Bayerisches Staatsoper Wagner Ring 2018 : Die Walküre

In Munich, the Bayerische Staatsoper struck gold with its current  revival of the Ring, with an astonishingly good cast in this Die Walküre - Nina Stemme, Anja Kampe, Ekaterina Gubanova, Simon O'Neill, Ain Anger and John Lundgren, and Kirill Petrenko conducting with more intensity than ever before.  A good cast of Valkyries, too, some of them significant names in their own right - Daniela Köhler, Karen Foster, Anna Gabler, Michaela Selinger, Helena Zubanovich, Jennifer Johnston, Okka von Damerau and Rachael Wilson.  Wonderful singing, and playing, so delicious that you savour every moment.   The unique character of O'Neill's voice expresses Siegmund’s tortured soul with psychological insight - extraordinarily moving. Kampe (O’Neill’s other half)  interacted well with him, the pair clearly "twins" with old souls, in contrast Anger’s virile Hunding. Anger sings gloriously, and sounds fresh and full of vigour. But we know what is about to happen. Stemme is a striking Walküre Brünnhilde. The part is very different to Brünnhilde in Siegfried and in Götterdämmerung, so relies on more subtlety, which is Stemme's forte. Lundren is a powerful Wotan.  In the saga of the Ring, he, too, eventually gets sidelined and morally upstaged by his daughter, but for now, like Anger’s Hunding, he's very much a potent force , which makes the interpretation tragic.  Musically, this  Die Walküre is ace, but anyone can write about that, so I'll write about the interrelationship between music and ideas.

This Munich Die Walküre proved the value of the production by Andreas Kriegenburg.  An uncluttered, unfussy staging throws focus on the drama, extending the depth of the music, connecting what we see to what we hear.  Staging is a lot more than mere decorative effect.  Dramaturgy connects drama to its wider cultural context. In Wagner's time, that context was taken for granted.  Unfortunately these days some audiences expect opera to be as non-demanding as TV — which is a travesty. Wagner without intellect isn't Wagner.  Superb dramaturgy, by Marion Tiedke and Miron Hakenbeck which addressed Wagner's ideas on society and human interaction.

Siegmund battles through a storm.  The storm is psychic, not just physical : effectively he's been battling turbulent forces since childhood, forces beyond the realm of Nature.   Here we see the "storm" in human terms - anonymous warriors pushing Siegmund to and fro until he breaks free.  Hunding's home seems a haven, yet the World Ash Tree grows in its midst. No building can stand long when a tree this size takes root, nurtured from sources deep in the earth.  The tree doesn't sing but its presence dominates the drama. So what does it symbolize ?   Hunding is a bully who controls the people around him.  In these designs, by Harald B. Thor,  the World Ash Tree resembles the Hanging Tree (1633) by Jacques Callot,  that famous symbol of war and mass destruction.  As we look closely, we can see the bodies of warriors hanging from its branches.

Who is Hunding ? Is he a small time, small, scale Wotan ?  Sieglinde  (Anja Kampe) stands out from her anonymous handmaidens, but who are they ? Later, we see the Valkyries, identical and conformist.  On the battlefield, scattered with bodies of dead warriors, an orgiastic dance suggests primeval  ritual.  Quite a lot of good ensemble movement in this production, choreographed by Zenta Haerter.  The Valkyries' horses are invisible, like the supernatural forces of the storm.  Although they pull the reins, the Valkyries are not free.  When Wotan encases Brünnhilde in a ring of fire, the Valkyries are glimpsed crouched in submission, in the flames.

This creates a tension which reflects the tension throughout the Ring between rulers and the ruled, individuals and groups, and to Wagner's socio-political dynamic of power and powerlessness. .  Alberich is an arch-capitalist browbeating the Nibelungs, but so is Wotan.  Here we see his underlings hold papers on their backs for him to sign. Most bosses use desks. Wotan's desk is empty, which perhaps means something. For all his importance, Wotan's a shabby dealer who has cheated on his builders just as he cheats on his  wife, Fricka (Ekatarina Gubanova).  In the end, Brünnhilde restores to the Rhinemaidens the gold they lost because they didn't look after it properly.   But along the way, a lot of people (and gods) get sacrificed.  "Kinder, macht Neues!" in every sense. At a pinch, you could transpose Wotan and Alberich to Wagner, the flawed creator, and Cosima the obsessive non-creator. The magic of Wagner's Ring is that you can't separate music drama from conceptual,ideas, nor from life outside, in the world.

Watch Janowski's Ring Enescu Festival

Marek Janowski's Wagner Ring at the Enescu Festival in Bucharest continues with Siegfried on Thursday 19th at 1700,  and Götterdämmerung on Sunday 22nd at 1700. No repeats, only live, but it's worth making the time for if you can. Das Rheingold on Sunday was enjoyable, in an energetic way, but Die Walküre was something special. Janowski's style is vigorous, but direct. Not for him the overripe "romance"  some expect in Wagner even though the operas are hardly sentimental by nature. He conducts the Radio Symphonie Orchestra Berlin who may not be as glitzy as Bayreuth but are pretty good.

But listen, too, for the singers, especially Egil Silins. He's a regular on the Wagner circuit  but doesn't often appear in English-speaking countries. His well-modulated control of line suggests Wotan's personality rather well. How Wotan became leader of the Gods, we don't know, but we do know that he's no saint, and may constantly be struggling between his weakness and the power of his position. The Ring isn't about heroes so much as flawed people trying to do the best they can. Silins isn't a flashy personality, but his disciplined technique evokes something of Wotan's hard-won mastery of the wilder forces within himself. Silins is reserved, but when he sings Wotan's confrontation with his daughter, he shows the fragility within., which Wotan usually has to conceal..

Petra Lang is always interesting, and her Brünnhilde is convincing. Without her trademark fiery locks and in evening dress, Lang looks like an ordinary woman, but that helps characterization too. She's strong enough to be a Valkyrie but is also human. I was surprised at the tenderness she brings to the part, especially for a singer who can create demonic Ortruds. A pity that she won't be singing Brünnhilde, awakening from the flames.

On Thursday, Stefan Vinke will sing Siegfried fresh from Seattle. Catherine Foster will sing Brünnhilde fresh from Bayreuth, where much was made of her being the first English Brünnhilde. there. Since the role has no nationality, this alone means nothing. Foster is pleasant enough, if that's what they mean by "English". Martin Winkler sings Alberich and Arnold Bezuyen sings Mime, reprising their roles from Das Rheingold. Both very effective. The George Enescu Festival in Bucharest is definitely on the international map, and they do things to the best of their resources, without fuss. Nearly all concerts are being streamed live, including Enescu's Oedipe around which the Festival was built.

Die Walküre Barenboim Wagner Prom 15

Wagner Die Walküre wasn't just another Prom, it was An Occasion. Bryn Terfel, Nina Stemme and Daniel Barenboim, three of the great Wagner interpreters of our time.  No other Proms, including the other Wagner operas, is likely to come even close. When the BBC does things well it does it well with style. 

Danierl Barenboim is a perennial Prom darling, and for good reason. He cares about doing things with conviction. His Beethoven series last year was disappointing, like warmed-over, recycled  Furtwängler. But the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra is a shining ideal rather than a full-time professional orchestra. This year, Barenboim is back on form with the Staatskapelle Berlin.  Barenboim's Ring for Bayreuth years ago is a landmark. But this Die Walküre and Das Rheingold the previous evening were different. Barenboim can afford to take risks and be original. Perhaps he's forging a new Ring: sharper, edgier, and tighter.  There were many rough edges in this performance, but it  didn't at all matter. Barenboim was going for the spirit of the drama, rather than for luscious sounds. This  Die Walküre felt as close to a chamber opera as may be possible.

Wagner without ideas isn't Wagner. Barenboim's originality was challenging and provocative, the true measure, I think, of a true Wagner conductor. I was incredibly lucky to be seated where I could see his hands and face clearly and follow his every gesture. In the Vorspeil, he waved the orchestra forwards, then ceased moving entirely. The orchestra completed the circular forms in the music powered by their own momentum. Siegmund has been roaming the woods, "in circles" so to speak. The whole Ring reflects the idea that what goes out, comes round. Barenboim seemed preoccupied with quiet moments in the music.. His hands (which are very small, for a pianist) described restraint, pulling the players back to the core of the drama after wild, emotive surges. The Lenz leitmotiv keeps appearing, sometimes subtly disguised, but it is all the more beautiful because it is fragile. Barenboim's delicate touch made it feel poignant, much more powerful than the warhorse showpieces like the Ride of the Valkyries (rather ropy in this performance). The Ring shows how materialism corrupts. Barenboim reminds us of the ideal of pristine nature.

When Bryn Terfel strode on stage, he surveyed the packed-out Royal Albert Hall. When he faced the orchestra, most of the audience couldn't see the smile flash across his face, but I did. It was perfectly in character. Wotan is a cocky thug who thinks he can charm his way out of anything. In the early exchanges with Brünnhilde (Nina Stimme) and Fricka (Ekatarina Gubanova), Terfel seemed to coast, knowing that his best moments were yet to come. But Terfel is such a phenomenon that he's more compelling than anyone else, even at their best. It's a given that he can sing the big moments, but he's even more impressive in subtle sotto voce. When he sings "Nimm, nimm dein Eid"  he expresses suppressed violence so bitter that you can imagine the eons of corrosive conflict between himself and Fricka. His infidelities aren't the larks of a larrikin so much as desperate attempts to break the ring that binds him. From that point, Terfel ignited, pouring himself wholly into the role, with incredible insight.

Terfel's Wotan also gave good support to Nina Stemme's Brünnhilde, his voice holding her like an invisble embrace. When Terfel sang the part at the Met with a null for a Brünnhilde (Deborah Voigt), he carried the whole opera on his own. Stemme was infinitely better. Like Terfel she is superb even when she's not perfect. I was close enough to see how hot she was in that tight, heavy gown. The dynamic between Terfel and Stemme was intense, as it should be given that these roles are central to the whole saga. Stemme rose to her true heights when she sang Brünnhilde's defiance. She's a good daughter but her rebellion springs from deep principles that her father has yet to learn. Stemme's glow. When the fires rise, Terfel's voice expresses such complex emotion that one wonders if this is the point at which he begins to understand. 

Simon O'Neill's Siegmund was a revelation. His voice is difficult to cast because it has unique qualities that don't lend themselves to all roles. Siegmund, however, is his trademark. He's done it so many times that he, too, brings real insight to the part. Siegmund is ravaged, cursed since childhood, doomed to living rough. Yet he still has the capacity to love, and more moral courage than his father had.  He's so inured to being hurt that anguish pervades his personality. When O'Neill sings resounding  "Wälse! Wälse! Wo ist dein Schwert? " his voice rang out defiantly. But we know, and Siegmund knows, that he's so inured to suffering that no sword can heal his psychic scars. O'Neill creates Siegmund as a whole person, who commands more attention than the role usually gets. Siemund has the selflessness Brünnhilde admires, but none of the foolishness that will destroy Siegfried.  
 
 Barenboim is particularly good at evoking in the orchestra the sterility of Hunding's house and Sieglinde's (Anja Kampe) quiet desperation.  Kampe's characteristic energy makes her a Sieglinde, who, like Siegmund, grasps at hope, aware it might never come again.  When O'Neill and Kampe sing their famous dialogue, we hear two tortured, damaged souls grasping for escape. But the green shoots of this Spring will be killed by a winter storm. Barenboim's bleak interpretation intensifies their vulnerability and their human tragedy,

Bayreuth Lohengrin live online, Sunday

Sunday 14th 1600 German time - direct from the Festspielhaus Bayreuth, Richard Wagner's (who else) Lohengrin. HERE IS THE LINK ! Live, online, international, and very high quality, courtesy of Siemens AG. State of the art. If you can wire your PC onto bigscreen TV, you can have a party at home, no airport and hotel, no carbon emissions, no security hassle. Register and pay 14,90 euro in advance, but that's still a quarter of the price of Met HD. On demand screening will be available for 2 weeks until 30th August.

Klaus Florian Vogt - one of the best Lohengrins about! Annette Dasch, Petra Lang, Tomas Tomasson, Georg Zeppenfeld, Samuel Youn, Andris Nelsons conducts - sure to be good. It's the fabled Hans Neuenfels production from last year, the one with the giant mice. In 2009 Siemens brought us the controversial Christoph Marthaler Tristan und Isolde, which I liked (see review HERE)  I still don't get the hospital bed Liebestod, but the first two acts were good. Love or hate Marthaler or Neuenfels, anything would be better than Tankred Dorst's brain-free Die Walküre reviewed HERE.

Two who have already seen Neuenfel's Lohengrin are Opera Cake and Boulezian. Please clip on the links for more.Enjoy reading, enjoy watching!

Die Walküre Met - artistic schizophrenia? Terfel, Kaufmann

What to make of the Met's Wagner Die Walküre? Brilliant First Act, so powerful it seemed like the whole Met ethos had been transformed. Das Rheingold was much derided because Robert Lepage's Big Machine took the spotlight. But in many ways, Das Rheingold failed because the singing, costumes and direction were sub-standard. The machine was a scapegoat. This Die Walküre indicates that it's been vindicated. The fault lies not with the set but the way it's used.

Stormy skies, a dense forest. Small figures appear in the cracks that open when the machine slats open. The Machine isn't a monolith - that in itself is an insight. So oppressive is this "forest" that when Siegmund collapses it feels like he's genuinely been through an overwhelming struggle. Jonas Kaufmann is amazing. I'd worried that his most perfect Lohengrin might not translate into wildman Siegmund, but Kaufmann characterizes so well that he's expanded the role beyond all expectations.

Siegmund is unlettered but not uncouth. Kaufmann's Siegmund bristles with intensity and intelligence. In the context of the whole Ring saga, it's a relatively small part, but Kaufmann shows why it's so critically important in the wider scheme of things. This is Siegmund as  a true hero, one for whom even a Valkyrie will challenge the Gods. As Wehwalt he suffered, but also helped others when he could. Siegfried in comparison can be a bit of a boor. As his Siegmund dies, Kaufmann raises his hand to caress Wotan's face. It's incredibly poignant and moving, intensely evocative.The role sits slightly high for his voice, so there's some strain, such as the sudden, tricky leap upwards on "Geliebter" after the quiet "Schwester". But many have been far worse. What counts is the overall portrayal : Kaufmann sets new standards.

Eva-Maria Westbroek was an excellent foil. She coils around Kaufmann's Siegmund so well that they really do seem like twin serpents.Westbroek isn't a typical "pretty" soprano but a good character singer who can bring edgy depth  to what she does. There's more to Sieglinde than doormat. I loved Westbroek's punk Elektra in Zurich, and her fiesty, sexual Elisabeth in Tannhäuser. Neither role a conventional interpretation, but perfectly valid in context.

Bryn Terfel coasted through the Met's recent Das Rheingold. He was right. Why should he bother when no-one else was even trying? Maybe this time a stronger international cast upped the stakes. Terfel responded.  Terfel's voice is so huge it impresses even when he's more into bark than bite, but here he was throwing himself into character, breathing into words so they came alive. Nuance and Terfel don't necessarily come together, but in this Wotan, Terfel brings out the insecurity at the heart of the role. Wotan wanders because he's searching for something he doesn't have. A paradigm for modern man perhaps, which makes the role so resonant. Exquisitely well balanced, thoughtful monologue in Act Two. Terfel cultivates a gruff persona for his public, but inside there's a sensitive artistic soul that needs to get out more.

Fricka on the other hand represents uncompromising moral absolutes. Stephanie Blythe sang with more gravitas and depth than she's done in years, but the ludicrous costume and throne destoyed her credibility. She's turned into the Queen in Disney's Snow White. It's a warning sign of the silliness that will eventually submerge this otherwise brilliant production. The real damage starts when Brünnhilde enters.

Deborah Voigt is an insider at the Met, so an obvious choice for a high profile production but Brünnhilde really isn't the role for her. I've rarely seen such a one-dimensional performance.Vocally, she's under pressure, so thin at the top she's almost shrill. But far more worrying is the characterization, or lack thereof.  It's as if the insight that went into directing the first two acts suddenly disintegrated.

Any Ring cycle predicates on Brünnhilde, for she is the real hero of the whole cycle. Brünnhilde is the real hero of the Ring because she's the one who breaks its curse. She's a formidably original personality who breaks rules.  Long before the opera begins. she's established her credentials. That's why she's Wotan's pet, for she's smarter than he is. Instead, Voigt simpers, pouts and acts coy like she's exceedingly pleased with herself.  There can be many ways to create Brünnhilde but this one goes against everything we can glean from the text, music and what we know of Wagner's philosophy. Whoever directed Voigt this way does extreme harm. If this is what the role is like at this stage in the saga, what will be be when it proceeds further?

Even Francis Ford Coppola realized how traumatic the Ride of the Valkyries should be. It's an apocalyptic nightmare, where warriors feud even after they're dead. Wagner's music is powerful because the Ride shows where greed leads.  So what do we get from the Met? Jolly cheerleaders in comic book costumes collecting neat plastic bones in gauze bundles. No matter how spirited the playing from the pit, the whole impact of the Ring is rendered trivial.  The production started out so well, so when it ends a mess, it's heartbreaking.

The wonderful first two acts of Die Walküre  prove that this new Ring has the potential to become one of the great classics. So why did it go so horribly wrong in  the Third Act? Were there two completely different directors, or did the Third Act die stillborn in embryo form?   So much has been invested in this project that it's hard to believe it's being left half finished. Perhaps it's a Lepage thing tio run out of steam but too many people were involved in this to make it a one-person show. What is really going on behind the scenes at the Met? Don't they want a good production to replace the last? The disparity between the two different approaches is so extreme it feels like an act of artistic sabotage, suicide or schizophrenia.

Blaming the Big Machine is a non-starter now that we've seen how good this production can be. Because the machine can undulate and contort, it's potential is huge, used imaginatively. At one point in the Second Act, the machine undulated, as if the ground underfoot was falling apart. Ominous flashes of red light, as if lava was about to spew forth. What a fantastic simile for the twisted moral ground in the plot! But the idea fades and instead we have safe, boring and bland. Let's hope Lepage and/or  the Met decide what they really want to do with this Ring. Whatever Wagner may be, he's not safe, boring or bland.

What's up in Venusberg? Melchior naked Tannhäuser

What's really going on in Venusberg? Why are the good folks of Wartburg so afraid ? Much praise for the ballet in the Royal Opera House production of Wagner Tannhäuser because it is beautiful - maidens in white slips waving and bending. As ballet, it's wonderful. But is it Venusberg? Of course sinister things don't "need" to be depicted. Most of us are used to polite images of Venusberg with naked women looking charming, but in the 19th century just showing a nude was titilliating, especially if you were sitting next to a buttoned up High Victorian matron.

What did Wagner think? Anyone who insists on following stage directions to the letter is in for a serious shock! Wagner wanted depravity. Bacchantes, satyrs and fauns: all famous for debauchery. Wagner explicitly depicts ein Nebelbild zeigt die Entführung der Europa, a picture in the clouds of the Rape of Europa, a nymph who's carried off by an oversexed bull. If that's not enough, Wagner later mentions Leda, who caresses a swan on her lap. What Wagner's audiences knew was that the swan then rapes the girl.  Bestiality, drunkeness, violence and disorderly abandon. Read Wagner's exact words (and translation) HERE. So those who piously talk platitudes about "modern" values in stagecraft should go back to source and be grateful that Jasmin Vardiman's ballet cleans things up.

Listening to the broadcast on BBC Radio 3 was wonderful. It's available online internationally for 7 days. Because its repeated, no need to cram everything into one listening.

This time really concentrate on the singing, which is magnificent. Gerhaher is beautiful, but Westbroek and Johan Botha are able to develop the complexity that makes the roles so fascinating. As Tannhäuser tells Wolfram, "You lot don't even begin to understand." Botha knows what motivates Tannhäuser and why. And if you REALLY want a shock, search for the Life magazine spread on Lauritz Melchior at the Met in 1943. See Melchior naked! He's completely unconcerned about being seen in his girdle and love handles. This pic is not part of it as far as I can track, and it's pretty tame. By reputation, Melchior was probably the greatest Tannhäuser there ever was. "It's the singing, stupid" he might say.PLENTY MORE ON THIS SITE about Wagner and specifically the Royal Opera House Tannhäuser

NEW La Scala Milan Die Walküre Barenboim

NEW IMPROVED and formal review of Wagner Die Walküre at La Scala  Milan, with photos. Interesting because it's mega high profile (at least in Italy), Barenboim made a big speech and the cast is as starry as possible in theory. Stemme, Meier and Gubanova were so outstanding that if I were a director, I'd build the whole production around them and the insights they bring. Young and sassy! Please read more:

.......Waltraud Meier is one of the greatest Wagnerians of all time. Any opportunity to hear her cannot be missed, for she has created all the roles and understands their place in the grand scheme. Although she’s no longer in the first bloom of youth, her artistry is such that she can create a Sieglinde so ravishing that she seems transfigured. Sieglinde’s past has been too traumatic for her to be an ingenue. so Meier’s interpretation emphasizes the way Seiglinde blossoms as love awakens her, like a parched plant unfurling after a long drought. When Meier sings “Du bist der Lenz”, her voice warms and opens outwards. It’s so expressive that she creates the idea of the world ash tree bursting into leaf despite the barren surroundings."

".....Wonderful as Meier is, even she is outclassed by Nina Stemme’s Brünnhilde. Stemme is so lively and vivacious that she completely dispels any memories of historic, matronly Brünnhildes, with metal breastplates, horned helmets and spears. Instead, she’s dressed in what could pass as a modern if quirky evening dress, a blend of lace and bombazine with hints of Goth and punk. The costume (Tim van Steenbergen) fixes Brünnhilde at once in Wagner’s world of political rebellion and in present day ideas of generation conflict."

".....Stemme’s youthful energy and spark highlight her idealism and high principles. She’s not intimidated by Wotan, however much she loves him. Here, already in germination, is the Brünnhilde of Götterdämmerung who will defy death itself to right the wrongs that have gone before. Stemme’s voice pulsates with intensity, and softens with tenderness, her control firm and measured. Stemme’s vigour might have been even more impressive against a more dominant Wotan, but Vitalij Kowaljow was adequate rather than brooding. Nonetheless, of the male singers in this performance, he held up best.

.....Ekaterina Gubanova’s Fricka was superb, elevating the role from a minor part to something far more profound. Usually the role is unsympathetic as our feelings about Hunding are negative, and it’s Fricka who demands that he be revenged, even though he married Sieglinde by force. Gubanova looks and sings with youthful radiance, connected more to the idea of growth and refreshment than to barrenness and drought. After all she stands for moral principles, just as Brünnhilde does. Wotan defiles marriage by scattering offspring everywhere, destroying many lives. Fricka stands for good, even if she’s stern, as Gubanova’s interesting portrayal suggests.

Please read the full review in  Opera Today

Needy the Sword : live La Scala Die Walküre Milan

"If Wagner had been a butcher, he would have made ideal hamburgers, 20gr beef, 30gr pork, 50 gr....." said Daniel Barenboim in the live broadcast from La Scala of Wagner Die Walküre. Wagner, he explained, blended his ingredients well. But that wasn't the big news of the evening. Outside the grand Teatro alla Scala, protestors demonstrated against cutbacks. As the President of Italy and his entourage sat in a royal box decorated with several thousand roses, Barenboim, never one to be shy of facing controversy, stood up to say how he worried about the future of culture in this current economic chaos.Perhaps Wagner might have chuckled though he very nearly caused Bavaria to collapse with his own demands. On the other hand, Barenboim is right. Culture is very much part of a nation's economy. Money spent on the arts enriches everyone long-term.
PLEASE SEE NEW IMPROVED FORMAL REVIEW HERE
The cast certainly were grand luxe. Rene Pape was due to sing Wotan, but pulled out. John Tomlinson didn't sing Wotan, which was probably just as well. He sang Hunding, a short part and far less demanding. Tomlinson's Hunding wasn't a brutish old bandit but genial, like an addled old rock star, complete with ponytail. Still, everyone loves John Tom, so it hardly mattered. Pape's replacement was Vitalij Kowaljow, a young Ukranian bass who held up the male side adequately. Simon O'Neill, however should have pulled out as Siegmund. "Schwester!" he screeched, and from there he went downhill. Perhaps he's 'pushing himself too far too soon. He's also not visually expressive, so he can't fall back on acting when his singing goes haywire.

O'Neill's Siegmund could not be by any stretch of the imagination a twin to Waltraud Meier's Sieglinde. Even though Meier isn't in the first flush of youth she's phenomenal. What she emphasizes is Sieglinde's fundamental goodness - a Wagner role which isn't after something, as Meier said. Sieglinde's suffered too many traumas in her past to be an ingénue. Instead, Meier makes her blossom from within the moment she sees her brother. The years seem to melt from her voice as it warms and opens out. Meier is experienced enough to understand the undercurrents in the opera better than any director, even most conductors, for that matter. O'Neill's Winterstürme wichen is dry and barren.  Meier's Du bist der Lenz unfurls like a parched plant given water. He cries Ein Quell, his thirst quenched by a drink, like Hunding's nightcap. Sieglinde's needs are deeper. In this production the disparity between Siegmund and Sieglinde is so extreme as to make one wonder if they might be mother and son, adding another twist to these dysfunctional family relationships.

But even Waltraud Meier is outclassed by Nina Stemme's Brünnhilde. She, too, has the ability to glow from within, her voice a wonder of colour and brightness. Historic Brünnhilde probably relied more on volume than subtlety. Stemme's voice is far too lively and supple to fall into the wings and horned helmet cliché. She gives Brünnhilde personality, which seems to stem from intelligent interpretation. One of the reasons Die Walküre is fascinating is that it's an example of generation conflict: teenage rebellion Valhalla-style. Brünnhilde's her father's favourite because she's so like him. Yet because she's principled and idealistic, she fights back. And she's female, too. The 19th century wasn't nearly as stuffy as it's assumed today. Stemme's feisty, even sexy, helped by a wonderful costume, part bombazine and lace, part bondage Goth. All the Valkyries are stuningly dressed in outfits with bustles that resemble wings - another witty take on 19th century style. Opera singers don't always have supermodel figures but the designer (Tim van Steenbergen) makes each one look kinkily glamorous and individual. It seems to show in their singing, too. 

Ekaterina Gubanova's Fricka is another twist on convention. Fricka may be the goddess of marriage, implying formality and convention, because she upholds Hunding. Yet Gubanova portrays her as young and passionate, the "good" side of marriage often overlooked because our sympathies lie with Sieglinde. Wotan moans because he prefers fooling around scattering offspring round the realm with disastrous effects. Maybe Fricka has a point. Gubanova's spirited perrformance inspires all kinds of new perspectives on the Ring.

Director Guy Cassiers speaks about ideas like "metal and water",  paranoid gated communities and the European Union but these aren't followed through. Hunding's house is well conceived because it's a mirror walled box of light surrounded by menace. One might argue that it's a suburban Valhalla since Hunding is a bandit and cheat, like Wotan, Alberich and most everyone else. But the idea isn't followed through so its impact fizzles out. The vertical tubes of light which portray the forest in Act 2 are decorative but add no meaning and the idea of Valkyries flying off a video collage with images of the fountains of Milan is cute rather than profound. Alas, the magic fire in Act 3 is just plain silly. Cassiers is right in saying that it's up to the listener to turn images into meaning but if there's no clear point of view behind the images, there's nothing to build on. Still, this set is much cheaper that Lepage's Das Rheingold at the Met, and Cassiers does seem to have thought through relationships and motivation. This cast isn't cardboard and most of them can sing.

Last but certainly not least: "Needy the Sword". Nothung!  The name is almost impossible to translate but what it means is "What you need", "Needy" means the opposite, because it's demanding and selfish. No-one in the Ring is "needy" except possibly Mime and Gutrune. They all scam but they don't whine. But the mistranslation in the subtitles was hysterically funny. The translators don't have anything to worry about, not even howlers like "blackguard wooer" It lightens the mood and makes us think. It's an unexpected bonus !

Hoiotoho! Die Walküre Bayreuth goes global

Hoiotoho!  Wagner goes global, Die Walküre from Bayreuth available online, internationally thanks to Siemens AG. "The whole world is a festival theater" goes the publicity, and it's true.

It really is a grand gesture because the whole opera world can come together, to enjoy the finer parts of Wagner's vision.  Kinder, macht Neues! in every sense. The petty cliques of closed cult Bayreuth are breaking down.  In this increasingly cynical, selfish world, such gestures are generous. Of course there's something in it for Siemens, since they're demonstrating the potential of telecommunications technology. But their faith in Bildung deserves respect. Bildung simply means that human beings can strive for improvement, and for ideals.

Pity, then that they had to screen Tankred Dorst's brain-free Die Walküre. It's been around since 2006, so Siemens should have been warned. Or maybe someone in marketing realized that what sells these days isn't what is good, but what appeals to the lowest common denominator.  Big money was thrown into this production, but it's so pointless it would disgrace a student venture.

Wagner without ideas? Wagner without emotional engagement? Wagner railed at Meyerbeer (unfairly) for producing brain-dead pap.  Now Meyerbeer has the last laugh. This set's so generic it could have been lifted from a cheap video game. Except they haven't made video games that dull since 1981.  The designs didn't have a chance, though, as the direction was so cardboard that they might as well have put the singers on castors and rolled them on and off. "It's Freudian", Dorst tells an interviewer. He noticed? Pity he didn't tell anyone. This isn't a "modern" production by any means. Breastplates, funny hats. Basically, a tacky remake of some notional antique Ring, learned from photographs, not from the music.

This is what happens when there isn't any direction at all, not even an attempt at coming to terms with what's in the opera.Whatever Wagner may be, he's not superficial or shallow. This is a production by and for those who don't actually like Wagner.

Fortunately, this is a very strong cast, all experienced enough to know what Wagner's about. So, park and bark, without the bark. Johan Botha's a finely nuanced Siegmund, good enough that he'd probably convince as Siegfried.  Kwangchul Youn's Hunding is complex and dark, much more than stock villain. Edith Haller's gorgeously vivacious when her Sieglinde breaks out of Hunding's spell. Mihoko Fujimura sings well, but really shouldn't have been costumed as fake-Japanese. It's racist because she's a good performer whatever her nationality. Albert Dohmen looks ridiculously young next to Linda Watson's magnificent Brünnhilde. She saves the show because she gets on with her vision of the role, in the vacuum of this vacuous production. Maybe she was bored witless too, but being a true Valkyrie, she got on with the job.

Christian Thielemann conducted spiritedly. Often, a conductor gets praise when the rest of a production's bad, but in this case the praise is deserved.  So what a disappointment - good singing (if no acting), good orchestra, absolutely wonderful sound reproduction and intelligent filming and lighting. And definitely major respect due to Siemens AG, the TV crew backstage, the simultaneous translator, and the whole team that made this broadcast possible.  They are extremely professional. But Gesammstkunstwerk with the drama missing, that's not Wagner. Hopefully, next year Siemens will have the courage of artistic conviction and let the lowest common denominator rise up towards it. Maybe that's just the kick Katharina needs. If Siemens can get this Wagner to raise her standards, they'd be doing  Richard Wagner a huge favour indeed.