he sings for almost a half hour. Whether sleeping right before she sings the Liebestod or nipping from the cognac bottle during intermission, she was just as Antonio Solieri lamented of Mozart, a gift from god.
Dear violinthief, thank you so much for posting valuable contributions. If you see my comment above, I own quite a few rare LP:s, particularly regarding Flagstad (including a limited edition of her farewell recital in New York's Carnegie Hall). I need some help to post them here since I am a technical idiot, but hope to contribute soon!
I own a recording of the Vier Letzte Lieder with Flagstad / Furtwängler. It is the first performance from London 1950, produced by an Italian company called "Cetra", a 33 - LP. I did a program on Flagstad in 1995 for Swedish classical radio for the 100th anniversary of her birth, and this was the only recording they didn't have in their archives. So they used my recording for Fruhling (sorry, no umlaut on youtube!). Will try to post some of my rarities shortly, just need technical help.
Comment se rendre compte de la qualité d une interprétation avec un son"pourri" ou seul les aigus ressortent...arretons de trouver ces enregistrements fabuleux...Meir est impeccable..moins aigue et plus emouvante..
As far as I love Flagstad, and gracious me, I do, passionately, Germaine Lubin was the greatest Isolde ever. And even Flagstad would recognise the unparalled artistry of Lubin.
But of course it's useless to compare such giants. Let us just enjoy. ;-)
bel canto is a good place for any singer to start. it tends to stay within the vocal center of the singer and helps reinforce good technique. later composers (such as in the romantic era) really pushed the singers' limits (verdi was notorious for this).
Actually Verdi was very soft compared with baroque composers they do really pushed the singers beyond human capabilities(of course the wrote for castrati...who apparently were beyond mere humans)
Her voice is so beautiful I can barely believe it was also huge in size. Supposedly - but everyone who actually heard her seem to agree. It appears I was born way too late.
Yes, me too. Several of my piano teachers / coaches heard her and tried to describe the voice. I too was born way too late, though 1953. We will never hear anything like this again. Glad that there's someone out there who appreciates this.
Yes it was huge, majestic, warm, effortless, seamless. As a schoolgirl I heard her very last concert in the Albert Hall singing Grieg songs in national dress. The nearest to that "great organ" sound was young Jessye Norman.
Oh my gosh, I just feel that an adjective needs to be invented to describe how beautiful her voice is. What a breath of fresh air! Such clarity, richness, and warmth wrapped up in her tone. Her voice is so balanced and never sounds unwieldy despite its size.
Hearing Flagstad and Nilsson doing Liebestod I keep hoping that someone sometime will put on Youtube the 1912 recording by Fremstad. Bad old time sound and Olive "hooting" into a horn, but interesting to hear The Isolde of the Teddy Roosevelt era.
I think that this is the most beautiful singing that I've ever heard. And to think that only an hour ago I'd never heard of Kirsten Flagstad. The power of YouTube to move and to educate! Many thanks to 'violinthief' for posting this.
This is what has been forgotten in the vocal world. Pure, natural sound, created by a partnership of perfect technique and musicality on the singers part. Brava. Words cannot describe how this voice makes me feel.
@wowyourgaiy Obviously Flagstad is a towering figure, but that's no reason to belittle today's "vocal world." I regularly hear performances with pure, natural sound, perfect technique, and musicality.
Wow! No fabrication of sound on any level. I studied with Eleanor Steber for 5 years and I asked her once "What was the greatest female voice you ever heard,,,, and she said Flagstad"
What a natural sound, pure,,,, Thanks for this incredible post!!!!!!!!
Woah! You studied with Steber for five years?! I'm so envious! That had to have been quite the learning experience. :-)
I would have to agree with your esteemed teacher about Flagstad being the greatest. When I was an undergraduate in college some xx years ago, I thought Nilsson was tops, probably because all the grad students dubbed me "Baby Birgit". LOL (Not that I had enough steel in my voice to live up to that moniker.) I never really appreciated Flagstad until years later.
......I thought to say something, but better skip it.....I will just say..."matchless perfection"....no other words can convey Flagstad's Liebestod.....
I don't think I've ever heard it taken this slow, but I suppose that's probably closer to how Wagner wanted it. Re: Flagstad vs. Nilsson, they both have incredible voices (obviously) and both had unsurpassed artistry. I have to confess that I'm not a big fan of the tempo here, so that's tainting my opinion. My ultimate favourite Liebestod is Norman/Karajan, but Flagstad must take a better seat by default since she recorded the whole opera, as opposed to Norman just recording the Liebestod.
Now you are out of line, NonInflatable. Others may respect your right to have an opinion, but they ARE NOT obligated to respect the opinion itself or how it is expressed.
Also, no one is entitled to these video clips, which are made available to us all only at the pleasure of the clips' poster. It is classy of violinthief that he didn't erase or block your posts!
As for your way of thinking, if you can't take a thumb down vote on your comments, perhaps you shouldn't post them now, should you?
I love the transcendence of Nilsson's Liebestod, the sublime excitement of Mödl's, the nearly touchable fire of Varnay, but in this aria Flagtad is the supreme interpreter. Her dignity, restrained and powerful expression, unique velvet and smoothness in a very large voice are qualities that haven't been reached till our days. Brava (as always)!
You are so right. Flagstad's voice had a warmth, a feminine warmth if you will that is lacking in Nilsson's rendition, great though it was. I don't mean to compare; both were great great singers. Flagstad also manages to imbue her singing with the sadness, transcending into ecstasy, that puts the final touch of perfection on her interpretation of this music.
I agree no point at all. However, listening to this I can understand why my parents rated her so highly. The clarity and power of her voice, the emotional content and above all the near perfect tuning in a live performance after 5 hours is just unbelievable.
Please, don´t forget Astríd Varnay. By the way, Waltraud Meiers "Mild und leise" on the Barenboim recording is a great example, that great singers still exist
The grandest voice of the 20th century, bar none (and that includes La Divina). Flagstad did not have to chew up the scenery to make an impact. Her voice, technique and classical bearing said it all. Her equal is yet to be discovered.
Ihave a recording of the entire #rd Act of Die Walkuere at Covent Garden 1937 with Wilhelm Furtwaengler conducting. Oh yes, she still gives me goosebumps. Hail Brunnhilde!
Flagstad is close to perfection. Her voice has a quality which differs from Birgit Nilsson´s. Both excell at Liebestod. Nilsson is pure bravura. Flagstad´s more tender and warm. Anyone close to them today?
Have to differ with you regarding Nilsson. Flagstad has a very different voice and fantastic in its own regard, but the purity and power of Nilsson in this piece is simply without equal.
Pure magic. Unsurpassed. I regret to say that she leaves Birgit Nilsson far behind, since Nilsson is our national treasure together with tenor Björling. Flagstad simply rules!
Nilsson and Flagstad really are two unparalled forces of nature as Isolde. Both move me to tears, and that rarely happens to me with singers. This is the best version on Youtube, but I'd have to relisten to the Nilsson's studio recording with London Philharmonic to truely decide which is the definite one for me.
...History went thru thousands of dramatic sopranos till Flagstad came along, and conquered the universe....her and Nilsson are the greatest dramatic sopranos that ever lived.....Nilsson a farm girl raised on a farm, Flagstad didnt start serious opera till she was 40 and ready to retire from singing..the world almost missed her.......really a shocking turn of events in the lives of these Queens
Actually Flagstad became acquainted with opera through her mother, a vocal coach, & often filled in lessons with her immature voice, then advanced to operetta, even some Verdi, but didn't do Wagner until in her 30s after she had studied with a Swedish vocal coach. Her father was a conductor, her mother a conductor & vocal coach ... she was so surrounded by music that she felt it was entirely natural.
violinthief.I fully agree with you,Just finished comparing the two,and they are in a class by themselves.Sometimes I find Birgit's voice a little too strong,but not in her performance of this work.She seemed to hold back a bit,and for this I give kudos to the great director.
Birgit was wonderful - my favorite Turandot and Elektra. But I prefer Flagstad's Isolde and other Wagnerian heroines. But it is a matter of preference - the golden voice of Flagstad versus the voice of steel of Nilsson. No one since has approached either. Incidentally, Flagstad was Birgit Nilsson's favorite singer.
Wasn't Flagstad also Joan Sutherland's favourite singer? I haven't heard Nilsson's Elektra, but she is certainly my favourite Turandot (I would , however, like to hear Eva Turner's,) but I think I also prefer Flagstad's Isolde.
Yes, Flagstad was Sutherland's favourite singer. Flagstad was more successful than Nilsson (well, I think so) as Isolde because of her (Flagstad's) more romantic and softer-grained voice. She is wondrous throughout the performance this Mild und leise is extracted from.
Nilsson is unbelievable as Elektra. I don't think there is a role which suits her better.
Flagstad was Sutherland's favorite singer. But a close runner-up was Galli-Curci, whom Sutherland, early in her career, attempted to imitate by lightening her tone.
I agree that no Wagnerian soprano since Flagstad has approached her or Nilsson, even Traubel, Modl, and Farrell, who were all superb. Melchior compared Flagstad and Traubel by likening Flagstad's voice to a diamond and Traubel's to a ruby. However, I think Frida Leider, contemporary of Flagstad's, was comparable to her in Wagnerian roles.
i can only say that one has to put madame flagstad in a category of her very own.... outside all other sings.. when listening to her we are given something beyond singing really, beyong just amazing and best voice, etc, only with her i feel that something more than just singing or music is there.. see what i mean.. ? hope i expressed it ok.
A rock solid column of sound and one of the most stunning voices on records. To me, Flagstad's voice was the aural equivalent of a beautiful, pristine alpine lake.
Oh, amazing. It sounds so REAL when she does it, strong and expressive, but never perfumed. It's like she's an instrument to express the Highest Art, not to express herself.
What you wrote was similar to Claudia Cassidy's review of the Flagstad / Furtwängler Tristan of 1952. It was the standard by which all other performances must be judged. Absolutely!
The '52 Furtwangler Tristan is the best interpreted version. However, the Kleiber/Dresden is also outstanding, if you want hi-fi stereo, and Margaret Price makes a nice Isolde, in the recording studio at least. But for the greatest singing on record, it is this 1936 recording. Melchior has no rivals, ever, and Flagstad was at her absolute peak here as well. She held up and sang beautifully until her 60s, but her vocal prime is mid-to-late 1930s.
I agree, violinthief. It is a shame that the Furtwängler Tristan wasn't recorded just a few years earlier. Blanche Thebom too was just past her prime. The sound on my computer isn't good enough to be sure - Is this from the Covent Garden 36-37 recording? It is truly amazing, especially the immediacy of Flagstad's voice.
i was in my teens AND HEARD SOME RECORDINGS BY FLAGSTAD. I HAD NEVER HEAR A VOICE SO BEAUTIFUL BEFORE. i WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO SEE HER LAST CONCERT WITH THE SYMPHONY OF THE AIR AND THE ACTUAL SOUND OFF HER VOICE WAS OVERWHELMING.
njoperabuff1 2 months ago
Joan Sutherland (of all people!) said the most beautiful voice she ever heard was that of Kirsten Flagstad.
TheVerdiBaritone 3 months ago 2
It really is great. And I HATE old recordings with hiss in them. Whew, what a tour de force.
peter10003 4 months ago
This is true art.
1990osu 5 months ago
Yes..........."fresh, easy, expressive". Pure.
skbnvacaville 6 months ago
Magnificent singing! Thank you violinthief for posting this musical gem!
CanadaPisces 7 months ago
6:25 flute fail
LordMgls 7 months ago
Stunning!!
JRZGRL55 8 months ago
Das Beste. Thank you, violintheif, for posting this performance I had never heard. It remains to be matched, and takes me there every time I hear it.
apocalypseinabox 8 months ago
The term "pulling at the heart strings" is an overused cliche'... but I can't think of anything that better describes the effect that her version of this song has. It makes vapour out of language, thought and reason and connects directly with what can only be described as the soul, the heart. It's achingly beautiful.
SethHesio 8 months ago
I adore Flagstad's artistry. Operaddict sorry if you think we are cold and snobby, but just to let you know that after the 2nd world war, when Flagstad was being refused work all over the world , particularly at the MET because of her husband's involvement in Norway's occupation government, Britain provided a platform where this great voice could be heard- at Covent Garden, at the Promenade concerts. The British took her to their hearts and she was forever grateful to them. A great artist!
Tenortalker 1 year ago 2
Be very careful judging Flagstad on old recordings like this. The limitations of 1930s recording equipment cannot be trusted to capture her voice accurately. 30 years later even with the resources of Decca, sound engineers had tremendous difficulty recording Birgit Nilsson (during the Solti ring she had to rush backwards and forwards as the equipment could only capture her upper register if standing 3 meters away).
houghtonga 1 year ago
@houghtonga: These problems occured even later. I think it was in late 1960' or early 1970' - Philips's engineers were desperate, because they couldn't record Deutekom's voice. The recording was not only distorted, but her voice sounded really shrill, narrow and unnaturally. And that was 40 years later. I think these problems were related to many old-school sopranos, who didn't damped their voices to sound darker or bigger, but shaped their tones to pass thru the hall and utilize its acoustics.
tomasburi 11 months ago
@houghtonga This explains what I saw in a film I saw that was made during the recording of the Solti Ring. At one point, an assistant removed the music stand that stood before Nilsson, and she took a few steps forward, towards the microphones, then stepped back and the music stand was replaced. I always wondered why she did this, but the recording limitations you described explain it. Thank you.
karlakor 11 months ago
@karlakor Please do not speak of Flagstad and Nilsson in the same breath. You are treating two different "universes". Flagstad was "the only one", "den enda", " den eneste" who was capable of interpreting Wagner's music-dramas according to the composer's intentions. As for that Swedish farm-girl from the South - well, someone had to try to sing those roles after Flagstad - but let us not give Nilsson more credit than she deserves, and not even posthumously.
VivaRenata 10 months ago
@VivaRenata "Blablabla was the only one who was capable of interpreting the composer's music according to the his intentions". So stupid phrase in any case...
olivleonardo 10 months ago 2
@olivleonardo Intelligent posting. Congratulations!
VivaRenata 8 months ago
I am really loooking forward to meeting my dad when I get to heaven. But I am also looking forward to rewind through history and be in the audience as Flagstad sings her first Liebestod at the Met.
jobertil 1 year ago
An overwhelming experience - so beautiful!
Glenmed 1 year ago
IMHO this is the best recording of Flagstad singing the Liebestod. There are better quality recordings that came later but her voice had lost something in later years, though she was still head and shoulders above everyone else and still brought tears to many in the audience. She recalled years later how a very bad bout with the flu in late 1936 caused her to temporarily lose her hearing. Flagstad was her own harshest critic, and always felt she was never quite the same after that.
richard63545 1 year ago
The only thing I don't like about this video is the stupid polite clapping at the end, as though to say "Oh, that was very pretty, now on to the next one." Flagstad singing Isolde is way too good to applaud immediately after...
Other than that... yeah, I was speechless after hearing this. No words can be said.
worldviolist 1 year ago
@worldviolist What would you expect from a British audience? Cold, snobby people.
Operaddict 1 year ago
@Operaddict So the British are cold and snobby? Please don't drag down opera videos with negative national stereotypes (which are often a sign of narrow-minded bigotry, and could be also applied to the US, but i happen to know decent Americans). Can't we have more admiration for all great singers, less belittling and insults? Flagstad was tremendous, of course. That's what we're here to enjoy.
mizofan 8 months ago 3
@mizofan
Hear! Hear! This is a beautiful performance (and lots of us Brits happen to love Wagner too!)
Wien1938 6 months ago
@Operaddict Generalizations tend to say much about the people making them. In the 30's's, British people were naturally reticent about public displays of hero worship & hysteria. It was considered impolite to indulge in shouting & screeching. It isn't necessary to stand on your seat yelling; 'You hit that one outa the park, honey! You go girl!' In order to express your enjoyment. I'm sure the audience was both moved & captivated. Tito Gobbi thought Brit audiences were the best in the world.
hiyadroogs 3 months ago
Truly astounding, speechless...
lowenklee 1 year ago
I just love what Birgit Nilsson writes in her bio about Flagstad. There´s a big gap for Isolde between the 2nd act and her entrance in the 3rd. Nilsson said she tried to stay in character, keep the energy up and all that. Then she said that Flagstad used to order a cognac from the bar and knit socks for her family, and then go on stage and sing like.. LIKE THIS!!!
Piacevole 1 year ago 5
Till den kände gittaristen Cindie Velin. När Flagstads inspelning av Tristan und Isolde lanserades 1952 skrev den ökända och elaka recensenten från Chicago, Claudia Cassidy, att detta var en "Tristan for all the ages". Här hör du Flagstad i en tidig inspelning av Isoldes "Liebestod". Kram! ML
VivaRenata 1 year ago
I love her voice. I love these old recordings. She's untouched by everyone else except Jessye Norman. La Norman far succeeds this.
langleywil 1 year ago
@langleywil Nothing against La Norman, she was a great soprano in the modern era, but to compare her to the greatest operatic voice of the last 100 years and say she far succeeds it is like comparing John Lennon to Mickey Dolenz. I think La Norman would agree with me, not sure what Mickey would say though. (:
richard63545 1 year ago
@richard63545 We'll obviously disagree and you're probably right. La Norman is too modest to brag about herself. That's why they have fans...lol Flagstad was one of the best, but not the best. For me that would always be Jessye. I only wish that Norman had done this opera at the met...just once.
langleywil 1 year ago
...after comparing her voice to the Grand Canyon..."The voice of Kiersten Flagstad was no less awe-inspiring: it was a grand and glorious monument to nature"....."The grace with which Kirsten Flagstad lived her life and, through her art, enriched the lives of countless others reminds me of the words of still another natural wonder - Leonardo da Vinci, who said: "Why not let your work be such that after death you become an image of immortality?" And so she did." Jessye Norman, April 1987
richard63545 1 year ago
@langleywil There are two well known biographies of Flagstad, one by Edwin Macarthur and one by Howard Vogt. The forward to the one written by Vogt was written by none other than Jessye Norman in April 1987. In it she compares Flagstad's voice to a gift from nature akin to the grandeur of the Grand Canyon that succeeding generations can treasure thanks to these recordings. Norman also compares her to the great Leonardo Da Vinci. Norman calls her the greatest voice nature ever produced.
richard63545 1 year ago
She is the ultimate Wagnerian soprano. Fabulous vocal ability and pure tonal quality. Like Caruso, Bjoerling, or Callas, you won't find another of her caliber.
Erdrick345 1 year ago
i have listened to every Liebestod posted so far, this is the ultimate. When I die I hope I am listening to this, it will be a pleasure.
FAYSIEUK 1 year ago 4
@FAYSIEUK Really? You've listened to every single one and THIS is the best one to you? This one?
langleywil 1 year ago
Because this recording was before bureaucrats decided they knew best.
horsemad1670 1 year ago
Not only is Flagstad astounding...but that conductor...good gravy. The sounds he is bringing out of that orchestra....amazing....
CatalinaDM56 1 year ago
Oh, my God... What a voice.
Perfection!
Thank you for uploading it.
Hadewijch 1 year ago
Sheer perfection. Never has an Isolde sounded so fresh at this point in a live peformance.
BritinIsrael 1 year ago
c'est touchant.
sdegrace 1 year ago
I want this song played at my funeral.
SethHesio 1 year ago 2
this surpasses the sublime!
cleanears 2 years ago
I only wish I could have heard her together with Gundula Janowitz, that would be heaven to me. i lost my Flagstad LP's years ago, so i am very grateful to you for uploading this.
JSBach5000 2 years ago
Her voice breaks on through to the other side
LuckyAntenna 2 years ago 4
....well, I have heard the wonderful warm Traubel, Nilsson, Lehmann and many wonderful soprano voices in between....stunning superstars that you cannot forget...but as in 1962 when I heard this first, as a young kid, Flagstad deserves this role, to me she is the greatest of the great, soprano voice, regardless of a limitation here or there, still greatest....
j72050 2 years ago 5
For Timbre try Rosa Ponselle
terpum73 2 years ago
in many ways she reminds me of Sutherland. they both had that sort of superhuman golden timbre that no one else could come close to. it's that Flagstad had a stronger lower register and Sutherland had a stronger upper register.
raigekimaru 2 years ago
my lovely aria!Flagstad wunderbar!
pregamariaperme 2 years ago 4
Her Liebestod for me's still unbeatable. Love Nilsson, love Norman, but she's something else, can't explain it...
RamirRMA 2 years ago 9
What is so astounding is this is the very end of a 4 and a half hour long opera, and Flagstad sounds so fresh, so easy, so expressive...as if it were the beginning. Her technique was flawless, and never flagged in her long, glorious career.
Operaddict 2 years ago 29
@Operaddict
always under the pitch.
sergenovique 1 year ago
@sergenovique You must have better ears than the rest of us.
Operaddict 1 year ago
@sergenovique you may be hard of hearing...
She may be the only heroic soprano that can make Wagner arias have the glide of lyric. This can only be done with a voice with natural metal in her voice a matural power.
drrosslg 11 months ago
@Operaddict It's a little known fact that Flagstad would nod off on stage on occasion during the 3rd act when Isolde lays dead, or so Tristan thinks, while he sings for almost a half hour. Whether sleeping right before she sings the Liebestod or nipping from the cognac bottle during intermission, she was just as Antonio Solieri lamented of Mozart, a gift from god.
richard63545 8 months ago
fagstad's voice is the most brilliant of all!
before i've listened to her , my favourite one was callas and i've never imagined to think otherwise ,but ...FLAGSTAD IS THE ONE !
georgirella 2 years ago 14
@georgirella I agree!
achantus1 4 months ago
I really enjoy the clarinet squeak at the end. Wonder if Reiner owned him?
jlew180l 2 years ago
Dear violinthief, thank you so much for posting valuable contributions. If you see my comment above, I own quite a few rare LP:s, particularly regarding Flagstad (including a limited edition of her farewell recital in New York's Carnegie Hall). I need some help to post them here since I am a technical idiot, but hope to contribute soon!
VivaRenata 2 years ago
A musical gem! TY!
CanadaPisces 2 years ago
Thanks for the info: I stand to be corrected. But, I heard this on a radio program and the announcer said the Vienna Philaharmonic. Sorry about that.
But, I would have prefered the Vienna Philaharmonic - my favorite orchestra.
samirfouad1 2 years ago
Note: When Strauss composed his Last
4 Songs, he wanted the best singer, orchestra, and conductor. He got all 3!
Flagstaf, Furtwangler, and Vienna Philharmonic. Try to find this recording.
samirfouad1 2 years ago
I own a recording of the Vier Letzte Lieder with Flagstad / Furtwängler. It is the first performance from London 1950, produced by an Italian company called "Cetra", a 33 - LP. I did a program on Flagstad in 1995 for Swedish classical radio for the 100th anniversary of her birth, and this was the only recording they didn't have in their archives. So they used my recording for Fruhling (sorry, no umlaut on youtube!). Will try to post some of my rarities shortly, just need technical help.
VivaRenata 2 years ago
Unrivaled interpretation, musically and emotionally.
phil2u 2 years ago
Incredible! Thanks so much for posting this. No words to describe - just tears streaming down my face!
operasprite 2 years ago 4
To still listen and listen, a resolutely modern song. in 1936!!! of a beauty and a sensitivity without name. Fabulous.
marioj34 2 years ago 4
Comment se rendre compte de la qualité d une interprétation avec un son"pourri" ou seul les aigus ressortent...arretons de trouver ces enregistrements fabuleux...Meir est impeccable..moins aigue et plus emouvante..
nanard111 2 years ago
Je ne trouve pas le son pourri.
isabelle070209 2 years ago
Simplemente maravilloso.
Maurielga 2 years ago
Indeed.
sizableone 2 years ago
Flagstad, Traubel, Nilsson. Would that we had their like today.
jimthewriter 2 years ago 3
A Men to that!!! Im glad you included Traubel!!
robertwbecker 2 years ago
My goodness.... I'm speechless. Listening to this I completely forget about the noise; it only sounds like it's raining. :)
I can completely see why she is adored so much by everyone.
Thank you for posting this!
benj1008 2 years ago 7
Her voice is pure chromaticism! Heaven!
Johnny1206 2 years ago 5
When you have it, you have it!
ALICEinWAGNERLAND 2 years ago 4
Absolutely amazing!
Such a great big star from such a small country.
PolarBeamz 2 years ago 6
She can handle so much beauty in such a huge voice and difficult aria.
What a masterpiece.
comey717 3 years ago 5
genius...
dashatsh 3 years ago 3
This voice is like the Suns zenith. It never settles down. really.
Sigfrid711 3 years ago 2
Quote:Flagstad has never been surpassed in this role. INDEED!
Sigfrid711 3 years ago 2
As far as I love Flagstad, and gracious me, I do, passionately, Germaine Lubin was the greatest Isolde ever. And even Flagstad would recognise the unparalled artistry of Lubin.
But of course it's useless to compare such giants. Let us just enjoy. ;-)
SENAFOREVER 2 years ago
I can't believe that a voice of her size could have those lyric qualities. She possesed a beautiful vocal tone and a perfect pitch!
yodavidnavarro 3 years ago 5
It's interesting, her debut role was Amina in La Sonnambula! So she took some of that belcanto approach to the end of her career...
Dymension 3 years ago
Sorry, never Amina, Nuri in Tiefland was her first role.
CharlotteinWeimar 3 years ago
bel canto is a good place for any singer to start. it tends to stay within the vocal center of the singer and helps reinforce good technique. later composers (such as in the romantic era) really pushed the singers' limits (verdi was notorious for this).
raigekimaru 2 years ago
Actually Verdi was very soft compared with baroque composers they do really pushed the singers beyond human capabilities(of course the wrote for castrati...who apparently were beyond mere humans)
Heartlessiceboy 2 years ago
No, it was Nuri in "Tiefland".
VivaRenata 2 years ago
Her voice is so beautiful I can barely believe it was also huge in size. Supposedly - but everyone who actually heard her seem to agree. It appears I was born way too late.
Chrysothemis 3 years ago 5
Yes, me too. Several of my piano teachers / coaches heard her and tried to describe the voice. I too was born way too late, though 1953. We will never hear anything like this again. Glad that there's someone out there who appreciates this.
VivaRenata 3 years ago 4
Yes it was huge, majestic, warm, effortless, seamless. As a schoolgirl I heard her very last concert in the Albert Hall singing Grieg songs in national dress. The nearest to that "great organ" sound was young Jessye Norman.
CharlotteinWeimar 3 years ago 7
Oh my gosh, I just feel that an adjective needs to be invented to describe how beautiful her voice is. What a breath of fresh air! Such clarity, richness, and warmth wrapped up in her tone. Her voice is so balanced and never sounds unwieldy despite its size.
dolcissimo 3 years ago
My mother had a set of LPs of "Tristan und Isolde", starring Melchior and Flagstad. Thanks for this version.
Flagstad has never been surpassed in this role.
willb48 3 years ago 5
Hearing Flagstad and Nilsson doing Liebestod I keep hoping that someone sometime will put on Youtube the 1912 recording by Fremstad. Bad old time sound and Olive "hooting" into a horn, but interesting to hear The Isolde of the Teddy Roosevelt era.
fedtrooper 3 years ago
I think that this is the most beautiful singing that I've ever heard. And to think that only an hour ago I'd never heard of Kirsten Flagstad. The power of YouTube to move and to educate! Many thanks to 'violinthief' for posting this.
celticchefgirl 3 years ago 7
This is what has been forgotten in the vocal world. Pure, natural sound, created by a partnership of perfect technique and musicality on the singers part. Brava. Words cannot describe how this voice makes me feel.
wowyourgaiy 3 years ago 41
I agree.
33blueberries 3 years ago 2
@wowyourgaiy Den enda, den eneste? I'm in complete agreement.
VivaRenata 1 year ago
@wowyourgaiy Obviously Flagstad is a towering figure, but that's no reason to belittle today's "vocal world." I regularly hear performances with pure, natural sound, perfect technique, and musicality.
STFine 1 year ago 3
i like this one a lot more then the other ladies i've heard.. She's real it's dark and powerful, more feeling, real musical orgasm
jenswippysampsonite 3 years ago
Wow! No fabrication of sound on any level. I studied with Eleanor Steber for 5 years and I asked her once "What was the greatest female voice you ever heard,,,, and she said Flagstad"
What a natural sound, pure,,,, Thanks for this incredible post!!!!!!!!
robertwbecker 3 years ago
Woah! You studied with Steber for five years?! I'm so envious! That had to have been quite the learning experience. :-)
I would have to agree with your esteemed teacher about Flagstad being the greatest. When I was an undergraduate in college some xx years ago, I thought Nilsson was tops, probably because all the grad students dubbed me "Baby Birgit". LOL (Not that I had enough steel in my voice to live up to that moniker.) I never really appreciated Flagstad until years later.
kareninflorida 3 years ago 2
Stunning! Brava! TY.
paulostroff99 3 years ago
wow!!
lagnaha 3 years ago
......I thought to say something, but better skip it.....I will just say..."matchless perfection"....no other words can convey Flagstad's Liebestod.....
j72050 3 years ago
I don't think I've ever heard it taken this slow, but I suppose that's probably closer to how Wagner wanted it. Re: Flagstad vs. Nilsson, they both have incredible voices (obviously) and both had unsurpassed artistry. I have to confess that I'm not a big fan of the tempo here, so that's tainting my opinion. My ultimate favourite Liebestod is Norman/Karajan, but Flagstad must take a better seat by default since she recorded the whole opera, as opposed to Norman just recording the Liebestod.
papageno88 3 years ago
I surely wish that I could have been present when she sang. What beautiful music.......
john1937hum 3 years ago
Excellent sharing... Thanks...
JmaDeLapince 3 years ago
What a great voice! Her dark tone makes this piece even more emotional.
goodboi2002 3 years ago
Fantastic, sublime!!!!!!
operafan60 3 years ago
Now you are out of line, NonInflatable. Others may respect your right to have an opinion, but they ARE NOT obligated to respect the opinion itself or how it is expressed.
Also, no one is entitled to these video clips, which are made available to us all only at the pleasure of the clips' poster. It is classy of violinthief that he didn't erase or block your posts!
As for your way of thinking, if you can't take a thumb down vote on your comments, perhaps you shouldn't post them now, should you?
SDCmorg 3 years ago
I love the transcendence of Nilsson's Liebestod, the sublime excitement of Mödl's, the nearly touchable fire of Varnay, but in this aria Flagtad is the supreme interpreter. Her dignity, restrained and powerful expression, unique velvet and smoothness in a very large voice are qualities that haven't been reached till our days. Brava (as always)!
ygorcs88 3 years ago 2
You are so right. Flagstad's voice had a warmth, a feminine warmth if you will that is lacking in Nilsson's rendition, great though it was. I don't mean to compare; both were great great singers. Flagstad also manages to imbue her singing with the sadness, transcending into ecstasy, that puts the final touch of perfection on her interpretation of this music.
meinfb 3 years ago 3
I agree no point at all. However, listening to this I can understand why my parents rated her so highly. The clarity and power of her voice, the emotional content and above all the near perfect tuning in a live performance after 5 hours is just unbelievable.
bachlover99 3 years ago 2
Kirsten had perfect pitch...
AlexiouValenti 3 years ago
She needed it with all that damn chromaticism!
primohomme 3 years ago 2
Why compare Flagstad and Nilsson? There is no point in that. They were both unsurpassable.
Orfflevel2 4 years ago 10
Exactly!!!!
meinfb 3 years ago
Please, don´t forget Astríd Varnay. By the way, Waltraud Meiers "Mild und leise" on the Barenboim recording is a great example, that great singers still exist
WagnerNietzsche 3 years ago
I also like Christine Brewer...
yodavidnavarro 3 years ago
Wow, thanks for the info.
This must have been an unbelievable
Isolde performance. I think she
sings so musically, emotionally and
with such a strength in her vocal
technique.
DivaDeb
DivaDeb1234 4 years ago
Is this actually a LIVE recording of her on stage in the opera itself or in the recording studio?
Thanks
DIVADEB
DivaDeb1234 4 years ago
Speechless. Have heard several versions of this, but this is mesmerising. Controlled, dignified, yet absolutely beautiful.
Pathtith 4 years ago 4
Best Mild und leise I've heard. Bar none.
nibelungensohn 4 years ago
wow! this is as close to perfection as one could get.
rachmaninovbrahms 4 years ago
Suberb!
paulostroff99 4 years ago
The grandest voice of the 20th century, bar none (and that includes La Divina). Flagstad did not have to chew up the scenery to make an impact. Her voice, technique and classical bearing said it all. Her equal is yet to be discovered.
meinfb 4 years ago
Kirsten IS Isolde to this day. She conveys the trance that she is in. It is mesmerising.
Glenmed 4 years ago 2
Ihave a recording of the entire #rd Act of Die Walkuere at Covent Garden 1937 with Wilhelm Furtwaengler conducting. Oh yes, she still gives me goosebumps. Hail Brunnhilde!
petracic 4 years ago
What a voice and singer. She was still amazing into her sixties.
63Attila 4 years ago 2
my goodness that was beautiful
beunt 4 years ago
No equal.
jonsaintgermain 4 years ago
sublime. Which emotion...
marioj34 4 years ago
Flagstad is close to perfection. Her voice has a quality which differs from Birgit Nilsson´s. Both excell at Liebestod. Nilsson is pure bravura. Flagstad´s more tender and warm. Anyone close to them today?
all276 4 years ago 3
Nina Stemme is great. She knows what she sings about.
marokt 4 years ago
You seem to have confused this with the Nina Stemme Liebestod clip.
Liwah 4 years ago
The greatest voice I have ever heard! She outshines every Wagnersängerin, including Birgit Nilsson, in this unsurpassed interpretaion of Liebestod.
swe50 4 years ago
Have to differ with you regarding Nilsson. Flagstad has a very different voice and fantastic in its own regard, but the purity and power of Nilsson in this piece is simply without equal.
JackOstinato 4 years ago 3
Pure magic. Unsurpassed. I regret to say that she leaves Birgit Nilsson far behind, since Nilsson is our national treasure together with tenor Björling. Flagstad simply rules!
all276 4 years ago
Nilsson and Flagstad really are two unparalled forces of nature as Isolde. Both move me to tears, and that rarely happens to me with singers. This is the best version on Youtube, but I'd have to relisten to the Nilsson's studio recording with London Philharmonic to truely decide which is the definite one for me.
Luonnotar70 4 years ago
Wow.
deabvt 4 years ago
Kirsten has an innocence about her. A purity.
Birgit has more attitude.
Kirsten's more the Bach, Birgit the Beethoven, perhaps.
weepingforbrunnhilde 4 years ago 8
ISOLDE HERSELF"!!!NO INE MORE ELSE!!!!
Ankhsnammon(Nina)
Ankhsnammon 4 years ago
...History went thru thousands of dramatic sopranos till Flagstad came along, and conquered the universe....her and Nilsson are the greatest dramatic sopranos that ever lived.....Nilsson a farm girl raised on a farm, Flagstad didnt start serious opera till she was 40 and ready to retire from singing..the world almost missed her.......really a shocking turn of events in the lives of these Queens
j72050 4 years ago 3
"The world almost missed her."
What a chilling thought.
Like the world almost missing the Beatles.
Just inconceivable.
weepingforbrunnhilde 4 years ago
Actually Flagstad became acquainted with opera through her mother, a vocal coach, & often filled in lessons with her immature voice, then advanced to operetta, even some Verdi, but didn't do Wagner until in her 30s after she had studied with a Swedish vocal coach. Her father was a conductor, her mother a conductor & vocal coach ... she was so surrounded by music that she felt it was entirely natural.
floravesta 4 years ago
Flagstad is the greatest singer in the History of Music !!!
Johnny1206 4 years ago
violinthief.I fully agree with you,Just finished comparing the two,and they are in a class by themselves.Sometimes I find Birgit's voice a little too strong,but not in her performance of this work.She seemed to hold back a bit,and for this I give kudos to the great director.
paulostroff99 4 years ago
Breathtaking!
paulostroff99 4 years ago
Birgit was wonderful - my favorite Turandot and Elektra. But I prefer Flagstad's Isolde and other Wagnerian heroines. But it is a matter of preference - the golden voice of Flagstad versus the voice of steel of Nilsson. No one since has approached either. Incidentally, Flagstad was Birgit Nilsson's favorite singer.
violinthief 4 years ago
Wasn't Flagstad also Joan Sutherland's favourite singer? I haven't heard Nilsson's Elektra, but she is certainly my favourite Turandot (I would , however, like to hear Eva Turner's,) but I think I also prefer Flagstad's Isolde.
33blueberries 4 years ago
Yes, Flagstad was Sutherland's favourite singer. Flagstad was more successful than Nilsson (well, I think so) as Isolde because of her (Flagstad's) more romantic and softer-grained voice. She is wondrous throughout the performance this Mild und leise is extracted from.
Nilsson is unbelievable as Elektra. I don't think there is a role which suits her better.
VivaMariaCallas 4 years ago
Flagstad was Sutherland's favorite singer. But a close runner-up was Galli-Curci, whom Sutherland, early in her career, attempted to imitate by lightening her tone.
meltzerboy 2 years ago
Eleanor Steber also admired Flagstad greatly, I know, I asked her!
robertwbecker 2 years ago
I agree that no Wagnerian soprano since Flagstad has approached her or Nilsson, even Traubel, Modl, and Farrell, who were all superb. Melchior compared Flagstad and Traubel by likening Flagstad's voice to a diamond and Traubel's to a ruby. However, I think Frida Leider, contemporary of Flagstad's, was comparable to her in Wagnerian roles.
meltzerboy 2 years ago
i can only say that one has to put madame flagstad in a category of her very own.... outside all other sings.. when listening to her we are given something beyond singing really, beyong just amazing and best voice, etc, only with her i feel that something more than just singing or music is there.. see what i mean.. ? hope i expressed it ok.
brunotaddeo 4 years ago
where can I find English text?
tgm21234 4 years ago
A rock solid column of sound and one of the most stunning voices on records. To me, Flagstad's voice was the aural equivalent of a beautiful, pristine alpine lake.
janejones11 4 years ago
hörn das eigentlich nur enländer /amerikaner???
oder schreiebn alle auf enlisch ??
wenigstens versteh ich den text der oper :-PP
nellany14 4 years ago
Oh, amazing. It sounds so REAL when she does it, strong and expressive, but never perfumed. It's like she's an instrument to express the Highest Art, not to express herself.
Piacevole 4 years ago
Thank you so much. This is the ultimate.
scargo1013 4 years ago
glorious
55nina 4 years ago
The voice in it's absolute prime, in music, which she was born to sing!. Thank goodness.
lochness11 4 years ago
This is where Wagner began for me 50 years ago and it still sends shivers up my spine.
hardytmc 4 years ago
This is the standard by which all other Isoldes must be judged. Magnificent!
rawdonqueen 4 years ago
What you wrote was similar to Claudia Cassidy's review of the Flagstad / Furtwängler Tristan of 1952. It was the standard by which all other performances must be judged. Absolutely!
VivaRenata 4 years ago
The '52 Furtwangler Tristan is the best interpreted version. However, the Kleiber/Dresden is also outstanding, if you want hi-fi stereo, and Margaret Price makes a nice Isolde, in the recording studio at least. But for the greatest singing on record, it is this 1936 recording. Melchior has no rivals, ever, and Flagstad was at her absolute peak here as well. She held up and sang beautifully until her 60s, but her vocal prime is mid-to-late 1930s.
violinthief 4 years ago
I agree, violinthief. It is a shame that the Furtwängler Tristan wasn't recorded just a few years earlier. Blanche Thebom too was just past her prime. The sound on my computer isn't good enough to be sure - Is this from the Covent Garden 36-37 recording? It is truly amazing, especially the immediacy of Flagstad's voice.
VivaRenata 4 years ago
the worlds greatest wagner singer, listen how tight her trought is, they really were better before
cissih 4 years ago
Is this recording from the 30's or 50's?--some Flagstad expert please clarify. The heading above the photo inconsistent with the one below.
Mesmerizingly beautiful!
MrGuizot 4 years ago