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The Wagner Collection
This is totally one of those cheap-ass classical CDs you find in bins everywhere, but don’t be fooled. It’s beautiful.
Main themes performed by different orchestras, like Alfred Scholz and the Philharmonia, or the Orquesta Y Coros De Varsovia, this is a riveting listen. I like Wagner a lot – it’s two worlds, powerful and delicate, elegant and rough.. you get the idea.
Tracks:
Tannhauser – Overture
Lohengrin – Act 1: Prelude
Rienzi – Overture
Overture “Das Lebesverbot” (Forbidden Love)
Overture “Faust”
Adam: Giselle – Adagio, Waltz
The Wagner Album
The Beam Me Up Scotty’s Series, Part 13/25 (2LP)
After finding that Wagner CD recently, I got the bug and wanted to hear more. This gatefold 2LP set covers a nice swath of Wagner’s work, and I got it for $2!
On this 1970 release, Eugene Ormandy conducts the Philadelphia Orchestra through some of Wagner’s biggest moments. It’s stunningly beautiful. Stirring and powerful, gentle and tender, always fascinating, the music of Wagner deserves full accolades. Real music like this earns our attention, so full of emotion and passion. Glory.
Tracklist
| A1 | Fest March From “Tannhäuser” (Entrance Of The Guests) | 6:50 |
| A2 | Prelude To “Lohengrin”, Act III | 3:23 |
| A3 | Magic Fire Music From “Die Walküre” | 7:00 |
| A4 | The Ride Of The Valkyries From “Die Walküre” | 4:59 |
| B1 | Overture To “Tannhäuser” | 14:48 |
| B2 | Prelude And Love-Death From “Tristan Und Isolde” | 16:30 |
| C1 | Prelude To Act III; Dance Of The Apprentices: Entrance Of The Meistersingers From “Die Meistersinger” | 12:45 |
| C2 | Prelude To “Die Meistersinger” | 10:00 |
| D | Siegfried Idyll | 15:28 |
Georg Solti – Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen (Great Scenes)
Not sure I needed to plunk for the full Wagner Der Ring des Nibelungen cycle, this Georg Solti (and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra) collection of orchestral excerpts from the great scenes was quite cheap, and it scratched my immediate itch to hear Wagner.
I’m not even an opera fan, but there’s no doubting the sincerity in the music. These renditions are wonderful. There’s a clarity to it all, and it’s incredibly powerful. Dammit, now I’m going to need the full thing.
