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Wagner Society in NSW Inc
Christine Brewer Brünnhilde (soprano), Stig Andersen Siegfried (tenor) , Sir John Tomlinson Hagen (bass) , Alan Held Gunther (baritone) , Gweneth-Ann Jeffers Gutrune (soprano) , Gordon Hawkins Alberich (baritone) , Karen Cargill Waltraute (mezzo-soprano), Andrea Baker First Norn (mezzo-soprano) , Natascha Petrinsky Second Norn (mezzo-soprano), Miranda Keys Third Norn (soprano) , Katherine Broderick Woglinde (soprano) , Anna Stéphany Wellgunde (mezzo-soprano) , Liore Grodnikaite Flosshilde (mezzo-soprano), Concert Staging by Paul Curran, BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Chorus, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Donald Runnicles Conductor . The day did not auger well for your reviewers. A blocked drain in one of the Australia's national airline Boeing 747's meant a long delay in leaving Sydney, meant missed connections in Singapore, a re-routing through Fran kfurt and an arrival time in London just a couple of hours before the 4 pm start of the BBC Proms concert production of Gotterdammerung at the Royal Albert Hall. To add insult to injury the London skies threatened to ruin the planned picnic in the first interval. As we reached for a second glass of wine during the first interval our thoughts returned to the 1998 Royal Opera semi-staged production under Maestro Haitink. The Das Rheingold of that series was as tentative as the First Act of Gotterdammerung . Perhaps it is the vastness of the RAH that intimidates performers or the proximity of the orchestra on stage immediately behind the singers which can so easily swamp their singing. Whatever the issue at hand it appears that the performers need a little time to become comfortable with the hall before the excitement comes to the fore. Thankfully the dying chords of this Gotterdammerung found an exciting environment complete with the ‘Mike Day' Shivers up the Spine Register. This is perhaps best illustrated by Stig Andersen who wiped two tears from his eyes as he sat down following his final words ‘To die is sweet, The moment was reinforced by Christine Brewer's poignant greeting to the departed Siegfried. Brewer's moment was a triumph in sound and emotion. We left after a well-deserved standing ovation for a breathtaking night – directed and staged for the concert platform by Society member Paul Curran. Dennis' further thoughts on the production follow: As we entered the hall Paul Curran's work was subtly and immediately evident with projections suggesting Valhalla like architecture on the walls behind the stage. The stage lights came up on time and we were under away on time with the three Norns retelling the story so far. The first Norn, Andrea Baker, is a mezzo with a fabulous bottom register, a silky and even voice all the way to the top of her range. It was immediately evident that maestro Donald Runnicles was going to use the on-stage orchestra to best effect. He was able to pull back the volume most of the time so as not to drown out the singers, and thereby provide a beautiful sound which points up the subtlety of orchestral colours that the master wrote into score. The on-stage orchestra also had the advantage of providing an unmixed sound (in contrast to that at Bayreuth ) which helped the listener see exactly how the Master mixed the colours. Of course, when there were no singers to take care of, Runnicles was often able to just let it rip and the audience was swamped with wave after wave of the most exquisite orchestral playing. Siegfried, Stig Andersen and Brünnhilde, Christine Brewer, proved to be a well matched pair of lovers, and their scene moved inexorably to one of the musical highlights of The Ring with a near perfect musical climax to end the Prologue. Alan Held as Gunther started as a surprisingly strong character as well as singer. His reading being in strong contrast to other and much more popular weak and wimpy Gunthers we have seen in the past. He sustained his vocal strength and dramatic intensity to the end. John Tomlinson's Hagen was mesmerising. Although his vocal powers are not quite those that one remembers from his Wotan Bayreuth days, his dramatic intensity was, if anything increased. Menacingly evil, he was able to increase his volume to match anything Runnicles threw at him. At times he almost slipped into a Sprechgesang - but it didn't matter – he was Hagen, son of Albrecht and aspirant ruler of all. Karen Cargill's Waltraute gave a beautifully polished reading, which Runnicles took quite slowly, with many more silences than one would usually hear. Indeed the Maestro was able to bring out the beautifully rich and subtle orchestral accompaniment here with the singer often being accompanied by a single instrument or couple of instruments. Despite the leisurely pace of this section the Prelude and Act I came down 10 minutes shy of 2 hours – one of the quickest I have ever seen – but a no time did it seem rushed. The Maestro was able to use more strongly contrasting tempi to develop dramatic intensity. The Conductor nailed a 10 on the ‘Mike Day' Shivers up the Spine Register in the conclusion to Act I and the audience was propelled into the London twilight gibbering about this and that aspect of the previous one hour and 50 minutes. The Vassals were as rowdy a bunch that you have ever seen. Stephen Jackson the chorus master, had trained them to sing accurately and with as much dynamic contrast as is possible. The Tarnhelm was depicted by Siegfried's wearing a necktie – this is as far as the staging went – and a most effective tool. Once again Hagen, Brünnhilde and Siegfried, with none of the dramatic tools available in a fully staged version, were able to paint a palpable picture at the end of Act II with maestro Runnicles' selection of tempi producing another near perfect climax to end the Act. As Act III progressed, the extremes of volume and tempi continued to provide a highly colourful tone picture. Then, as the immolation scene got underway, the lighting was extended to the ceiling where flickering red and orange lights provided a veritable inferno inside the hall. The non-promenading audience rose to its collective feet to acknowledge a fine production. A postscript. As we made our way back to the tube, the building behind the Albert Hall - which is behind scaffolding - had also been illuminated from inside with red lights and thereby extended the feeling of the Twilight of the Gods. And so we begin our 2007 Wagner season with a picture of the end (or the end of the beginning. John Studdert and Dennis Mather
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