Which Das Rheingold...

[MN Dave]

Let me know if you need more info on the recordings. Thanks!

[MN Dave]

I only voted for Haitink because I couldn't see the poll results unless I voted. 

Maybe this thread belongs on the Opera board. 

[Dancing Divertimentian]

That's quite an eclectic list!

Which Furtwängler Rheingold is this? I've heard both his La Scala and RAI. The RAI is in better sound.

The Krauss has some fans but I'm one of those who can't stomach the disastrous orchestral perspective. Much too distant to adequately support the voices, which themselves are fairly well recorded.

One thing I would caution you on is the origins of these recordings. All but two - EMI and Etcetera - are pirates, which means (by definition) substandard sound, questionable pitches, poor presentation, and almost no annotation. And forget about a libretto (if you want one ). (I'm going under the assumption that Etcetera is the label I'm thinking of: the Dutch independent).

I do know that Haitink's Ring (or his Siegfried, at least) is pretty good as long as you avoid anything with Marton, as her Brünnhilde is so wobble-filled it completely wrecks everything. But Rheingold is Brünnhilde-free and the rest of the singers are respectable enough, so Haitink's Rheingold might make a good bargain.

[MN Dave]

That's quite an eclectic list!

Which Furtwängler Rheingold is this? I've heard both his La Scala and RAI. The RAI is in better sound.

The Krauss has some fans but I'm one of those who can't stomach the disastrous orchestral perspective. Much too distant to adequately support the voices, which themselves are fairly well recorded.

One thing I would caution you on is the origins of these recordings. All but two - EMI and Etcetera - are pirates (though maybe not Gebhardt), which means (by definition) substandard sound, questionable pitches, poor presentation, and almost no annotation. And forget about a libretto (if you want one ). (I'm going under the assumption that Etcetera is the label I'm thinking of: the Dutch independent).

I do know that Haitink's Ring (or his Siegfried, at least) is pretty good as long as you avoid anything with Marton, as her Brünnhilde is so wobble-filled it completely wrecks everything. But Rheingold is Brünnhilde-free and the rest of the singers are respectable enough, so Haitink's Rheingold might make a good bargain.

Ah, thanks, Don! All that information certainly helps.

The Furtwangler is La Scala.

[Dancing Divertimentian]

The Furtwangler is La Scala.

One thing about this La Scala Ring, for some reason, it's never really gotten a first-rate transfer job by any of the truly professional historical labels. The closest it's come is on Music & Arts, which is a very good historical label in its own right but doesn't always have access to direct sources for its transfers. As a result, M&A will sometimes lag behind some of the premier historical labels when it comes to sound. But M&A definitely has its niche as quite often it's the only place to find valuable historic material.

So if you can find a Music & Arts copy of this La Scala Ring (long OOP) that's probably your best bet as far as sound (though I believe it's available only as a set). Otherwise one pirate label is probably as good as another in this particular instance.

[MN Dave]

Thanks again, Don. Much appreciated!

[Dancing Divertimentian]

Thanks again, Don. Much appreciated!

Pleasure, Dave!

[MN Dave]

I went with the Furtwangler for now. Now to find a libretto.

[uffeviking]

If it's still in print, you can get the libretto for the entire Der Ring des Nibelungen from Piper-Schott. Maybe Powell's has it. Of course if you want an English translation of Wagner's text, then you have to look somewhere else; the Schott is in the original German. 

[MN Dave]

If it's still in print, you can get the libretto for the entire Der Ring des Nibelungen from Piper-Schott. Maybe Powell's has it. Of course if you want an English translation of Wagner's text, then you have to look somewhere else; the Schott is in the original German. 

Thanks. Yes, I need it in English. There's one online I can use.

[op.110]

None.

[marvinbrown]

None.

  I agree!  I was never a big fan of historical recordings of the Ring. I used to own the Furtwangler RAI but have since sold it.  I found the poor sound quality and even worst brass section quite annoying- it took away a lot of the pleasure of listening to Wagner's epic masterpeice.  Your best bet is to invest in the Solti Ring- mindblowing!

  marvin

[MN Dave]

  I agree!  I was never a big fan of historical recordings of the Ring. I used to own the Furtwangler RAI but have since sold it.  I found the poor sound quality and even worst brass section quite annoying- it took away a lot of the pleasure of listening to Wagner's epic masterpeice.  Your best bet is to invest in the Solti Ring- mindblowing!

  marvin

Yes, I may get that one day.

[PerfectWagnerite]

Yes, I may get that one day.

What an odd list. You have a penchant for pirated recordings? Everyone except Haitink is a pirate which means terrible sound. Haitink isn't great either but at least he more or less presents the music in a straightforward manner although there is nothing remotely exciting about his recording. I would say it is by default the best of the ones you listed because the rest is so sonically terrible.

But all in almost anything in stereo out there is preferable.

[marvinbrown]

Yes, I may get that one day.

   I agree with PerfectWagnerite that a stereo recording of the Ring is the way to go.  If you find the Solti Ring too expensive there are so many other studio recordings that you could go for. Sarge and PerfectWagnerite  can direct you to the best affordable ones to get as they have so many Ring Cycles!  Unfortunately I have only heard Solti and Levine.  I am not sure how familiar you are with Wagner's epic masterpiece but it runs well over 14 hours between all 4 operas.  I would seriously advise you to get a recording with excellent sound to truly appreciate the greatness of this work.  Also it is pointless to just buy Das Rheingold, that's like reading the first few chapters of a really great novel.  The Ring is supposed to be experienced as a whole integral peice.

  Best of luck in your hunt!
  marvin     

[MN Dave]

The recordings in the poll are what's available in iTunes Plus format. I don't buy anything in regular iTunes format...anymore.

I have to buy the whole Ring? Ugh. What if I don't like it? Oh, well. I'll figure it out...

[marvinbrown]

The recordings in the poll are what's available in iTunes Plus format. I don't buy anything in regular iTunes format...anymore.

I have to buy the whole Ring? Ugh. What if I don't like it? Oh, well. I'll figure it out...

  Oh well then in that case you'd better sample and see if you like what you hear!

  marvin

[MN Dave]

  Oh well then in that case you'd better sample and see if you like what you hear!

  marvin

I certainly enjoy the bleeding chunks. 

[bricon]

I was never a big fan of historical recordings of the Ring.............................
........................Your best bet is to invest in the Solti Ring- mindblowing!

  marvin

The Solti Rheingold was recorded 50 years ago; it is a historical recording!

[PerfectWagnerite]

If you are strapped for cash you might consider the Neuhold set which you can find on ebay from time to time for about $10-$15, for the whole Ring Cycle (yeah that's right) which has good sound and a pretty good performance. No it is not Solti or Levine but it will do.

I do think for Rheingold Solti is the way to go. I am not in love with his conducting but the recording is fabulous. Yes it is at times gimmicky (like the stupid trick with the Ring dropping on the pile of gold), but at it's best like transition to Nibelheim where there are 18 anvils of various sizes playing Solti can't be beat. You literally hear the anvils hammer away, building up to an unbearable fff, then die away. No recording even comes close to this respect.

Also you pretty much need stereo to hear Rheingold or any part of the Ring correctly. There is just so much detail in the score (like the 6 offstage harps in the Entrance of the Gods into Valhalla) that no mono recording can capture vividly.

Others I can recommend include Sawallisch, Levine, and Karajan (Rheingold is probably the best of Karajan's set). Levine you can find Rheingold separately from time to time on ebay or Amazon cheaply. Karajan maybe not and Sawallisch as far as I know is only available as a complete set although for only about $50-$60.