Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Tannh�user, opera, WWV 70: Act 3. Allm�cht'ge Jungfrau
2. Wesendonk Lieder, songs (5) for voice & piano (or orchestra), WWV 91: Der Engel
3. Wesendonk Lieder, songs (5) for voice & piano (or orchestra), WWV 91: Stehe still!
4. Wesendonk Lieder, songs (5) for voice & piano (or orchestra), WWV 91: Im Treibhaus
5. Wesendonk Lieder, songs (5) for voice & piano (or orchestra), WWV 91: Schmerzen
6. Wesendonk Lieder, songs (5) for voice & piano (or orchestra), WWV 91: Traume
7. Siegfried, opera, WWV 86c: Act 3. Ewig war ich
8. Die G�tterd�mmerung (Twilight of the Gods), opera, WWV 86d: Prologue. Zu neuen Taten, teurer Helde
9. Die G�tterd�mmerung (Twilight of the Gods), opera, WWV 86d: Act 2. Helle Wehr! Heilige Waffe!
10. Die G�tterd�mmerung (Twilight of the Gods), opera, WWV 86d: Act 3. Starke Scheite schichtet mir dort

Disc 2:

1. Orfeo ed Euridice (Italian version), opera in 3 acts, Wq. 30: Act 3. Che far� senza Euridice?
2. Dido and Aeneas, opera, Z. 626: Act 3. Thy hand, Belinda ... When I am laid in earth
3. Ein Traum (A Dream), song for voice & piano, Op. 48/6
4. Tak for dit r�d (Thanks for the Advice), song for voice & piano, Op. 21/4
5. Fra Monte Pincio (From Monte Pincio), song for voice & piano, Op. 39/1
6. Guten (The Youth), song for voice & piano, Op. 33/1
7. Eros, poem for voice & piano, Op. 70/1
8. Ved Rondane (At Rondane), song for voice & piano, Op. 33/9
9. Tristan und Isolde, opera, WWV 90: Act 2. Doch nun von Tristan
10. Tristan und Isolde, opera, WWV 90: Act 2. O sink hernieder, Nacht der Liebe
11. Tristan und Isolde, opera, WWV 90: Act 3. Mild und leise wir er l�chelt

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65985 in Music
• Released on: 2005-04-26
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: .25 pounds

Album Description
Details TBA. EMI. 2005.

Customer Reviews

A VOICE WITHOUT EQUAL


Kirsten Flagstad was a wonder of nature. At the time of her Met debut on February 2nd, 1935 (a Met broadcast of "Die Walkure", in which she sang the role of Segliende), she was hailed as the greatest soprano voice ever to appear on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera. She ruled the Wagnerian repertoire at the Met until the end of the 1940-1941 season, at which time she returned to Norway to wait out World War II. When the war ended, she was accused of being pro-Nazi (which she was NOT), and suffered a lot of indignities from which she should have been spared. Her magnificent voice, however, was, if anything, even grander and more opulent than it was before. It was during these post-war years that these EMI recordings were made in London, directed by Walter Legge, who later went on to make legendary recordings with his wife, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, and finally, Maria Callas. Virtually every item presented in this 2 disc EMI set is extraordinary, and there is no way one can take the time to explore all of the items presented here. This is a wonderful compilation, most of which, of course, comprises Wagner. Flagstad had a massive dramatic soprano that could open floodgates of sound like no soprano until the arrival of Birgit Nilsson. Both of them stand as the greatest dramatic sopranos of the Twentieth Century. For anyone who wants to know why Kirsten Flagstad is recognized as the legend she truly is, they need this recording. What is equally amazing is that after she left EMI and retired, she signed an exclusive recording contract with London/Decca, for whom she continued to record (by now in stereo) until she became ill in 1959. Amazingly enough, her voice, while taking on a more mezzo-like autumnal hue, continued to be a shining and spectacular instrument. London/Decca really need to re-issue these recordings, most of which are truly amazing. This was a voice that still resounds, and one which refuses to be forgotten.

THE voice
Flagstad's voice was unique, and no other has ever equaled it for sheer beauty, power, magnificence. If you've never heard this phenomenon, please listen. You will be overcome.