No: 215 October 2014 Wagner news Number 215 October 2014 CONTENTS

4 Wagner Society Committee Meeting: 15 th July 2014 Andrea Buchanan

5 Richard Wagner Verband International Congress report Andrea Buchanan

6 Opera North Götterdämmerung on Radio 3 Bill Bliss

6 Opera North Götterdämmerung : Being There Roger Lee

8 Opera North Götterdämmerung at Leeds Robert Mitchell

10 Zoe South: Wesendonck Lieder Irene Richards

11 in Salzburg Hilary Reid Evans

12 The Norwich Wagnerfest 2014 Paul Dawson-Bowling

14 and Tannhäuser in Norwich John Crowther

18 The Ring Plays Andrea Buchanan

19 The Ring Plays Katie Barnes

22 Rachel Nicholls Après le Déluge recitals at Aldeburgh Katie Barnes

23 Dame /Rachel Nicholls Aldeburgh Masterclass Katie Barnes

26 Meistersinger at Saffron Walden Paul Dawson-Bowling

29 News from Seattle Roger Lee

30 In the next issue of Wagner News

31 Wagner Society Contacts

32 Forthcoming Events Peter Leppard

Cover picture: Twilight of the Gods at The Ring Plays event. See: pages 18 to 21 Photo: Sheila Burnett Printed by Rap Spiderweb – www.rapspiderweb.com 0161 947 3700 A WORD OF THANKS Sir John Tomlinson

Photo: Simon Jay Price, Royal Philharmonic Society

It was a total surprise to receive the July edition of Wagner News with its quite overwhelming succession of such generous expressions of appreciation in response to my receiving the Royal Philharmonic Society gold medal recently. That award is in itself indeed a great honour, but the words written as a result of it have for me been of even greater significance: heart-warming, moving, and in fact hugely invigorating. And vigour is a very important commodity! Let me quote one of Stuart Pendred’s lines: “he cares about the world of music to which he has given so much and which indeed has given him much in return.” Yes it’s true, I have dedicated my working life to music, opera and singing and I continue to do so, but my goodness, my exertions have been amply rewarded with the joy of being deeply involved in the rehearsal and performance of great music, and particularly great music- dramas. And in addition I receive medals and praise! I count myself very fortunate indeed. My warm thanks to Stuart, Katie, Mark, Rhonda, Humphrey, Magda, David and Paul (incidentally, it’s good to see that the argument over the Richard Jones ROH Ring of the 1990s shows no sign of abating!). With love to you all, John Tomlinson –3– FROM THE COMMITTEE Notes from the meeting held in London on July 15 th 2014 Andrea Buchanan, Secretary

Apologies for absence were received from Richard Miles, Peter Leppard, Roger Lee, Charlie Furness Smith and Edward Hewitt. Agenda items included the following: 1 Approval of minutes and new members. Notification of membership numbers. These had fallen considerably. Additionally several members had underpaid for the current year and had not yet rectified the situation, despite several reminders. A discussion was also held regarding the membership renewal process for next year. It was agreed that fees would not be increased. 2 Budget update and Treasurer’s report. The April, May and June management accounts were approved and would be made available on the website for members to read. Careful management of spend would still be required for the rest of the financial year. Various administrative items, such as the ballot payments and the need to ensure that Gift Aid claims were up-to-date, were discussed as a result of the Treasurer’s report. 3 The Committee would meet to discuss strategy and ideas for the future in the autumn and would also begin work on the 2015 budget before the next regular Committee meeting (in September). 4 Singing Competition update. The Secretary reported on progress and various outstanding options were discussed and decided. It had been confirmed that Eva Wagner-Pasquier would attend and the President was being invited. Sir John Tomlinson would also attend as a guest.

REVIEWER(S) REQUIRED FOR LINCOLN CATHEDRAL CONCERT On 27 th September the following programme was performed by the Hallé Orchestra conducted by Mark Elder: Vaughan Williams: Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus Tchaikovski: 5th Symphony Wagner: Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan und Isolde . The soloist in the last item is described in Radio Times as “Wagnerian soprano Rachel Nicholls”. I would be very glad to hear from anyone who may feel able to report the Wagner performance for our readers.

Roger Lee [email protected]

–4– RICHARD-WAGNER-VERBAND INTERNATIONAL Brief report from the Board Andrea Buchanan

The new board of the RWVI which was elected at the Congress in Graz in May this year is getting down to work and some interesting changes and developments are in the air.

The new President, Thomas Krakow, convened a strategy and team-building meeting in Schloss Ermlitz, outside Leipzig, in late July. Most of the board members attended, with many of these paying their own way.

The team held two days of intensive, open and frank discussions and a number of key issues were addressed. These were, broadly, as follows:

• Membership: Some Societies have not yet paid their membership fees for the current and previous years and the task of ascertaining whether they still wish to belong is underway. In addition each Board member present was allocated responsibility for a number of regional Societies. This responsibility will entail developing and maintaining meaningful contact with these Societies

• Bayreuth: The RWVI wishes to raise its profile during the Stipendiaten (scholarship holders) days in Bayreuth and ways of doing this were discussed.

• Relationship-building: The RWVI board seeks to improve its relationships with key counterparties and various initiatives were discussed in this regard.

• Finances: These appear to be healthy. The new Treasurer is settling in well and has kept the Board well informed of the situation.

• Future Congresses: The possibility of holding a congress in Bayreuth was mooted and other suggestions were evaluated.

• Website: Various proposals for developing and maintaining the site in future were discussed. The present webmaster, who is going a wonderful job, cannot continue beyond October.

In addition to the formal discussions the Board were given the opportunity to get to know one another better and to explore the various talents and skills that the members bring to the table. There was an excellent spirit of co-operation and a strong desire to serve the Wagner community to the best of our ability.

The next Board meeting will be held in Frankfurt in mid October and there the real work will begin!

–5– OPERA NORTH GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG ON RADIO 3 Recorded at Leeds Town Hall on 18 th June 2014 Bill Bliss Sometimes productions of Wagner’s operas are better heard than seen. They are certainly different, as my reading of the critics (mainly five star reviews) and listening to a recording on Radio 3 tell me. Opera North’s Ring has received wide acclaim and I am sure most of you will know of its semi-staged format with the singers on a long black strip in front of conductor and orchestra. The orchestral playing was of course superb, one or two brass fluffs just adding to the occasion and some accentuated slowing towards the end. But generally I thought that the singers were over-miked. The Norns felt far too close, unatmospheric and a shade squally. The Rhinemaidens (greatly praised by the critics) were also very much in your ear, too loud and not very watery. Siegfried was top of the bill (one does not often say that). Obviously Mati Turi is better heard than seen. A characterful Hagen and almost an overpowering Gunther. Alwyn Mellor has never ticked my box as Brünnhilde and her voice was just too small last night. (Bring on Rachel Nicholls!) But the worst performance of the evening was by the BBC itself. Radio Times gave us 5.30pm to 10.45pm with no hint of the timing or the length of the intervals. The Prelude did not start till 5.45 pm. We then had between-act intervals of 7 minutes and 8 minutes. A comfort break? A bite to eat? Time for a little reflection on one of the greatest music dramas ever written? No, just a few truly unremarkable words from a 19 th Century opera “specialist” and some mandatory spin from conductor and singers. The BBC has broadcast The Ring with ultra short intervals before and it seriously detracts from one’s enjoyment. If those at Leeds town hall can have an hour plus for dinner why cannot we at home have say 20 minutes for a sandwich and a call of nature? I hope to hear the full cycle in 2016, but without the help of the BBC.

OPERA NORTH GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG : BEING THERE Lowry Theatre Salford, 5 th July 2014 Roger Lee Unless the vocal performances at Salford were significantly better than those in Leeds, reading Bill Bliss’ account (above) makes me feel that there must indeed have been something lacking in the radio transmission. I found Alwyn Mellor’s performance, for example, to be characteristically magnificent and (as was abundantly clear from the stage calls) so did the Lowry Theatre audience. In fact both of the Mastersingers alumni: Lee Bisset as Third Norn as well as Alwyn Mellor, made one feel proud to have been associated with their development merely by being a member of the Wagner Society. As well as unmediated sound we also had the benefit of being able to see what was happening. As is so often the case for me, the “concert” performance turned out to be so much more enjoyable that most of the staged productions which I have seen. I was lucky enough to be in the front row and was thus able to enjoy the acting of the singers to the full as well as the many moments of theatrical genius of Peter Mumford who was responsible for “Concert Staging”.

–6– Of course it was no great surprise on our return from the first interval to find Hagen (Mats Almgren) already in place, sitting alone on the stage whilst sleeping through the Prelude. What happened as the orchestra played the introductory bars to Act II which follow Wagner’s instruction: “The curtain rises” caused the hairs on the back of my neck to rise rather than a non- existent curtain. First one ghostly hand and then another slid from the back over Hagen’s shoulders and down over his chest. Alberich (Jo Pohlheim) had been crouching invisibly behind his son all the time! I cannot imagine a more dramatic entrance at that point in Photo: Clive Barda for Opera North any mode of performance. I have been privileged to watch conductor Richard Farnes at work rehearsing the Opera North Orchestra in the course of this Ring and that experience informed me of much of the secret of what appears to be its universally acclaimed success. The performance which he brought out of the orchestra was the equal of any which I have heard this side of Bayreuth. The balance between orchestra and singers struck me as being exactly what it should be and, for all I know, the 50 plus Opera North Chorus probably performed to the same standard as principals and orchestra. But why was I left guessing at this point? If you can be assured that it is my intention that you receive this as essentially an enthusiastic, positive response to what I witnessed at Salford then I shall allow myself a singular harrumphing indulgence. I said that I was in the front row. In fact I was in Row 3 because the first two rows were empty. “Ha!” I thought: “I know why that is.” It has been my privilege on three or four occasions to take part in the chorus of Hagen’s Vassals. (Once as one of Stuart Pendred’s gang, in fact.) They are supposed to be a bunch of thugs. The singing can afford to be none too subtle (which presumably is why I have been allowed to join in) to the point of being rough at the edges. So those first two rows must have been for the Chorus. They would, no doubt, rise from those seats and turn to let the audience have it at close quarters. It was no real problem that they weren’t in place at the opening of Act II; no doubt they would swagger their way in at the start of their scene. But they didn’t. When the stierhorns sounded I prepared for those back-of-the-neck hairs to do their bit again. A disappointingly well-mannered Was tos’t das Horn? came, rather faintly, from somewhere, but I couldn’t tell where. It took me some time to work out that, far from confronting the audience from the stalls, the Chorus were behind the orchestra, in seats . They were thus battling to be heard against the might of a full-out orchestra blocking their delivery to the audience. They were also immaculately dressed in jackets and bow ties. For all the world it looked like a visitation from the Bach Choir. Harrumph! –7– OPERA NORTH GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG Grand Theatre Leeds, June 14 th and July 12 th 2014 Robert Mitchell It is second nature in regional German opera companies to mount cycles of . In this country it is rather exceptional. Outside the capital one thinks of Norwegian Opera's visit to Norwich in 1997 and the couple given by Scottish Opera in 1971 and more latterly. Its presentation used to be much more frequent in London. In the 50s and 60s two cycles per year at Covent Garden would be almost standard. Perhaps readers could enlighten me as to why Rings are so far and few between these days. So it was a great achievement when Opera North completed the cycle with a performance which held its own with the greatest company. Mr Farnes continued to lead the orchestra in fluent, unfrenetic fashion, saving his powder for the climaxes, which were the all the more shattering when they arrived. The orchestra excelled. Peter Mumford's production added to the impact of the story as it should, rather than detract from it as Ring productions are wont to do these days. The projections were excellent with the best ending I have ever seen as the Rhine overflows its banks. There is a projection of the Norns' rope which frays at exactly the appropriate moment. Wotan’s ravens Huginn and Muninn appear at Hagen's critical question in Act III. Act II is all brick enclosure, a symbol of Brünnhilde's entrapment? At the end of Act I Gunther appears, with Siegfried immediately behind him. This may seem like a good solution, until we remember Brünnhilde's “ das selbst durch die Lügengestalt leuchtend strahlte zu mir ”, where she realises in Act II (even if she hadn't before) that it was Siegfried under the Tarnhelm. Vocally this performance hit the high points. Alwyn Mellor sang Brünnhilde effortlessly and supremely, replacing the slimmer voiced Swedish counterpart from last year's Siegfried . People say that Nina Stemme is the top Brünnhilde today. Mellor is not far behind. Mati Turi sang Siegfried again in true heldentenor mode. He hits the top notes but doesn't sustain them, but this is a small price where everything else is perfect. Mats Almgren's Hagen would have been far more effective if he had dispensed with the Sprechgesang and sang with a little less vibrato. Susan Bickley's Waltraute was perfectly enunciated, and her “ da brach sich sein Blick ” tugged at the heartstrings. Excellent chorus, Alberich, Gutrune, Norns and Rheinmaidens. Wonderfully attentive audience. A complete cycle is rumoured for 2016.

Alwyn Mellor as Brünnhilde Photo: Clive Barda for Opera North –8–

ZOE SOUTH: WESENDONCK LIEDER St Lawrence Jewry, Guildhall August Music Festival, 1 st August 2014 Irene Richards Be not afeard, the Isle is full of noises, sounds and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not (The Tempest Act III Scene 2: spoken by Caliban) So the 2014 programme for the August Music Festival which is presented each summer by St. Lawrence Jewry, Guildhall tells us. The first of the free 20 festival programmes was an interesting mix of noises, sounds and sweet airs . Imagine William Walton, Shakespeare and Richard Wagner sharing the same stage. And what a stage! The church is well worth a visit in its own right: a glory of white and gold offset by beautiful stained glass and filled with light. The Festival certainly had a grand opening with Catherine Ennis, music director at the church, thundering out Walton’s Crown Imperial on the Klais (2000) organ. As the reverberations from this faded, Jonathan Oliver began to speak from Richard III accompanied by Walton’s Suite from Music for the film of the play: finishing with Fanfare and March . Then, almost ethereal, from the organ loft, came the voice of Zoe South singing Der Engel : the first of Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder : angelic indeed. The whole cycle was sung with conviction, control and vocal beauty. Each song was given just the right amount of dramatic emphasis and I particularly appreciated the pathos of Schmerzen . The concert was appropriately rounded out by Jonathan Oliver speaking Prospero’s famous speech “Our revels now are ended….” from The Tempest Act IV Scene 1. The Wesendonck Lieder have had many manifestations and were written originally for female voice and piano. Träume was orchestrated by Wagner as a birthday gift for Mathilde Wesendonck. There have been various orchestrations of the Wesendonck Lieder : a chamber version by Hans Werner Henze and as late as 2013 the French composer Alain Bonardi released a novel version for voice, piano, clarinet and cello, including instrumental interludes with oriental resonant percussions. The performance at St. Lawrence Jewry must however have been a “first”. Using a full-size organ to accompany this cycle must have been a daunting task for both organist and singer. Somehow a more than satisfactory balance was achieved. At no time was Zoe South’s voice drowned out; the sensitivity of Catherine Ennis’ playing allowing the voice its full range from pianissimo to full throttle forte !

Editor’s Note Readers of Wagner News are no strangers to the extraordinarily gifted Zoe South whose Brünnhilde in Fulham Opera’s double Ring Cycle earlier this year excited so much admiration. Zoe will be directing Verdi’s Falstaff for Fulham Opera on November 7 th , 9 th , 14 th and 16 th at St John’s Church, Fulham. She will sing Strauss’ Elektra on October 12 th at All Hallows Church, Gospel Oak. She ends the year as she began it, singing Brünnhilde for Fulham Opera in Act III of Siegfried on December 7 th .

– 10 – SALZBURG FESTIVAL PROJEKT TRISTAN UND ISOLDE Overture, Second Act and Isolde’s Liebestod : 21 st August 2014 Hilary Reid Evans It is the Salzburg Festival, the Festspielhaus. The weather good, the company convivial. Daniel Barenboim is only a few feet away conducting the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. And so I fell to wondering why, oh why am I not enjoying this concert? At its simplest, the answer I have arrived at is that context is all. Conceived as a whole, arguably for the first time in the history of opera, in Tristan und Isolde, Wagner focuses on the inner life of his protagonists. The work is subtitled an “action”: Handlung in German. Certainly there are passages that transcribe well to the concert hall. But in order fully to appreciate the work one needs to hear the piece as a whole, to understand the changing awareness and emotions of the characters, their torment and eventual longing for both love and death. One’s sense of mortality – both one’s own and that of others – also forms part of the contextual background. The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra comprises equal numbers of players from both Israel and the Arab world. With reporting of the then current Israeli- Palestinian conflict seared into the audience’s consciousness, it was difficult not to imagine what tragedies might lie behind the youthful, earnest faces of the players, which makes the next so very, very hard to write. Yes, as they say, the notes were all played in the right order. But where was the passion? Is it because Wagner’s complex emotional hinterland is perhaps beyond the experience base of these (mainly) young players? Is it at its simplest perhaps a lack of rehearsal time? Or perhaps the concert title ( Projekt Tristan und Isolde ), gives the game away? Could it be that this is an ongoing work in preparation? Even Barenboim, one of the orchestra’s founders, looked stern throughout and far from joyous at the end. What of the voices? Waltraud Meier, for many years associated with the West- Eastern Divan Orchestra, sang the role of Isolde gloriously, conveying the many emotions the part demands with consummate skill. Highly experienced in the role, she first sang Isolde at Bayreuth in 1993. Her clarity of diction should be an object lesson for all Wagnerian singers everywhere, further evidence of why Meier’s reputation as one of the world’s leading concert and lieder recitalists is well deserved. Peter Seiffert (Tristan) is clearly entering the last (dare one say, dying) phases of an outstanding career, whereas René Pape (King Marke) reminded me as to why he has for so long been one of the world’s leading singers. Mezzo soprano Ekaterina Jubanova (Brangäne) sang well. One wonders what her reception will be in the same role in the Metropolitan Opera’s upcoming production. Completing the cast, Stephan Rügamer as Melot again showed his skill as an accomplished recitalist. How I longed however to hear this worthy cast – as well as hear the music – in a complete production. Don’t get me wrong. Concert productions can be compelling, uplifting experiences. Somehow however on this night, in this place and with this configuration of orchestra and singers, and despite the obligatory resounding and standing ovations, the part work failed to deliver what the whole conveys.

– 11 – THE NORWICH WAGNERFEST 2014 Paul Dawson-Bowling Terrific congratulations to Peter Wilson and the Norwich Theatre Royal for relighting the Wagner torch of 17 years ago when they imported a stunning Ring from Norway. This time they imported the Freiburg Opera with its Parsifal and its Tannhäuser , and these were an illustration – yet another one – of the truth that a great musical performance of Wagner can cast a spell over the audience, no matter how bizarre and meaningless the director’s staging may be. “What is your concept?” That was the question which I should have liked to put to the two Freiburg directors, because they had each come up with something incomprehensible. Directors who give us something “innovative, provocative and fashionable” in place of Wagner’s silly old stories, should at least present some comprehensible story of their own. It is not enough to shackle together one bewildering notion after another without suggesting how they hang together, or what they mean. It was not a help to interfere with the mighty line of the music by bringing down the curtain twice in the Act I Transformation of Parsifal . Presumably the aim was to present several different stagings of the same events. It was even more disruptive when the same happened in the Grail scene. Nor could anyone I asked make out why Tannhäuser needed a surly doppelgänger throughout Act II and most of Act III. He mouthed all the words of the real Tannhäuser and Elisabeth, and he looked as if he had been fed on nothing but lemon juice. Neither opera had any mythical dimension, any knights, or any pageantry. Instead the stage was barren. In Tannhäuser the back walls were largely taken up with huge gloomy picture frames which opened into darkness and doubled as entry and exit points. In Parsifal the knights of the Grail were modernized either into men in grey suits or to weirdos and sickos, all twitching and gyrating this way and that. At best there were hints of good ideas, like the Madonna-blue robe for Kundry in Act II which recalled Freud’s original designation of his mother fixation as “the Holy Mary complex”, but the production did not then establish how this played into Parsifal’s guilt, his almost-regression into infantilism and oblivion, and his frantic lust for Kundry. An idea that was absolutely not a good one was to turn Wolfram’s hymn to the Evening Star, ie to Venus, into a seductive encounter with the goddess herself, as if she had decided, “I can’t have Tannhäuser, but I can try my luck snogging his best friend”. To be sure, neither of the Freiburg productions presented anything utterly detestable, nothing in the league of Covent Garden’s (Stephen Langridge’s) revolting Parsifal , but a staging of Wagner should offer revelations, not bewilderments and disappointments. Revelations there were at Norwich and in plenty, but they were all on the musical side. Fabrice Bollon, the company’s music director, was at the helm for both operas, and he went straight to the top of the list for choosing Tannhäuser in the so-called Paris version (at least for the most part). He transported his audience into the Venusberg with a blistering, vertiginous Bacchanale , as exciting as Sawallisch on Philips (no greater praise is possible), and then beguiled us with Wagner’s wonderful revisions of the Tannhäuser-Venus music, unlike anything else that he ever wrote and are utterly bewitching. Like Solti on his Decca recording, Bollon evidently balked at Wagner’s brutal solution to the problem of making Tannhäuser’s crucial words come through the massive ensemble in Act II. Wagner simply

– 12 – struck out every other part to leave Tannhäuser singing on his own, and at this point Bollon discreetly restored the dubiously-styled Dresden version. It helped Bollon’s achievement that he had an orchestra of staggering quality. Forget the new, faceless Berlin Philharmonic when there is the zestful, vital quality of this Freiburg orchestra. Theirs was also a very German quality, with a sound of deep beauty, a sound that breathes, a sound of wonderful textures, rich yet transparent: a sound which is heard only from orchestras rooted in Germany. For once the great chorales that crown the prelude to Tannhäuser Act III were not leading voices with sotto voce accompaniments, but a solid wall of blazing brass. Unexpectedly Bollon brought out a muscular vigour in the music of Parsifal , setting up fascinating associations with Tannhäuser , and he drew his players (and his audience) into a common vision. There was a real sense of musical communion which embraced the brilliant chorus and the solo singers. And what singers! My recent Parsifal experiences have mostly been associated with bigger names: Covent Garden, Vienna, Leipzig, the Mariinsky (at Cardiff), and above all the Halle (Mark Elder) at , but in fact the Freiburg casts were better. They all had voices of the right scale for Wagner, registering powerfully even when the orchestral playing was at its most tumultuous, without sacrificing vocal quality to vocal force. Frank van Hove sang the role of Gurnemanz with great natural authority and singular presence. The lyrical eloquence of Juan Orozco was likewise right for his appealing Amfortas, and this was all the more remarkable because he mostly had to sing from inside a body bag. The Klingsor of Ks Neal Schwantes projected his music with a terrible majesty, and it was excellent that he reappeared next evening as Biterolf, spitting out his attack on Tannhäuser with intimidating venom. If the Titurel, Jin Seok Lee, had a fault, it was simply that his timbre was too magnificent for an aged king near death. Roberto Gionfriddo as Parsifal possessed a voice and physique of mighty heroism, and he was luxury casting as Walther von der Vogelweide in Tannhäuser . Marius Vlad, the Tannhäuser, is another singer to watch for, tireless in stamina. His Rome Narration was only let down by the weird production. The Landgraf, Jin Seok Lee again, was magnificent, and the magnificently sympathetic Wolfram of Alejandro Lárraga Schleske and the unnamed the shepherd boy (a real boy) would exhaust my stock of superlatives to do them justice. Kundry, Sigrun Schell, had been somewhat squally in Act I, but in Act II her timbre and intonation became impressively pure, and she was melting and lacerating by turns. In Act III her ability to weep for minutes on end added something harrowing and ineffable to the beauty which the orchestra illuminated the Good Friday Spell. As Venus, Astrid Weber possessed the necessary capacity for power and sensuousness combined, and the Elisabeth, Burešovä, appropriately surpassed her in purity. It was not this Elisabeth’s fault that the great scene where she hurls herself between Tannhäuser and the murderous knights went for so little. As men in grey suits, the swordless knights were incapable of doing more than shake their fists, and instead of throwing herself in front of him, Elizabeth was standing on a platform at the top of a mobile contraption like the ones for repairing street lights. How far did it really matter, when all in all, Freiburg Opera showed what truly wonderful quality can be achieved by an ensemble company working together over the years. This was infinitely preferable to a system at Covent Garden and at ENO which increasingly likes to bill dubious foreign “stars” instead of nurturing native talents. The wonderful results of the Freiburg Opera told their own story.

– 13 – NORWICH: A NATURAL HOME FOR WAGNER’S RELIGIOUS MUSIC Parsifal and Tannhäuser at the Theatre Royal Norwich, 25 th and 27 th July 2014 Philharmonic Orchestra of Freiburg, Opera and Chorus of Theater Freiburg, Choristers of the University of Music in Freiburg, and the Children’s and Youth Choir of Theater Freiburg John Crowther At first thought Norwich seems an unlikely city to find fully staged productions of Parsifal and Tannhäuser performed by an orchestra of 70 German musicians, soloists and chorus, plus a children’s choir of 50 singers. But on reflection it is not. Both operas were written as religious pieces set in medieval times and both call for large choral forces. Norwich has been a religious city throughout the ages and several of its medieval quarters are still extant. Its cathedral has been a training ground for young singers for nine centuries and today it is a centre of excellence in choral and religious music of every kind. It was against this rich heritage that we townsfolk welcomed Theater Freiburg, especially its young choristers. Photo: VisitNorwich The two operas were presented as a “mini-cycle” of Wagner’s religious dramas with the same conductor but with different directors as described by Paul Dawson-Bowling in his review above. In Freiburg the orchestra doubles as a symphony orchestra and as a pit band and both these qualities shone in Norwich. It was flexible without over-playing the singers and in the orchestral passages played music of exquisite beauty showing that Wagner was a lyrical symphonist of the highest order. Unfortunately their performance was hampered by the rather dull acoustic of the Theatre Royal. The production of Parsifal was deliberately ambivalent but deeply sacramental. During the prelude two renaissance paintings of Christ on the Cross and a Madonna and Child were set alight, suggesting an antichrist context. But this was contradicted later because the Grail Hall had columns in white and sepia marble loosely modelled on the nave of Siena Cathedral as seen in the first production of Parsifal in Bayreuth. The knights sat around a long table as in Michelangelo’s Last Supper and shared a Christian Eucharist complete with swinging incense burners, hosts and chalices. The company performed as a team with no stars. The chorus of knights was faultless as was the ethereal singing of the off-stage children’s chorus even though it was past their bedtime.

Photo: Maurice Korbel, Theater Freiburg – 14 – Some of the most innovative and atmospheric music in Wagner’s vast operatic output features the four bass bells which toll in Acts I and III to summon Parsifal and the knights to the Grail Hall. Traditionally these notes are played on tubular bells or gongs but in this production Dominica Volkert (Freiburg’s Director of Opera) confessed that sadly they would be produced electronically because of the difficulties of transporting large instruments. This created two completely opposite emotions in my mind: firstly, one of wounded patriotism because Norwich has long been a focus for campanology and to bring imitation bells within the City walls is a musical travesty. In complete contrast, I had a feeling of pride in the knowledge that the very first electronic music to be used in a serious performance was commissioned by Bayreuth for the bells in their Parsifal production of 1931. The inventor was Jörg Mager and he called his contraption a spherophone. Nevertheless, Freiburg’s percussionist Klaus Motzet played his surrogate bells with immense effect and his crescendi brilliantly heightened the tension and solemnity as the knights approached the Grail Hall. The surtitles were not in current English but in dialect of the King James Bible ( ye, thou, thine, sayest ) and often with odd sentence constructions. This was done deliberately to mirror Wagner’s bizarre German vocabulary. Whilst this dialect emphasised the religious context of the opera it was difficult to read quickly. With so much work involved it’s a pity that a native English-speaker had not edited them. The setting for all three acts of Tannhäuser was inside church where a pulpit on wheels became the rostrum for the singing competition in the Wartburg. Once again the action on stage started during the prelude with Tannhäuser hallucinating in a series of flashbacks. Firstly, he is spurned by the Pope and then by a procession of clergy; he witnesses the Crucifixion; then in his dilemma whether to follow a spiritual path or a sensual one he imagines that he is being hounded by a throng of baying, lascivious nuns and he has to climb into the pulpit to escape. Thereafter, Venus’ first stage entrance is from a confessional. All this was hilarious and unexpected and a new theatrical genre : a religious pantomime was born. The orchestra, choruses and soloists were again of a high standard with no stars, but two passages eclipsed all others. The first was the duet between the shepherd boy and the cor anglais in Act I. The shepherd was a soprano from the Boys’ Choir of Calw and his voice was strong, confident, mellow and natural. During the curtain calls he rightly received as generous an ovation as any of his professional colleagues, which showed that a Norwich audience can recognize an outstanding young voice when it hears one. The second sublime passage was the pilgrims’ chorus, sometimes a cappella , sometimes with orchestral accompaniment. These 60 voices were superbly drilled and they processed slowly with monastic reverence as befitted the drama. Their mellifluous singing reminded me of Wagner’s rarely heard biblical masterpiece “ Das Liebesmahl der Apostel ” which he composed the same year as Tannhäuser (1843). Wagner intended every performance of his operas to be a challenging work of art. Theater Freiburg must be congratulated on presenting two modern and challenging works of art in a city which is itself a timeless work of art. Their visit was extremely uplifting and they will be welcome back anytime, especially if they complete the religious trilogy by performing Das Liebesmahl der Apostel in our cathedral. Wagner wrote this piece to be performed by a chorus of 1200 male voices singing from different locations within Dresden Cathedral, and to my knowledge this neglected gem has never been mentioned in Wagner News . Norwich Cathedral is an ideal venue to host it because it has the choral talent, the acoustics, choir lofts at three levels and an appreciative audience. If this ever happens then I shall be first in the queue. – 15 – WAGNER SOCIETY SUBSCRIPTIONS 2015 Neil King (Society Treasurer)

The cost of subscriptions to The Wagner Society remains unchanged for 2015 as follows: Individual: £30 (Under 25s: £15) Joint: £40 Europe: £40 Rest of the World: £55

I would ask members to pay their 2015 subscriptions as soon as possible. This may be done by cheque posted to Membership Secretary Margaret Murphy by standing order (either existing or new) or online.

Renewal forms Please use the renewal form enclosed with this mailing if you are paying by cheque and send the completed form and payment to Margaret Murphy. Please also complete this form if paying online.

Online payments Please send your payment to: Bank: National Westminster Bank Sort code: 56-00-33 Account: The Wagner Society Number: 05317630

Standing orders This is the cheapest and easiest way for subscriptions to be paid and a standing order form is included in this mailing. Please make sure we receive it in good time for 1st January. If you already have a standing order to the Society, please check that it is for the correct subscription level shown above. After the recent increase in the subscription amount, some members’ standing orders are out-of-date and they are underpaying their subscriptions despite repeated reminders.

In future we shall deal with underpayments as follows:

• Amounts received at the previous subscription level (i.e. £25 for individual membership) will continue to be treated as a renewal and the member will be requested to pay the additional £5. If this is not forthcoming, the membership will lapse and the amount paid will be treated as a donation (but naturally we will return the funds if requested to do so). Currently 46 members have underpaid by £5 and this cannot be allowed to continue in fairness to other members.

• All other miscellaneous amounts received will be treated as a donation to the Society.

– 16 – Direct debits Many members have asked us if they could pay by variable direct debit so that they can be sure of always being up-to-date and paying the correct amount. Unfortunately, for a small society like ours, the cost and work involved in claiming direct debits is prohibitive and it would seem very unlikely that this position will change in the foreseeable future.

Ballot option After the uncovered expense of tickets purchased during Wagner 200 the Committee has decided to terminate the separate ballot for opera tickets. Members should bear this in mind when renewing their memberships or checking their standing orders. In future, any amounts received for the ballot in error (perhaps due to an incorrect standing order) will be treated as a donation to the Society but will be returned on request.

Please note that entering the Bayreuth ballot remains a benefit available to all members without additional payment.

Premium Membership option The generosity of members joining the Premium Membership scheme has raised additional funds for the Society and the Committee is very grateful to these members. However, such generosity was intended to be repaid with an annual party or dinner, which has never taken place. The Society’s financial position does not permit us to now offer a free function despite the income received, and so this option will also be terminated.

Naturally we would welcome any donations that members (or others) wish to make in future but we cannot promise anything in return other than our thanks. The membership form can be used to make a donation when renewing your membership but donations may also be made at any time direct to Margaret Murphy or to me.

Gift Aid One of the positive variances against our current budget is the recovery of Gift Aid from HMRC dating back to 2010 and, with 2014’s repayment still to collect, this will be a major contribution to the Society, showing a surplus for the year.

I would urge all members who are UK taxpayers to check that they have completed a Gift Aid declaration. A form for doing so is included with this mailing. It costs you nothing to do this and there is no additional work for you beyond completing and signing this form but it enables us to reclaim basic rate tax on your subscription and any donations you may have made as well as on all future subscriptions and some previous subscriptions as well. If you are unsure as to whether you have done this in the past or not, please complete another form!

Note that only about 25% of our members currently have a valid Gift Aid declaration so I really would urge you to complete the enclosed form and send it to Margaret Murphy.

– 17 – THE RING PLAYS Gods and Monsters Theatre – part of the London free open-air theatre season Andrea Buchanan Some months ago the intriguing sounding Gods and Monsters Theatre approached us for some sponsorship to help them stage Wagner’s Ring Cycle as a group of short plays – in other words to tell the stories without the music. This would be presented as free theatre during the whole month of August, at the Scoop, near Tower Bridge. Being a broad- minded lot, with an interest in trying something new, the Committee decided to give them a modest contribution to assist their efforts. After various failed attempts to go along (inclement weather, an unexpected trip to Bayreuth, too much work etc.) I finally made it on the last night – Sunday 31 August. Clearly Valhalla was on my side as it was the most glorious evening of the summer – with clear blue skies, turning into a vermillion sunset as the plays progressed. This no doubt contributed to the full house, with the audience coming and going in a relaxed fashion, covering themselves with rugs when it got cooler and snacking and imbibing at will, all of which made for a very congenial atmosphere. I stayed for Rhinegold and The Valkyrie, but couldn’t quite manage the additional two hours to see things through to the end (it ended at 10:30pm). After an initial ten minutes of huffing and puffing in traditional old bat, horned helmet, critical Wagner-buff mode, I realised I was being really stupid, that I should read the programme notes and start judging what was before my eyes in the context of what it was and what it set out to do. This was quite simply to present The Ring as a cracking good story with a strong moral underpinning and some interesting ethical dilemmas. That sorted, I immediately began to enjoy myself and stopped fretting about the occasional inaccuracies, and even more importantly, about the fact that they could have used Wagner’s music, but deliberately chose not to. In fact Gods and Monsters told the tale really well – with humour, inventiveness, insight and notably good sword fights. All the actors were convincing in their roles, and, freed of the need to sustain several hours of chest-generated warbling, were mostly young, fair of face and fleet of foot. They also stuck to Wagner’s story pretty closely, adjusting the sequence of events only when it made dramatic sense to do so. The language was quite old fashioned and theatrical, interspersed at times with delightful snippets of vernacular to bring the message home. I particularly enjoyed Alberich berating one of the Rhine Maidens as a “pond-life poppet” and Fafner accusing the love-struck Fasolt as being “a soft wazzock”. The costumes were also traditional and dignified. I particularly enjoyed watching the faces of the children present (there were many) who appeared to be completely enraptured by the goings-on, although I would have loved to have overhead their parents explaining the relationship between Siegmund and Sieglinde to them afterwards. I hope that at least some of the audience will be tempted to explore this further and brave the real thing. The programme notes weren’t as encouraging in this regard as they might have been. And even if most of them don’t, we all had a memorably enjoyable time in Wagner-world on a glorious end-of-summer evening in the company of gods and monsters.

– 18 – THE RING PLAYS Gods and Monsters Theatre, The Scoop, More London Free Festival, 19 August 2014 Katie Barnes Photography: Sheila Burnett There could be few more appropriate venues for an open air performance of four 50 minute plays based on The Ring than The Scoop, an elliptical granite amphitheatre in the More London complex beside the Thames, flanked by the gleaming glass Valhallas of City offices with the Shard soaring above, Tower Bridge nearby and the Tower of London looming across the river. Gods and Monsters, a heroic company of nine, performed adaptations by Phil Willmott and Lisa Kuma which took us back to the very roots of ancient storytelling. This was an evening to be appreciated equally by Wagner devotees and by those who had never seen an opera but enjoy rattling good epics such as Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones which feature similar power struggles in a mythical/fantasy setting. At times the plays followed Wagner closely and at others they were wildly divergent, due to the size of the cast and the need to condense the narrative. Erda, Froh, Donner, the Norns, the Woodbird and Hagen were omitted, and the supporting Valkyries were reduced to a maximum of six, but Wotan’s ravens played an important (and vocal) role. Great stress was laid upon Wotan's waning powers and his tyrannical irresponsibility towards the humans he ruled. His relationship with Fricka and his deep emotional dependence upon her were far stronger than in Wagner. The Nibelungs became trolls, with ripe Scottish accents and horns protruding from curly black hair. The dialogue was very colloquial, with a strong vein of comedy. The Rhine Gold followed the opera most closely, but Fafner and Fasolt were both in love with Freia, and Fafner was the sweetest and goofiest of the two, making his sudden slaying of his brother and his anguished howl of “What have I done?” all the more shocking. With Erda omitted, Brünnhilde arrived at the crucial moment to deliver a warning from her mother. In a bold but brilliant stroke The Valkyrie began with the opening of the opera’s Act III, with the events of the first two acts subsequently narrated by Brünnhilde and the Valkyries. In Siegfried Mime and Siegfried shared a “forest language” of invented words, which I found confusing and unnecessary, although Tolkien fans in the audience appreciated references to “the precious” Ring. Fafner was not Wagner’s snarling, bloodthirsty beast, but a lonely creature who begged Siegfried to kill him because his possession of the gold had cut him off from all companionship. In another brilliant stroke, the ravens assumed the Woodbird’s role in guiding Siegfried to the Ring and Tarnhelm, and, in a beautiful touch, Sieglinde's ghost appeared to send him to Brünnhilde. Wotan barred Siegfried’s way but allowed himself to be defeated, knowing that he had to yield

– 19 – his power to the next generation. Yet Siegfried did not break Wotan’s spear and he never reached Brünnhilde's rock, and the lovers had only seen one another in dreams when, at the beginning of Twilight of the Gods , Siegfried broke his journey in Trollheim, ruled by Alberich, who assumed Hagen's functions in this play, with Gunther and Gutrune as his troll-children. The plot to trick Siegfried proceeded as usual, although as he still had the Ring, there appeared to be no reason for Alberich to want him to bring Brünnhilde to his court. Wotan, not Waltraute, visited Brünnhilde to advise her to return the Ring (which she had not yet received) to the Rhine, and also to tell her of his plans for her to lead the changing world into the future, something which in The Ring he explains only to Erda. Götterdämmerung Acts II and III were telescoped into a wedding feast where Alberich slew Siegfried and Gunther before Gutrune killed him in revenge, and a single Rhinedaughter invaded the hall to reclaim the Ring. But instead of Brünnhilde acknowledging that her suffering had made her wise, she lamented that her love for Siegfried had made her unfit to lead the world, because she now only wished to die with him. This change of emphasis made it appear that she had failed while Wotan had succeeded: in breaking his spear while Valhalla burned, he renounced his power and released the world. Sara Perks’ lavish costumes, frequently suggestive of Rackham’s illustrations, evoked the world of Nordic myth and her ingenious permanent set, supplemented by props and two wheeled trucks, evoked all the different locations in the story. Suzanna Rosenthal's superbly effective production was a model of how to create a spectacular show on a small budget The versatile cast were supplemented by puppets created under the guidance of the Handspring Puppet Company, responsible for the National Theatre’s War Horse , and the influence of that legendary production was clear in the lifelike horses’ heads operated by the Valkyries and the horribly realistic Raven puppets which evoked the crows hovering over the battlefields of World War I. Other spectacular effects were achieved by amazingly economical means. Four masked Valkyries crouched at the corners of a wheeled trolley to impersonate Fricka’s rams, and Loki crouched on Brünnhilde's rock to guard her until defeated in a thrilling duel with the Tarnhelmed Siegfried. Horrifyingly, Siegfried killed Mime by holding him face down in a glowing fire pit. A huge sheet of gold fabric concealed Freia and later formed mighty wings for Fafner the dragon. The audience were encouraged to take part: several people in the front row, including myself, were handed plates and hammers to make sound effects in The Rhine Gold (I tapped out the Nibelungs’ leitmotif) and enthralled children were given small cut-out figures to place all over the stage in the spellbinding finale while cast members placed a tea light in front of each, creating a multitude to watch the world end as Wotan was engulfed in flames. All nine actors were excellent. Amy Christina Murray’s magnificent, dreadlocked Brünnhilde and Philip Scott-Wallace’s passionate Siegmund and sulky Siegfried were outstanding, as was Latoya Lees as a beguiling Freia, a defiant but terribly vulnerable Sieglinde and a touchingly ugly-duckling Gutrune. I disliked the production’s ingratiating characterisation of Wotan, but Phil Willmott rose to tragic heights in the finale. Adam Hughes’ sharp portrayal made much of Loki’s loyalty, honesty and insight. Phil Sealey’s – 20 – powerful Alberich was unexpectedly funny, but his humour helped to conceal the Troll-King’s ruthlessness. Terence Frisch’s Gollum-like Mime (left) was a great favourite with the audience, and he also played a stern Fasolt. Claire Jeater’s beautiful, strong, womanly Fricka made a far more sympathetic case for the character than the opera allows, and she and Hughes were very striking as the operators and voices of the Raven puppets. Christopher Hines made much of the contrast between his Fafner, at first soppily lovable, later tragic, his vicious Hunding and deliciously doleful Troll-Gunther. Everyone chipped in to play Rhinedaughters, masked Valkyries (men as well as women), trolls, and a multitude of other roles. Theo Holloway’s specially composed score created loads of atmosphere, but for Wagner lovers it would never replace the real thing. This was a free event, and the atmosphere was completely informal, with audience members invited to stay for as much or as little of the evening as they wished. At first the stage was illuminated by daylight and the setting sun, but as night drew on, the illuminated glass towers glittered all around us like fairy palaces, the floodlit Tower Bridge shone, and lighting effects played an increasingly important part, bathing Fafner the dragon (right) in a crimson glow.

In the stunning final cataclysm the cast carried flaming torches, the stage was filled with tea lights creating tiny pinpoints of fire, and towering jets of flame encircled the doomed Wotan (as shown on the cover of this magazine). I was sitting so close that I could feel the heat. – 21 – EIN LIEDERABEND AND A RECITAL WITH RACHEL NICHOLLS Jubilee Hall, Aldeburgh, 13 th and 14 th September 2014 Katie Barnes Rachel filled in for an ailing colleague with three Wesendonck Lieder: Der Engel, Im Treibhaus and Schmerzen . It was a special treat to hear her sing Im Treibhaus , which has such strong musical links both to Tristan , which she had been singing that afternoon, and to Debussy’s De Fleurs , which she had sung the previous night. Ein Geschicke was deeply emotional, and the final “ Saum ” hovered in the air and died away like an unanswered question. She gave Schmerzen a passion akin to Sieglinde’s. Her lovely singing was beautifully matched by Philip Thomas’ exquisitely delicate accompaniment. The crowning achievement of the weekend was Rachel’s towering rendition of the Immolation Scene as the climax of the final concert. Unlike Isolde, which was understandably tentative because she is still learning the role, she owns Brünnhilde, and she knows it. This was not a mere concert rendition but a complete, staged performance, where she conjured up everything for us and we all lived every moment of it with her. It was simply overwhelming, on a different plane to anything else over the whole weekend. This was a destroying, redeeming goddess who had descended to a small provincial hall to share her glories with us mere mortals. I cannot adequately describe the splendour and magnificence of her singing. Her glorious voice was so huge and powerful in that small venue that I expected the walls to collapse. Her gesture at “ Vollbringt Brünnhildes Wort! ” would have cowed a whole army of vassals. But when she gazed down at the dead Siegfried before her, her hands clasped, her face crumpled in grief, she looked like an injured child. Her rage and grief over him was extreme, but there was a tremendous sense of calm at “ Alles weiss ich ”, and “ Ruhe, ruhe ”, for which she created an almost unbearably beautiful sound, was a deeply private moment, a final farewell to her unseen father, paralleling his to her in Die Walküre , before she grimly faced her destiny, removing the Ring from her finger and addressing unseen Rhinedaughters in the pit. The moment when she replaced the Ring on her hand and hurled her torch onto the pyre was incredibly powerful, and her notes at “ Siegfried! Siegfried! Sieh! ” and “ Selig grüsst dich dein Wieb! ” were like lasers. She even patted the nose of her imagined Grane as she gazed, wild-eyed and ecstatic, into the burning pyre. Then she turned and walked proudly offstage while Philip Thomas, the weekend’s unsung hero, played the glorious postlude with a splendour and grace that matched her singing perfectly. You had to be there to know how amazing it was.

Rachell Nicholls receiving congratulations from Dame Anne Evans for Ein Liederabend Photo: David Waters

– 22 – DAME ANNE EVANS AND RACHEL NICHOLLS MASTERCLASS Jubilee Hall, Aldeburgh, 13 th September 2014 Katie Barnes Photography: Richard Carter To watch a great singer imparting their knowledge and experience to the new generation is always a very special experience and a great privilege. One of the undoubted highlights of the Mastersingers/Music Club of London Après le Déluge weekend was the masterclass in which Dame Anne Evans worked on the role of Isolde with Rachel Nicholls (who is to understudy the role at House in December before singing it at Longborough next year) with Richard Black as repetiteur.

I have already hymned the glories of the Rachel’s voice: so full and round, so immediately capable of everything she sings that everything she does is completely inside the voice with never a hint of having to strain or grab for a note. Its power seems almost limitless, yet, as she had proved in her recital the previous evening, she can fine it down for the most intimate and tender of lieder. They began with Isolde's opening scenes from Act I, with Dame Anne setting the scene for the audience before each section: “As you can tell, Isolde is pretty angry!” Nicholls suggested that Isolde's rage stems from disgust and self-loathing, to which Dame Anne pointed out that she still needs to sound imperious. This is a punishingly difficult scene to sing, and I noticed how often Dame Anne's advice was centred upon the need to use the consonants to support the voice: “Text, text, text!” and upon ways to conserve vocal energy by beginning a phrase softly and growing to a crescendo rather than beginning at full volume. “Don't start a phrase too loud. Always go somewhere where you can bring it back.” She frequently conducted Nicholls from a seat at the side of the stage, guiding her in the shape and flexibility of a phrase, and sometimes sang along with her or filled in Brangäne's lines.

– 23 – Moving on to Scene 2, I was astonished by the number of colours Nicholls could filter into a single note and the superb contempt of “ Knechte ” (servant / varlet). Dame Anne advised: “Keep (this passage) moving. It's very easy to let it grind to a halt.” Commenting on the nature of Isolde's relationship with Brangäne, she said that she has always felt that the two women were brought up together and were friends as well as confidants, but that “when it comes to the crunch, she lays down the law: ‘ Ich, Isolde ’ ” Nicholls suggested that at this point Isolde is deliberately making herself angry so that she can relive the past. “I don't think she can get much angrier!” Dame Anne laughed. She thinks that Isolde's command to Brangäne to “tell me exactly” is macabre. “ ‘ Den hab ich ’ is an interruption. I love it when she corrects Brangäne” Nicholls interjected. Even in this rehearsal environment, her singing radiated Isolde's rage and misery. I noticed that the translation handed to the audience gave the concluding line of Isolde's monologue, “ Blick mich nicht mehr beschwere! ” as “Do not accuse me with such a look!” which implied that the line is addressed to Brangäne. Nicholls queried this, and Dame Anne replied, “I think she's completely in her own world.” She advised Nicholls to break up the line “ müden König, für Marke, seinen Ohm .” “ Old Mark – he's not young and virile [like Tristan]. When it comes to the crunch [this marriage] is not going to work!” Nicholls' impersonation of Tristan was stinging and “ Mir lacht ” was piercing. Dame Anne advised her to “really do the dynamics with the orchestra” at “ O blinde Augen ”. “ Don't start “Fluch dir ” too loud as the orchestra is incredibly loud and you'll need to be able to sing over the top.” After a short break they worked on Isolde's part in the Act II love duet, “ O sink hernieder ”. Dame Anne observed that in this Act, “Isolde is a totally different animal. She's a woman in love.” They had not worked on this duet before, but Nicholls had looked at it, so this was very much a work in progress. – 24 – Nicholls was instantly, softly, quietly radiant, and Dame Anne commented that this duet is “the breath of emotion”. I had not realised before how rhythmically complex it is. Dame Anne remarked (without naming any names) that “some people have been known to conduct it in six, not three”. To the delight of the audience, Nicholls briskly snapped her fingers to get the rhythm, prompting a waggish comment from the audience that she was auditioning for Carmen! As Nicholls had to rest her voice because she was singing in that evening's concert, the rest of the session was devoted to questions from the audience. Nicholls explained that she has been working solidly on Isolde for several months, while singing Lady Macbeth, Beethoven's Leonore, her first Eva in Karlsruhe, and Birtwistle's Guinevere. When learning a role she listens to recordings of other interpreters and uses YouTube a lot because she likes to see people acting as well as singing. “You need another person to know how you sound”, and her husband (the bass Andrew Slater) is her “secret weapon”. Dame Anne said that it took her two years to learn Isolde because she was singing a lot of other roles at the time. “You have to sing the music into your voice and your muscles.” Responding to a question about the different versions of Senta's aria, both ladies said that they had never been offered a choice of versions, although Dame Anne commented that the rare A minor version “makes more sense when Erik enters”. Technically, she regards Senta as the hardest role in the soprano repertoire because the duet with the Dutchman is so awkwardly written. Both also confirmed that they have very little say in what producers ask them to do onstage. Dame Anne told an amusing anecdote about a French producer who asked her to sing the Immolation from a wind machine at the back of the stage. In rehearsals she pretended to be inaudible in the wind machine until the maestro insisted that she had to stand at the front. Both also had horror stories about the dangers of memory loss during a performance. Nicholls commented that “sometimes if your brain forgets, your mouth remembers”, but Dame Anne recalled how she once lost her way while singing Ilia because Sir Charles Mackerras had added so many cadenzas to her role, and “in an opera like Tristan , you can lose your concentration!”.

– 25 – DIE MEISTERSINGER VON NÜRNBERG AT SAFFRON WALDEN Saffron Hall, 14 th September 2014 Paul Dawson-Bowling Saffron Hall celebrated its first birthday with the best sung performance, live, of Die Meistersinger that I have witnessed for 40 years. The whole story of Saffron Hall is itself a matter for celebration in its own right before extolling the performance. Saffron Hall is the amazing central exhibit of Saffron Walden County High School and it owes its existence to the school’s expansion from 1,000 pupils in the 1950s when the original hall was built, to 2,000 today. This gave rise to conundrums and worries about how on earth to refurbish the existing hall, but fortunately the difficulties came to the attention of a successful local businessman whose twin passions are state education and music. Through this remarkable man’s vision and his Charitable Trust, a new multi-purpose hall was built and given to the school. (This is apparently the largest single donation ever given to a state school.) The result is now named Saffron Hall, and it is a beautiful 730 seat performance space with an acoustic that is both accurate and warm; moreover the sound can be tuned from poetry reading to Berlioz in about eleven seconds. It is a heart- warming demonstration that some successful entrepreneurs can do wonderful things with the fruits of their achievement, the very opposite of those wealthy business wives exposed by Robert Preston of the BBC, who squander their affluence on a jet fighter for the front lawn, or arrange a Valentine’s Day dinner on an arctic iceberg, because they can think of nothing better to do with the money. The first performance in the mint new hall took place on 9 th November last year when the Saffron Walden Choral Society sang the Verdi Requiem to a packed house and a standing ovation. What led to this performance of Die Meistersinger is that Professor Michael Thorne attended that inaugural performance. Professor Thorne is Vice- Chancellor of Anglia University and a passionate Wagnerian, and he has already conducted a Wagner opera in Edinburgh every year since 2001. On seeing and hearing the hall Professor Thorne decided that he just had to do Wagner there and because he is a personal friend of the benefactor, things began to happen. Events were helped on by Paul Garland and Francis Lambert, both members of the Saffron Walden Choral Society, who were asked to set up the detailed arrangements. They assembled the crucial chorus of Die Meistersinger , by inviting choral society singers from London to Cambridge. Equally crucial to the whole enterprise was the St Albans Symphony Orchestra, enlarged to 74 by 22 professionals. Most crucial of all, they invoked the auspices of Elaine McKrill to put together the strongest possible cast of soloists, and it was because of all this that a performance could take place that was so remarkable.

Inga-Britt Andersson (Eva) with Casting Advisor Elaine McKrill (right)

– 26 – What is as remarkable in a different direction is the casting department at Covent Garden, which has reached an all-time low in my estimation for its failure to recognise the wonderful Sachs on their doorstep, Andrew Greenan. His is a voice of the same magnificence and scale as John Tomlinson’s in its heyday, a sound both steady and lustrous; but if John Tomlinson had an imperfection as Sachs, it was simply that he was too obviously an authority figure. Tomlinson dominated right from the start, and Bryn Terfel does the same only much worse, like a Wotan who has strayed into 16 th Century Nuremberg. Wagner and Andrew Greenan by contrast present Sachs as initially unobtrusive and unremarkable; only gradually does this cobbler poet emerge as a man who carries weight. Make no mistake however, his is a Sachs of exceptional personality and interest; his winning nuances of vocal inflection were counterpointed by little gestures or sensitive facial changes that gave great subtlety to his assumption. Perhaps Otto Wiener achieved some of the same effect at Bayreuth in 1958, but he had not the sheer sonority of Andrew Greenan. Where to turn next amongst such a profusion of vocal talents as those on display at Saffron Hall, when they were all of them possessed of a purity of pitch that is exceptional today? Just as important, they all managed sophisticated characterisations of mostly unsophisticated men, seldom glancing at the scores on their music stands but turning to face each other, to act and react to one another. Jonathan Finney was something else that is rather rare, a very appealing Walther, both genial and reflective, and at times even uncertain. It seemed like insecurity and not arrogance that led him to his hoity-toity moment with Sachs when he refuses to compose a third verse to his prize song, but there was no uncertainty about his stamina and his ability to sustain the role through to his triumph, his final prize song. It helped his portrayal that he is in life far more personable than his nerdy, unshaven photograph in the programme suggested. Finney’s Walther was given a close call by Adam Tunnicliffe’s David because Tunnicliffe was equally appealing and musical. As it happens, his timbre possesses the strength and the delicate edge which could point to career possibilities as another heroic tenor. Paul Carey Jones was likewise a superb Kothner, a fusion of strict assertiveness as the newest mastersinger on the block and of sudden deference to his seniors, expressed in a vocalism which had all the purity and strength of phosphor-bronze. Then too there was the Pogner of Richard Wiegold, a very secure and solid voice and a very solid citizen, except that he could melt tenderly with Eva in Act II as it dawns on him that his making his daughter the prize for a singing contest might be at odds with her ideas of the man who would make her happy. The Beckmesser alone created some uncertainty, and his reticent presentation was not mitigated by his solitary need of the score. Every one of the other mastersingers demonstrated abilities that deserve fine careers, and last but by no means least, there were two veterans of Malcolm Rivers’ Mastersingers organisation: Oliver Hunt, who is additionally a member of the Ace Choir at Westminster Abbey, and Stuart Pendred, who brought to the Night Watchman all the bigness and projection of his Hagen at Longborough.

– 27 – I must confess to some disappointment as I read that our Eva was not to be a British singer, because this seemed to be more of the inverted chauvinism that is rife at Covent Garden and many British concert managements, always rejecting British singers if some semi-competent foreigner is available. In the event it took less than three minutes to be convinced of the organisers’ wisdom in engaging Inga-Britt Andersson as Eva. This German-Swedish Soprano, who is very easy on the eye, has a voice of ravishing purity but delectably warm and rich. Moreover her singing can act. Her great outburst, “ O Sachs, mein Freund ” expressed pain as well as ecstasy and was gloriously beautiful. It may seem churlish to add even a hint of criticism for such a lovely artist, but perhaps her Eva could yet acquire some of the naughtiness that Elizabeth Grümmer displayed at Bayreuth. It was as well that Eva was so remarkable because otherwise she might have been upstaged by the Magdalene of Anna Burford. Anna Burford’s biography is over- economical with information on her background, but her voice is another that is rich, warm and even, and in her dealings with Eva she managed exactly the right mix of bossiness, eagerness and affection. These ace singers were not the only reason why this Die Meistersinger had so much heart. There was the orchestra, valiantly tackling a marathon. In the late 1960s, when Sadlers Wells planned to do The Mastersingers with Goodall, one of the management’s concerns was about the stamina of an orchestra which was very professional but only familiar with operas like Bohème , which is shorter than Die Meistersinger Act III on its own. Unsurprisingly there were times when the St Albans orchestra, mostly enthusiastic amateurs, did flag, sometimes audibly. Even by the start of the Flieder monologue the horns could no longer manage an elegant shimmer, but sounded big and beefy. Perhaps a couple more rehearsal sessions might have polished up the ensemble, but whatever the imperfections of detail, the spirit was always fully in evidence: lovely and happy, and the orchestra made up in warmth and commitment what it occasionally missed in accuracy. Just as important, their conductor had plenty of the same warmth and commitment, and his very individual way with the score contributed greatly to the occasion. He is another like the ever-lamented David Crighton, distinguished both as a mathematician and as a Wagnerian. It was not however a mathematical quality that Professor Thorne revealed in Die Meistersinger , but its floods of inspiration, with some mighty brass at the heart of the proceedings. This full-blooded magnificence was at the farthest possible extreme from Kempe’s classic recording. Saffron Walden was all rich summer and its fulfilments in contrast to Kempe’s breezes on a spring morning, but both views are equally valid and worthwhile, and this wonderful occasion won an immense standing ovation. What is more those who shouted “Encore! More please!” may be in luck. There were whispers that Professor Thorne’s next Saffron project is to be a little number known for short as The Ring .

– 28 – NEWS FROM SEATTLE Roger Lee

Two artists familiar to Wagner Society members featured prominently in Seattle Opera’s celebration of the retirement of its General Director Speight Jenkins and of the company’s own 50 th anniversary celebration during August. Tenor David Danholt , who was a Finalist in The Wagner Society’s Singing Competition last December, won a First Prize at the 2014 Seattle Opera International Wagner Competition. Accompanied by the Seattle Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sebastian Lang-Lessing, he sang arias from Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Parsifal . The Jury comprised Stephanie Blythe, Peter Kazaras, Aidan Lang, Evans Mirage and Stephen Wadsworth. The Finalists also included Helena Dix , who won The Wagner Society’s Bursary Competition in 2011.

Speight Jenkins congratulating David Danholt Alwyn Mellor performed in a Speight Celebration Concert with the Seattle Symphony conducted by Sebastian Lang-Lessing and Carlos Montanao. Alwyn (who has sung scenes from Die Walküre and Götterdämmerung for The Wagner Society, and has undertaken extensive coaching with Dame Anne Evans) opened the concert with Brünnhilde’s Battle Cry and closed part one with Liebestod.

Seattle Opera’s 2013 Bicentenary production of Der Ring des Nibelungen with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra conducted by Asher Fisch and featuring Alwyn Mellor as Brünnhilde has just been released on Avie CD.

– 29 – Wagner news

IN THE JANUARY 2015 ISSUE In Wagner News 215 we shall bring you the following reports and items:

The New London Opera Players directed by David Edwards performance of Act I and the final scene of Die Walküre represents the first foray into Wagner for Islington’s Rosemary Branch Theatre at the end of September. Singers under the tutelage of Neil Baker include Miriam Murphy, Stephen Holloway Robin Green and Laura Abella, all accompanied by Andrew Charity at the piano

This year’s Wagner Society Dame Eva Turner Memorial Lecture given by Elaine Padmore on 6 th October. Her subject is My years as Director of Opera at the Royal Opera Covent Garden and at the Danish National Opera . Details of this event are supplied as an insert with the October issue of Wagner News .

The Rehearsal Orchestra performance of Isolde and Brangäne scenes from Tristan und Isolde with Rachell Nicholls, Neal Cooper and Alison Kettlewell, conducted by David Syrus on 19 th October at Henry Wood Hall.

The Wagner Society Singing Competition judged by Susan Bullock, Lionel Friend and David Gowland with Dame Gwyneth Jones, Eva Wagner-Pasquier and Sir John Tomlinson in attendance on 30 th November at the Royal Academy of Music. Dame Gwyneth chooses the winner of her own award and the first presentations are made of the Carole Rees Awards for Advanced Musical Studies.

Following the recent success of his Après le Déluge presentation at Aldeburgh, David Edwards explains how the musical world changed forever after Wagner. Following Tristan and the flood which concludes Götterdämmerung very little would sound the same again. David Edwards explores the repercussions and influence of Wagner’s writing upon the musical landscape of the 20 th Century.

You can also test your memory with the 2014 Wagner News Quiz ...... STOP PRESS ...... Fulham Opera will perform a run-through of Siegfried Act III at 7pm on Sunday 7 th December at All Hallows Gospel Oak, Severnake Road, Hampstead, NW3 2JP Brünnhilde: Zoe South Siegfried: Jonathan Finney Wanderer: Ian Wilson-Pope Erda: Jemma Brown http://www.fulhamopera.co.uk/product/richard-wagner-siegfried-act-3-sunday-7th- december/

– 30 – the Wagner society

President: Dame Gwyneth Jones Vice President: Sir John Tomlinson CONTACTS

Chairman: Richard Miles [email protected] Court Lodge Farm, Blechingley, Surrey RH1 4LP

Secretary and Wagner Andrea Buchanan [email protected] Society Bursary Manager: [email protected]

Treasurer: Neil King [email protected]

Webmaster: Charlie Furness Smith [email protected]

Committee Member: Edward Hewitt [email protected]

Events Manager: Peter Leppard [email protected]

Director of The Malcolm Rivers [email protected] Mastersingers and [email protected] The Goodall Scholars: 44 Merry Hill Mount, Bushey, Herts. WD 23 1DJ

Membership Secretary: Margaret Murphy [email protected] 16 Doran Drive, Redhill, Surrey RH1 6AX

Archivist: Geoffrey Griffiths [email protected]

Wagner News Editor: Roger Lee [email protected] 155 Llanrwst Road, Colwyn Bay LL28 5YS

Wagner Society website: www.wagnersociety.org Registered charity number 266383

– 31 – FORTHCOMING WAGNER SOCIETY EVENTS Peter Leppard, Events Manager Monday 6 th October: 7.30pm ELAINE PADMORE OBE MY YEARS AS DIRECTOR OF OPERA AT THE ROYAL OPERA COVENT GARDEN AND THE ROYAL DANISH OPERA See the leaflet enclosed with this issue of Wagner News Sunday 19 th October: 2pm Rehearsal, 6pm Run-through SCENES FROM TRISTAN UND ISOLDE Sung by Rachel Nicholls, Neal Cooper and Alison Kettlewell The Rehearsal Orchestra conducted by David Syrus. Henry Wood Hall, Trinity Church Square, London SE1 4HE Borough Tickets £20/£10 students Thursday 13 th November: 7.30pm A recital by HELENA DIX (Winner of the Wagner Society’s Bayreuth Bursary Competition in 2011) accompanied by Kelvin Lim St Botolph’s Church Hall, Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3TL Near Liverpool Street Station Tickets £15/£7.50 students Sunday 30 th November: 2pm WAGNER SOCIETY ANNUAL SINGING COMPETITION Judging panel chaired by Susan Bullock, CBE Royal Academy of Music, Marylebone Road, London NW1 5HT Baker St Tickets £25/£10 students Thursday 22 nd January: 7.30pm JEREMY BINES: CHORUS-MASTERING A WAGNER OPERA St Botolph’s Church Hall, Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3TL Near Liverpool Street Station Glyndebourne’s Chorus Master (previously at Royal Danish Opera) will reveal how to achieve an excellent Wagner chorus. Tickets £15/£7.50 students Tuesday 27 th January: 7pm BERLIOZ SOCIETY, LISZT SOCIETY, ALKAN SOCIETY AND WAGNER SOCIETY JOINT DINNER RECITAL The Forge, 3-7 Delancey Street, London NW1 7NL Near Camden Town Station Featuring performances of works by all four composers followed by dinner. Ticketing this year will be by the Berlioz Society. Prices to be announced in the January Wagner News Sunday 8 th February: 3pm A talk by the renowned opera director PETER KONWITSCHNY Venue to be confirmed in the January issue of Wagner News Peter Konwitschny grew up in Leipzig, where his father was principal conductor of the Gewandhaus Orchestra. In the 1970s. Konwitschny was an assistant director with the Berliner Ensemble. From 1986 to 1990 he was chief director of the Landestheater in Halle. After the fall of the Berlin Wall his international career took off and he also turned to Wagner, directing Parsifal, Tannhäuser, Lohengrin, Tristan, Götterdämmerung, Die Meistersinger and Der Fliegende Holländer . From 2008 he became principal director of productions at the Leipzig Opera. Tickets £15/£7.50 students Tickets for the above events (except 27 th January) are available from Peter Leppard, Sickleholme Cottage, Saltergate Lane, Bamford, Hope Valley, S33 0BE. Please send cheques payable to The Wagner Society, enclosing an SAE. Tickets, if still available, will also be sold at the door. More details of forthcoming events are available at www.wagnersociety.org.