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Wagner: Parsifal

Evgeny Nikitin (Amfortas), Christian Elsner (Parsifal), Franz-Josef Selig (Gurnemanz), Michelle DeYoung (Kundry/Stimme aus der Hohe), Dimitry Ivaschenko (Titurel), Eike Wilm Schulte (Klingsor)

Rundfunkchor Berlin & Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Marek Janowski

It has spontaneity of something which has sunk so deeply into the performers' minds and souls that they can throw caution to the wind and still be accurate...Elsner is a wonderfully sensitive... — BBC Music Magazine, June 2012, 5 out of 5 stars More…

Release Date: 19th Mar 2012
Catalogue No: PTC5186401
Label: Pentatone
Series: Marek Janowski Wagner Opera Cycle
Length: 3 hours 45 minutes

Presto Recording of the Week

26th March 2012
BBC Music Magazine Awards

2013

Award for Technical Excellence
Opera

August 2012

Recording of the Month

Wagner: Parsifal

Work length3:45:52

$52.00

$67.50

$91.00

Martina Ruping (soprano), Timothy Fallon (tenor), Ulrike Schneider (mezzo-soprano), Tuomas Pursio (bass), Olivia Vermeulen (soprano), Clemens Bieber (tenor), Evgeny Nikitin (baritone), Franz-Josef Selig (bass), Lani Poulson (mezzo-soprano), Michael Smallwood (tenor), Michelle DeYoung (mezzo-soprano), Christian Elsner (tenor), Julia Borchert (soprano), Dimitri Ivashchenko (bass), Sophie Klussmann (soprano), Eike Wilm Schulte (baritone)
Rundfunkchor Berlin, Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra
Marek Janowski

Act I: Prelude

Track length11:37

$3.00

$3.85

$5.25

Act I: He! Ho! Waldhuter ihr (Gurnemanz, First knight)

Track length4:52

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$1.75

Act I: Seht dort, die wilde Reiterin (Squires, Knights, Kundry, Gurnemanz)

Track length2:59

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Act I: Recht so! Habt Dank! Ein wenig Rast (Amfortas) - Gawan! Herr! Gawan weilte nicht (Amfortas, Second Knight, Gurnemanz)

Track length6:28

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Act I: He! Du da! Was liegst du dort wie ein wildes Tier? (Squires, Gurnemanz, Kundry)

Track length5:46

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Act I: O wunden-wundervoller heiliger Speer (Gurnemanz, Squires)

Track length3:21

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Act I: Titurel, der fromme Held (Gurnemanz, Squires)

Track length9:43

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Act I: Weh! - Hoho! - Auf - Wer ist der Frevler (Squires, Knights, Gurnemanz, Parsifal)

Track length6:39

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Act I: Nun sag'! Nichts weisst du, was ich dich frage (Gurnemanz, Parsifal, Kundry)

Track length6:40

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Act I: Vom Bade kehrt der Konig heim (Gurnemanz, Parsifal)

Track length1:44

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Act I: Verwandlungsmusik

Track length2:39

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Act I: Nun achte wohl und lass mich seh'n (Gurnemanz) - Zum letzten Liebesmahle (Chorus)

Track length6:24

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Act I: Mein Sohn Amfortas, bist du am Amt? (Titurel, Amfortas)

Track length3:06

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Act I: Wehvolles Erbe, dem ich verfallen (Amfortas, Chorus)

Track length6:35

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Act I: Enthullet den Gral! (Titurel, Chorus) - Nehmet hin mein Blut (Chorus, Titurel)

Track length7:01

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Act I: Wein und Brot des letzten Mahles (Chorus)

Track length5:54

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Act I: Departure of the Knights - Was stehst du noch da? (Gurnemanz, Voice from Above, Chorus)

Track length5:09

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Act II: Prelude - Die Zeit ist da (Klingsor)

Track length5:45

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Act II: Ach! Ach! Tiefe Nacht Wahnsinn! (Kundry, Klingsor)

Track length7:10

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Act II: Ho! Ihr Wachter! Ho! Ritter! (Klingsor)

Track length3:19

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Act II: Hier war das Tosen! (Flower Maidens, Parsifal)

Track length3:43

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Act II: Komm, holder Knabe! (Flower Maidens, Parsifal)

Track length4:51

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Act II: Parsifal! Weile! (Kundry, Parsifal, Flower Maidens)

Track length2:47

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Act II: Dies alles hab' ich nun getraumt? (Parsifal, Kundry)

Track length3:14

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Act II: Ich sah das Kind an seiner Mutter Brust (Kundry)

Track length4:58

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Act II: Wehe! Was tat ich? Wo war ich? (Parsifal, Kundry) - Bekenntnis wird Schuld in Reue enden (Kundry)

Track length5:08

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Act II: Amfortas! Die Wunde! (Parsifal, Kundry)

Track length6:44

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Act II: Grausamer! Fuhlst du im Herzen (Kundry, Parsifal) - Ich sah ihn (Kundry, Parsifal) - Nun such' ich ihn von Welt zu Welt (Kundry, Parsifal)

Track length10:46

$3.00

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$5.25

Act II: Vergeh, unseliges Weib! (Parsifal, Kundry, Klingsor)

Track length3:35

$1.00

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$1.75

Act III: Prelude

Track length4:24

$1.00

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Act III: Von dort her kam das Stohnen (Gurnemanz, Kundry)

Track length7:58

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$3.50

Act III: Heil dir, mein Gast! (Gurnemanz)

Track length6:13

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Act III: Heil mir, dass ich dich wiederfinde! (Parsifal, Gurnemanz)

Track length1:12

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Act III: Zu ihm, des tiefe Klagen (Parsifal, Gurnemanz)

Track length2:03

$1.00

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Act III: O Herr! War es ein Fluch (Gurnemanz) - Die heil'ge Speisung bleibt uns nun versagt (Gurnemanz, Parsifal)

Track length5:59

$1.00

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Act III: Nicht so! Die heil'ge Quelle selbst (Gurnemanz, Parsifal)

Track length4:01

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Act III: Gesegnet sei, du Reiner, durch das Reine! (Gurnemanz, Parsifal)

Track length4:42

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Act III: Wie dunkt mir doch die Aue heut so schon! (Parsifal, Gurnemanz)

Track length2:33

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Act III: Du siehst, das ich nicht so (Gurnemanz, Parsifal)

Track length6:02

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Act III: Mittag: Die Stund' ist da (Gurnemanz) - Verwandlungsmusik

Track length4:12

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Act III: Geleiten wir im bergenden Schrein (Chorus)

Track length3:31

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Act III: Ja, wehe! Weh' uber mich (Amfortas, Chorus)

Track length6:42

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Act III: Nur eine Waffe taugt (Parsifal)

Track length4:23

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Act III: Hochsten Heiles Wunder! - Erlosung dem Erloser!

Track length3:20

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

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Recording of the Week, Wagner - Klaus Florian Vogt and a new Parsifal

26th March 2012

The sweet-toned German tenor presents a portfolio of heavyweight heroes, whilst Marek Janowski’s Wagner cycle on Pentatone continues with a marvellously paced Parsifal, starring Christian Elsner as the ‘holy fool’.

This is the third release of the very successful Wagner Edition. The first release, Flying Dutchman (PTC5186400) was an Editor’s Choice in the Gramophone. The second, Die Meistersinger, (PTC5186402) was the BBC Music Magazine Opera Choice of the Month in February. “It is a phenomenal achievement of Marek Janowski to have welded his immense forces into such a virtually flawless unity.”

Reviews

June 2012

It has spontaneity of something which has sunk so deeply into the performers' minds and souls that they can throw caution to the wind and still be accurate...Elsner is a wonderfully sensitive and expressive Parsifal...But the strongest performance of all is the Amfortas of Evgeny Nikitin...If Janowski's planned cycle...continues like this, it will unquestionably be the finest modern traversal on disc of Wagner's achievement.

26th May 2012

The strongest contributions come from Evgeny Nikitin’s Amfortas and Eike Wilm Schulte’s Klingsor.

5th January 2013

these performances sound polished and well cast, revealing diaphanous beauty and detail in the orchestration...Parsifal is distinguished by Franz-Josef Selig’s majestic Gurnemanz

October 2012

Familiar tropes from previous concerts in this all-Wagner series resurface. Pacing is generally quite quick. Casting and characterisation are naturalistic, apparently written by Wagner. Gurnemanz (Selig) sounds like an inquisitive old squire rather than a retired Wotan waiting to unearth the secrets of the universe. Parsifal (Elsner) is a rough, innocent outsider instead of the chosen one in embryo.

September 2012

Janowski's approach is pointedly symphonic...[Elsner] proves an inspired choice as Parsifal, dark-toned yet lyrical...DeYoung delivers what is by some margin her most compelling performance to date...She pins you to your seat with her description of her alter ego laughing at Christ...All told, this is a Parsifal - in modern sound - to rank with some of the great performances on disc.

August 2012

the first benefit that strikes the listener is the quality of the recorded sound...
This is matched by a vivid performance from the orchestra, who have played Wagner brilliantly throughout this cycle so far...Selig is outstanding, anchoring the whole set with gravitas and weight. He sings not only with authority but with outstanding beauty...Nikitin is outstanding at evoking sympathy...DeYoung’s Kundry is outstanding because she gets inside both aspects of the role.

26th March 2012

[Elsner has] lyricism and stamina to burn...[de Young] is fully alive to the schizophrenic shifts in mood which Wagner demands...Selig is every bit as eloquent and insightful as you’d expect in the verbose role of Gurnemanz...Janowski paces things immaculately: there’s a serene, lucid radiance to the Prelude and Good Friday Music, and never a hint of anything ponderous or stodgy.

15th July 2012

The Parsifal strikes me as one of the finest on disc, easily the best of the past decade, with an avuncular, Sachs-like Gurnemanz in Franz-Josef Selig, an exciting Kundry in Michelle DeYoung, Evgeny Nikitin’s noble, anguished Amfortas (better than in 2010’s Gergiev/Mariinsky set) and, best of all, Christian Elsner’s ideally lyrical and heroic Parsifal.

29th March 2012

the set is beautifully engineered, and the presentation immaculate

Wagner: Parsifal

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Recording of the Week, Wagner - Klaus Florian Vogt and a new Parsifal

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