[.ca] Wagner, Richard: Tristan Und Isolde

Amazon.com Essential Video:
Only Wagner could have penned an intimate opera that clocks in at over four hours (not including intermissions). But Tristan und Isolde, which contains some of the most stirringly emotional music ever composed, is merely a two-character romantic tragedy played out on a tremendously large scale; the ecstatic and prolonged vocal outbursts for its fatally attracted lovers have brought many an accomplished singer to career agony. In this 1999 presentation from the Munich Opera Festival, Jon Frederic West more than holds his own in the taxing role of Tristan, but it is German soprano Waltraud Meier who triumphs as Isolde. She's a fearless actress, sexy, sullen, resigned, and animated by turns, while vocally, she more than meets Wagner's near-impossible demands: her final "Liebstod" is simply thrilling. Zubin Mehta conducts a controlled, committed orchestral performance, and his accounts of the opera's preludes are marvels of restraint. Peter Konwitschny's kitschy staging does less harm on video than it probably did in person; the bright colors and trendy sets and costumes don't harm the work, but they don't illuminate it either. The sound is full and vivid, while the video looks terrific, helped by director Brian Large's genius for choosing exactly what to show to those watching at home. --Kevin Filipski

Miraculously bad.:
The back cover promises this performance of Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde" to be refreshingly controversial. Unfortunately, some people don't seem to realize that there is a difference between what is controversial and what is simply bad. Before I even get started, let's take a look at the performers themselves and some of the technical stuff: The setting, decoration and costumes are completely ridiculous. This is where the fine line between controversial and bad must be drawn. The lighting is okay but a bit bright. For some reason, all throughout Isolde's "mild und leise" we are graced by view upon endless view of her tongue, which appears to be purple. This was endlessly distracting. The sound is superb. Thank you. Tristan is played by Jon Frederic West, the worst tenor I have ever heard. He mispronounces just about everything. He sounds as though he's in tremendous pain when he sings. He almost never looks at Isolde, especially when singing, instead choosing to look--out into the audience, I guess. I saw him spit more than once. "So stürben wir um ungetrent," one of my favorites in all of opera, is completely ruined by his idiotic staring at whatever it is he finds so interesting in the audience, his terrible pronounciation, and complete lack of phrasing. Isolde is played by Waltraud Meier. She does a much more convincing job than West, and she can most certainly sing. Her acting is much better and, unlike West, she seems to be genuinely affected by the love potion. She is certainly one of the better things about this performance. Brangäne is played by Marjana Lipovsek. She has a good singing voice but her acting leaves a lot to be desired. Now for the performance. This is an absolutely terrible performance of one of my favorite operas. It is a disgrace to watch. Observe: The vorspiel, very nicely played if you don't mind the fact that the orchestra is never anywhere near Mehta's beat, ends and the curtain opens to reveal an amazingly bland white and blue set (the yacht--yes, yacht--is all white and the sky is blue). Isolde stands in what is probably one of the most terrible dresses I've ever seen, looking on. Brangäne is in a lounge chair, sipping from a cocktail glass (the potion is later served in a cocktail glass) and reading.. whatever it is, it looks stolen from a 70's disco. She wears a dress that is, in theory, even uglier than Isolde's but at least it's tastefully ugly. In walks the sailor who sings the opening, wearing a stereotypical white and black (dark blue?) sailor's uniform. He just walks in and stands there, singing and looking as though he feels that he just walked into the wrong room and staring at Isolde stupidly. At this point I closed my eyes until I heard this absolutely terrible tenor, opening my eyes to see what is apparantly Tristan, who has shaving cream on half of his face and is wearing this stupid purple velvet robe you would expect to see on a pimp. The second act.. look, I don't know where in the world Isolde and Brangäne are supposed to be, but it's an ugly smear of a whole lot of purple and a lot of ugly pastel colors. Isolde is still wearing the hideous dress but has a blue cape-thing over it. They do a pretty nice job until Isolde goes off to get the torch, which is.. what looks like a piñanta some junior high art class threw together. After she "puts out the torch" by throwing it off stage, she takes off the cape-thing and spreads it out on the ground to show that the it is covered with what looks like moons and stars. She squirms ecstatically upon this cape-thing until something is thrown out on stage and Tristan enters, howling away and still wearing that stupid purple velvet robe. They converse and Tristan walks off stage.. to push out into the middle of the stage this ugly yellow couch covered with red flowers. It is upon this couch that they sing the duet to the night. The third act goes by relatively tamely if you don't mind Tristan's terrible singing. The action proceeds as expected until Tristan "dies".. and then the next thing we know, Tristan and Isolde are standing there, holding hands! Then Tristan sits down on the stage and Isolde sings "mild und leise" to him. The aria ends and they join hands, walk off stage, and then the curtain opens to reveal two coffins. I guess this is supposed to be symbolism of some kind--that in death they "live on," so to speak, through their love. Whatever. It's a nice idea but looks completely ridiculous in how it's executed. Let's see. An idiot sailor who looks lost, some of the worst costuming ever, a pathetic Tristan, horrid sets, and.. that couch. Seriously, folks. It's one thing to be controversial and look at a piece in a new light, it's quite another to be completely tasteless and simply very very very bad. Thank god I was able to rent this from my college's music library, for free, instead of wasting my money on it. What do I think? One star. Don't waste your money.

Wagner would roll in his grave!:
I have been all of my adult life involved in the production of Grand Opera and therefore am qualified to make this statement.... In regard to this production...BUY a CD instead....The whole scenic concept of Tristan is destroyed like an atomic bomb was dropped on it....To be very kind....For those of us, who have over the years, seen the romantic productions...This one is a waste of money and time....The works were written to fit within a time epoch...The music, Libretto, and the presentation were outlined by the composers as to production values as well as musical values ( especially this composer ), The set designer must be one of the young brats that wouldn't know romanticism if he were clobbered over the head with it...There's more to Opera than just singing and orchestra music... Here's good advice......Steer Clear of This Production if Eye Candy is as important to you as well sung portrayals of characters and good orchestral presentation....

for the love of the work...:
i was very blessed to have seen this work live - in fact, the very performance here on DVD. Having hitherto never seen T & I before, i was a clean slate, i knew by beloved old teacher and mentor in opera-tickets strongly reacted against it, thought it to be trivializing... but then: epiphany and revelation. of the almost 50 operas i have seen live (not bad for a young chap), this would be the single most worthy event so far! Nevermind that the singing, save for J.F.West, who is trying his best, is the best in modern-day Wagner (Meier, perhaps the greatest Kundry of all times, makes Isolde her unlikely best role), with support from the great Moll(!), Weikl(!) and Lipovsek(!)). Mr. Konwitschny, not a young rebell rouser as some reviewers had suspected, but Germany's currently most respected Wagner-expert for the stagings, on par with David Alden, for sure, creates a wonderful, wonderful first act (immediately connecting, perhaps a little to 'cheap' upon digestion? - i still love it), a witty second act (which did not impress me when i saw it, but now i do appreciate it a bit more) and a SUBLIME third act. never have the EXACT feelings and intangible flavours of the setting been better and LESS obstrusively and intrusively been told, than in this production. Surprise? perhaps... but if one does not EXPECT a certain set, it is extremely subtle, because it is so effective. psychologically a masterpiece. Imagine the Castle of Tristan, kept together as best as the townspeople could, in honour of their beloved but long-gone king... and now he was returned to the existent, if slightly run-down home: over the corner you see the inside of a pale gray barren room. a window, underneath a heating unit and a bucket. language could not say more. Tristan languishes, ill, in memories of his childhood: on a lazy-boy of sorts, reclined, in his right hand the button for the: SLIDE projector, projecting unto the wall: pictures of his childhood. Tristan with family dog at the sea, tristan with mother and aunt etc.... - brilliant underscoring the story-line in a meaningful way. it was a joy! to be sure, the staging is subject to lively debate, my old professor who helped bring me to opera as much as anyone, for example, hates it. the first act features a white cruise-liner, isolde and brangaene are sipping cocktails on their yellow-white lined lounge chairs. tristan does not offer his sword later in that act, but, while shaving, places his shaving knive in her hand. purists might balk... but i found it missing nothing and supplying everything. but even if staging is secondary - and you don't mind the less than brilliant conducting by reliable zubin mehta, this set is worth getting for the voice of waltraud meier as isolde alone. it shan't be regretted. i'd even go so far as to say that to me this is the vision of wagner exactly: the perfect GESAMTKUNSTWERK.

Perplexing production:
I found this production of Wagner's great music drama to be perplexing to the extreme. The direction is really obscure, and it does nothing to highlight the emotion of the drama or the subtleties of the plot. The staging is also unatmospheric and confusing. Meier is a good but slightly under-powered Isolde. West's Tristan is not on the same level, his singing often off-pitch and ugly. Lipvosek is miscast as Brangaene. The other roles are merely adequately taken. The orchestral playing is rather lifeless, too. A rather disappointing production.

Beautiful Tristan and young Tristan:
Very exciting production in the musical thing. Good interpreters and a not genial master but expert and knowledgeable of the secrets of the musical theatre, conductor Zubin Mehta. The production of the Opera of Munich is slightly shrill in the use of hot colors that counter laughs the moments by night like it is the Act II, and slightly nobly in the freedoms with the libretto (waiter with drinks instead of the sailor of the beginning Act I and ambulant sofa forthwith the Act II). Nevertheless, it does not betray the fundamental thing and the solution of the end is adapted to the character of the music and text. They are the interpreters those who motivate passions. The Isolda de Waltraud Meier is simply perfect. When the King Marke goes to her indicating her " nobility and sublime grace ... " she wears shoes wonderfully with his "look". Initially her voice is not heard well, but seemingly it is a problem of microphones because her voice and singing refulgen in the party with her woman's transfiguration hurt to immaterial lover. The Jon Fredric West's Tristan is seemingly very young, an almost a teenager, though he is taller than his Isolda, with what he does not stay in scenic disadvantage. He solves with valor all his singing, and seems to be miraculous that works out alive of the great monologue of the act III. An ovation is gained well-deservedly. The performance of the lovers is good and captivating. The King Marke de Kurt Moll is surprising because this veteran sings to any voice with pain and bonhomie as his personage. The Kurwenal and Brangaene make the work with rigor and good singing, nevertheless it is disappointing in case of Weikl, with his caché and experience (he intervened in the recordings of Karajan and Bernstein), his little strengthen in the scenic and facial performance. Brian Large's direction is like always, commits an outrage against the details developers and the first planes, without forgetting the global spectacle. The sound, marvellous.