Hildegard Behrens: Brunhilde's Immolation (HD)

[windstorm1000]

Behren's is an ecstatic performance unmatched for its intensity and expresiveness. I cannot think of another portrayal in all of opera that matches Ms. Behren's Brunnhilde---perhaps Callas's Norma. P.S. i hope that explosion did not go off too close to where Ms. Behren's dropped!!

[windstorm1000]

Ms. Behren's is the IDEAL in this role. Nothing against Ms.'s Voigt & Jones--but Behren's pours herself, her whole heart into this the most sublime music of all time. 1 is left speechless as Brunhilde throws herself into the fire. The orch. alone takes up all the emotions pouring forth after 4 mightly operas. Musically, the listener gets the heart rending feeling of all that has transpired including the tragedy of lovers who just wanted to be together. We r left w a sublime glow.Wagner= Genius

[garfreed]

Incomparable!

[TheVoiceOfReason93]

Brunhilde: "Grane! My Steed!"

Other Vikings: "Yup, she's gone mad with grief"

[Ringreader]

A fitting farewell to a great soprano, the late, great Hildegard Behrens. Of all Wagner's Music Dramas, we die-hards never call them operas Gotterdammerung is the BEST and Levine's reading of the score is dead on and seeing the scheming Hagen the brilliant Matti Salminen trying to stop it all is priceless. "Zuruck vom Ring!"

[windstorm1000]

@Ringreader She is the best--the best.

[Ringreader]

@windstorm1000 She absolutely was and always will be in our heats forever. She lives on with the recordings and the DVDs.

[JackCaliber]

Well, what did you expect in opera? A happy ending?

[MaistreDe]

@JackCaliber That depends on your interpretation of the music/ text. You could say that this is the redemption of the world through love- hence the common name for the motif in the strings during/after the immolation. Remember Siegfried, Act III scene I? Wotan knew that Brünhilde would "Wachend wirkt dein wissendes Kind/ erlösendes Weltenthat" - "work the deed that would set free the world". Possibly the happiest ending to the Ring imaginable....

[JackCaliber]

@MaistreDe Well, I was just making a Looney Toons reference, but that's actually a pretty good point.

[MaistreDe]

@JackCaliber Thanks Doc :P

[RVP57]

The best Ring ever. Hadn't seen this in ages and it still destroys me.

[jewelmarkess]

@RVP57 Yes, totally agree, why oh why couldn't have the Met simply restored this one instead of changing it!

[windstorm1000]

@jewelmarkess That is more of a riddle than the sphinx!

[jewelmarkess]

@windstorm1000 These days there is a war on visual beauty. Also every director that doesn't transpose action to the Moon is criticized for not having "a concept". As someone said: the only good thing about "The Machine" in the current Met production that replaced this one is that it hasn't killed anybody yet. Yet it is better than what they do in Europe. But they wasted all that money on the new production and for what? Every time I hear "New Production" at the Met, I feel fear.

[windstorm1000]

@jewelmarkess the inmates are running the asylum!!

[jewelmarkess]

@windstorm1000 Yes, very true. At least the Met's new Ring is better than what Russians did with Ruslan and Ludmila - this was a real asylum that even made "Nabucco and the Bees" seem better. At least in new Met Ring there are no toilets, no bees, no naked people running around - thank god for small favors.

[windstorm1000]

@jewelmarkess I unfortunately did not watch the HD of Gott. here in Santa Fe this afternoon---listened to it on the radio. How did The Machine look? Like a canaster with film images on it I hear ( I will check out the MET web). Atleast, as you mentioned, not as offensive as ghetto and industral trash productions ala Chereau wanna be's. I'm not against innovation and I'm sure neither are you, but these new directors are against taste and watchability.

[jewelmarkess]

@windstorm1000 I've not seen the Gott. yet - couldn't make it to the Met for it (I live in the suburbs), and the HD was sold out; will try the Encore in movie theaters or wait for PBS. I was judging by Die Walk. last year and what I read. I bet there'll be more videos in the next few days. I think innovation but has to be limited by the libretto and not make it a joke; also not interfere with the music: I heard The Machine creaks and makes noises.

[LeRinkRat]

is this from the late 1980's Met Ring Cycle that was broadcast on PBS Great Performances back then?

I have the CD box set of the studio recordings that were produced back then with Levine conducting.  the late great Hilde Beherns sounds a bit "shrill" in this renditon which is too bad because she is one of the great Brunnhilde's of all time.

RIP, Hilde.

[cartoonist4x]

Hmmm... someone should do a heavy metal version of this WHOLE opera XD

[grandchapeau69]

love the tempo

[absmart]

The MET Orchestra is the only orchestra that can pull this off seamlessly, without any abruptness in the music. The violin parts for this section of the opera are basically unplayable, so the winds and brass basically take control for the bulk of the Immolation Scene. James Levine's and the MET Orchestra's interpretation, combined with Otto Schenk's production blow away the past Bayreuth productions (which basically ignore all of Wagner's stage directions). Unfortunately no Grane in either.

[absmart]

probably the best production in existence... Levine and the highly polished MET Orchestra make the awkward transitions of this nearly unplayable music flow seamlessly - this production is wonderful, and Hildegard Behrens is probably one of the best Brunnhildes in existence. This biased opinion of a hefty, deep voice for this part must be given a rest. Absolutely Beautiful.

[angryjalapeno]

@absmart you're a shill.

[absmart]

@angryjalapeno A shill? Hardly. Just a professional violinist who knows what he's talking about from years of experience. I've played this opera nearly 20 times, with a few conductors, and none have achieved this seamless nature - most charged right through this end bit at a nearly unplayable tempo, which is the "easy way out." The beauty of Levine is his attention to the most difficult thing a conductor must do: transition from section to section. A shill. Why would you even say that?

[angryjalapeno]

@absmart, I'm sorry, I should not call you a shill. Yes the staging is awesome but I am not liking this Brunnhilde's balloon singing at all and the orchestra's low energy playing. Most people don't care if some notes are blurred because it's the whole effect that counts. It's supposed to be bombastic at the end; this playing sounds more appropriate for some teen romance afterschool special. To declare this is best in existence is just not believable.

[MaistreDe]

@angryjalapeno OK then, post a link to a better one....

[angryjalapeno]

@MaistreDe not exactly fair since this is a studio setting but youtube.com/watch?v=146tTKSXu7­s

[HerrWagnerfreund]

O my goodness. A Jew is the conductor and a guy called Jerusalem plays Siegfried. Wagner would really enjoy that...

[OperaMystery80]

@HerrWagnerfreund But Wagner himself knew many Jewish conductors who conducted his operas and concert pieces during his own lifetime. I don't think he was anti Semitic. He was just jealous of the success of Meyerbeer at a time when he was struggling. The real Anti Semite was his wife Cosima, who told Gustav Mahler "If you wanna conduct for me in Vienna or Bayreuth, stop being Jewish and convert to Christianity/Catholicism".

[windstorm1000]

@OperaMystery80 Cosima was half Jewish herself!!!!! She must have hated herself!!

[OperaMystery80]

@windstorm1000 It's very possible and true. There were (and are) people who dislike the race or social class they were born into. It's well known that Cosima was strongly anti Jewish. Whenever there was a fierce anti Semite in those days usually they made up fake Aryan ancestry and hid their Jewish side. Hitler himself was part Jewish and was also another self-hating Jew.

[lewars1912]

@OperaMystery80 You said that Shitler, or rather Hitler was part Jewish. There's no reliable evidence whatsoever for this. None.

[OperaMystery80]

@lewars1912 So why did he have skin that was not white (it was BROWN) and dark hair and dark eyes and he did not look German or Aryan. He wanted a master race of blondes with blue eyes and white skin but he did not look like that. If he wasn't Jewish, and he wasn't German what was he then???? Who were his ancestors and great grandparents, somewhere along the genealogical line he had Jewish family. Many people back then had Jewish family but kept it a secret.

[Brideshead09]

Where have productions like this gone?

[achim56nrw]

Siegfried Jerusalem as Siegfried. Maestro Jerusalem lives in my hometown Nuremberg/Bavaria and a friend of mine was his secretary at the music conservatory.

[achim56nrw]

This interpretation and this stage design are brilliant and wonderful. I cannot watch it without weeping.

[notruf34]

Maravillosa y espléndida sí, sin lugar a dudas. Pero si me lo permiten nadie ha superado a la catalana Caballé en el papel de Salomé. Es sencillamente fastuosa y su interpretación una invitación al pecado. Es la tentación hecha arte!

[falcoluminoso]

Meraviglioso!!!!!!!!

Brunilde è fantastica

Maestro Wagner la sua musica è immortale

falcoluminoso

[katharinehoad123]

All voices are different, and quite honestly parts of Brunhilde are almost too taxing

for any human being........... I wonder if any of you have sung or attempted to sing

..this role ?! I take my hat off to anyone who has ........ artists are here for such a fleeting time...... and we should

applaud and not denegrate those who have taken up the challenge.....Many singers now "play it safe"... one has to make sacrifices and be a vocal athlete....

the demands are high all ways round..

[OperaMystery80]

@katharinehoad123 Yes those of us who critique her can't sing Brunhilde but she can't either! This is not Brunhilde. She sings this as if it was Mozart. Her voice is much too small and light. She was also too old when she began singing Wagner (50). I don't know how Behrens got away with it singing such demanding heavy dramatic roles as Salome, Isolde and Tosca when her voice was basically as light weight as Beverly Sills

[nikodemus7777]

@OperaMystery80 That´s absolutely correct!

[OperaMystery80]

Production: excellent. Spectacular special effects true to Wagner's original & Norse mythology regarding the Gotterdammerung (end of the world) consumed by fire & water. The Met Opera Cycle under James Levine with James Morris, Jessye Norman & Behrens was wonderful to see. Behrens: small voice unqualified for Brunhilde. She sings this as if it was a lyric soprano role when it's a heavy dramatic calling for a bigger voice. She has trouble singing it and at 50 plus she wasn't right for it.

[Ringreader]

I didn't get the news of her death until two days ago believe it or not. Ruhe, ruhe, ruhe du Walkure, you are missed. Seeing the wrecked and burning Valhalla in this Met production slays me along with Wagner's great music.This is the type of production Wagernians want to see not Euro trash. This is beautiful. Brunnhilde sleeps.

[elholandeserrante73]

La Obra de Arte Total, por donde se le mire.

[maria4gerard]

heehee "Feel My Bosom" :P

[SiegfriedNYC]

The Beatles answered what Wagner would have wanted, during the Cirque de Soleil presentation of their work. Paul and Ringo both said they were delighted that people were changing the music and presenting it differently, keeping it alive. That is what Wagner would have wanted: keeping it alive.

[cfcantavero]

The Ring seems to me the Olympics of Opera, and few are able to attain the bar that Wagner set for it...There are the quintessential Brünnhildes from days gone by and surely it will be debated for years to come who owns the role...having said that, Behrens succeeds in her singular way to make the role her own.

[wenarto]

whoah....thanks

[windstorm1000]

message to stevtomato: because its in the Ring libretto--detailed time periods, costumes, etc. You obviously don't know about Wagners librettos or read any of his writings. Having a hippie/techno Ring was not what Wagner would have wanted.

[windstorm1000]

Excellent!! The MET"s production is the BEST--better than Bayreth with its pseudo 'Ring' productions of transvestite Rhine maidens, Wotan clowns, and god awful techno sets. This is REAL. This is ANCIENT--Its MAGICAL--this is how WAgner intened his libretto to be staged. And yet it still has a timeless feel. I only worry that the new MET Ring might be Chereau flavored...new yorkers please tell me differently! Behrens is immortal!!

[stevtomato]

@windstorm1000 so why is ancient = good? And how'd you know what Wagner wanted if he were alive today? God knows what he'd want.

I love his production btw!

[Purine100]

歌とキャスティングはおいておいて、このラストシーンの舞台演出­は素晴らしい。モダンアートを気取って安っぽい独りよがりな演出­が多い中、この舞台は脚本に忠実に王道を行った。今まで見た中で­最高の舞台演出だが、欲を言えば焼け落ちているのはヴァルハラだ­ということを筋の分からない観客にももっとはっきりと分かるよう­にすればもっと完璧になると思う。カメラのズームアップのせいで­、はじめは岩の上を石が数個転がっているのかと誤解したが、人間­の頭だった。そういった点でマイナスをつけても十分良い出来だっ­たと言える。舞台がそこまで良いのだから、衣装もなんとかならな­かったのだろうか。勘違いの多くの舞台作家よりはそれでもずっと­マシだけど。あとは個人的にこのソプラノはブリュンヒルデに見え­ない。ただのおばさんに見える。演技の力量が足りないのか、それ­とも私の偏見だろうか。

[zaq321321]

The best Brunnhilde of the last years is performed by Jeanine Altmeyer

in the BMG recording of 1983 (Marek Janowski). Outstanding studio version

in my opinion with a pure and clear sound.

[wagnerviolist]

@rlane91 You posted that 18 hours ago. Miss Behrens died one year ago,you talk as if you don kown that. You need to appreciate her art for her sake, not yours.

[Operaman41]

@AmericanEvita I agree with you 100% the sound is too thin!! I want a hearty if not a fatt sound and some weight to it like a TRUE Wagnerian is supposed to have!!!

[IndianKBlue]

Nice. Nice to get a properly synced and quality version of this. Hildegard, shown here past her prime, did such a great job with the role. Way too underestimated in the constant, asinine Nilsson comparisons.

And that stage production is truly amazing. What a show!

[downtown1961]

The Metropolitan opera production that premiered in 1989. It was superb. I saw Gotterdammerung at least 15 times in this production.

[natashkk]

Pls pls tell more details about this staging!!! Where and when was this staged??? I think it's one of the best stagings i've ever seen!!

[Yaamoesje]

@natashkk: it's the Metropolitan Opera and was staged around 1989 :-)

[cascat25]

Excelente final, nadie como Hildegard excelente brunilda en este ciclo del anillo, y de hecho todo el ciclo del metropolitan de ese año fue espectacular...esperando con ansias el proximo ciclo en 2011 0 12 no recuerdo.

[MastersoftheOpera]

Great special effects - all that smoke!! And nice underwater shots of the Rhinemaidens ...beautiful ending

[MastersoftheOpera]

Hildegard Behrens's operatic roles are intelligently performed, with attention to character & I have loved her Salome, Isolde, Tosca & Elettra from Mozart's Idomeneo. Nonetheles, as brilliant as her solid acting is, her voice is frankly too small & light for the heavy soprano repertoire. This is however a beautiful production & her Brunhilde is good, just too dainty for sound.

[Luiyi385]

¡ Undoubtedly the most sublime part of any Opera ever composed !

[WotansSpeer]

Behrens' Brünnhilde is one of the most exciting. Fantastic!!!

[rickmcn1986]

wow, that version looks fantastic.... the box set of the ring I have is the kupfer/barenboim version from bayreuth, 1992, and although it is very good in many places, the end of gotterdamerung is really terrible, I think I spent my money on the wrong version.

[Darjaius]

¿Hildegard era la mejor soprano que ha existido para el repertorio de Strauss y Wagner?

mi opinion sincera es que si...

Ninguna electra, ninguna brunilda, ninguna isolda y ninguna salomé seran lo mismo sin ella...

[niallguinan]

RIP Hildegard Behrens.

[conradjulian]

The Precious isn't yours, Hagen. It belongs to the Rhine Maidens.

[31micho]

love Hagen/Salminen's face when she starts singing to a horse that isn't there :D

[TheWisemonkey8]

Yes this is a wonderful performance... i have the DvD set... love it... watch the cycle about every six months or so... make room over a weekend for it... lots of chocolate and food!

[Jaydoggy531]

Has there ever been a more perfect staging in terms of effects, scenery, and costumes to resemble everything in the script?

[longlifeluke]

MAGNIFICO! O_O'

[JeeRant]

Breathtaking. Behrens' voice is clearly worn out at this point, but she's riveting as always.

I love this production - I just finished watching it!

[downtown1961]

LIke bribon5, I too am in tears over our loss. Liebwohl! The fire between her and Morris in Walkure will never die in my memory.

[TheTristan1954]

Indeed das letzte Lebewohl we will miss her

[bribon5]

You gave more than any other artist on the stage. Like Wotan and with tears in my eyes I only can say to you: Leb wohl, du kühnes, herrliches Kind! Du meines Herzens heiligster Stolz! Leb wohl! Leb wohl! Leb wohl!

[sirmercutio99]

This is from the Met broadcast on PBS. I remeber seeing it if it is. The ring was the first opera I've ever scene. (My first live was Il Trovatore in '96 at the Atl opera.) I can't believe I was 14 and watched the whole opera and was glued to my TV.

[dseanmat]

Thank you for posting this, one of the most transcendent moments in the history of opera. Sheer poetry from start to finish!

[symyu]

behrens! when is this? tnx

[eez72]

I saw this production at the Met when I was 17 (I think), which makes it from 1989.

[polar24]

Amazing. Every time I listen to the ending I get goosebumps. If you've sat through the entire 4.5 hours its such a fitting ending to the cycle and this is a classic production. Oh, and the winds! I love how the winds get that last sustained note - a really beautiful warm rich sound.