3/5 A Most Beautiful Ring
  by David D. Dollinger (Pasadena, CA)
With the purchase of Audi's Rheingold and Walkure, I now have his complete Ring. While it is probable that it is not the first Ring DVD I would reach for, there is a very good reason for owning it. Essentially Audi has gone even further than Wieland Wagner. Nothing is representational, nothing is realistic. Sets and costumes bear no relation to any other Ring you may have seen. Wieland, of course, had the advantage of the last great crop of Wagnerian singers: Hotter, Varnay, Windgassen Uhde, for example, and, of course, the eventual arrival of Nilsson. Today (and in 1999 when this cycle was taped) we have nothing like this and must make do with singers who were never meant to assume these roles.

My comments to follow will cover all four sets rather than deal with each set individually inasmuch as my feelings essentially do not vary as regards singing and acting. While nothing is provincial as regards the staging and sets (as I have implied, they are beautiful if you can deal with a totally unrealistic ambience) the singing is quite another matter. Brochler, the Wotan, obviously has the measure of the role, but most of the time his singing is unreliable and veering towards the wobbly. When the passages are declamatory his efforts are more successful, but in long catablile passages (Wotan's great Act II monologue with Brunhilde) his contribution is rather mixed. Altmeyer's Brunhilde is a role that is at least two sizes too big. she simply doesn't have the vocal reserves that is needed for a Brunhilde. Her Chereau Sieglinde is much superior and represents the outer limits of her vocal capacities. Of course she wanted to sing Brunhilde, but she lacks thrust and power when it is needed. Singers such as Anne Evans and Johanna Meier were lucky to tape their roles as Brunhilde and Isolde an act at a time and without the benefit of an audience so were not put to the test as Altmeyer is.

The Siegmund might have had some potential, but attempting to sing this role was a mistake. Surprisingly he is most successful in the Walse passages where he seems to hold on to the note forever--and quite successfully too. Softer passages reveal a slight wobble and loosening of the voice--not what one wants to hear in a Siegmund. Secunde's Sieglinde is shrill and unlovely. She is much superior in the Kupfer/Barenboim taping.

The Siegfried is poorly cast. Not only is he an inadequate actor, he hardly represents the "young" Siegfried. He is somewhat better in the last of the tetralogy, but Kurt Rydl's Hagen is afflicted with a wobble that has gotten worse, while his is the right kind of voice for the role.

Smaller roles are mixed, but generally better than the leads. Chris Merritt's Loge is wonderful, but then as one who enjoys Gragham Clark's Mime a beauriful voice is hardly what the role asks for. Reinhild Runkel's Fricka is probably the best on DVD, but I could probably be accused of damming with faint praise. Her competition is very light-weight.

I understand that this production has since been revived with better singers--at least on paper-- but this is meaningless for those pondering a purchase of what is available currently. If I could only have one Ring it would have to be Kupfer's. But then I would not want to be without Chereau/Boulez. Perhaps the Copenhagen Ring is the best sung, but in spite of the creativity involved, it lacks the mythic quality that is essential (for me) to any Ring, regardless of the setting. The Munich Lenhoff Ring has only been released on laser disc and has not reappeared. EMI did release a CD version, but the singing was variable as regards Behrens who is better heard in the Met version. Kollo is operparted as Siegfried. Stage noises are acceptable when one is watching DVD but irritating on a CD and unless my memory is playing me false, there are a lot of them in this cycle. I have no idea whether or not EMI will release this set, but I don't think it is competitive.

5/5 Magnificent
  by Progressive (Colorado)
I can't tell you how much I enjoy this DVD. First of all the sound and video are superb, as is generally the case with the Opus Arte productions. The sets convey tremendous depth and breadth, and the lighting is eerie. Especially stirring are the movements and costumes of the protagonists; Loge conveys all his ironic cunning and subtlety with his clever gestures; Mime's twitching, sideways, insectile cringings are perfect; Wotan's sinister red costume underlines his harsh, remorseless intention. Alberich looks, appropriately, like a being from a horror film; and I like the juxtaposition of the shorter, heavier and more sentimental Fastolf with his grim and deadly brother Fafner. Do the Dutch just have a special feel for the Ring?

5/5 Fabulous Introduction
  by Volunteer of America (Austin, Texas)
This is a wonderful opening to the Nederlandse Opera's Ring. The video is extremely high quality and the sound is available in Stereo or Surround. The colors and lights of the sets are beautiful and stirring. I especially enjoy the costumes: the red ribbed hair of Odin, the rock-like garb of the giants, Alberich's coat which gives him the look of some loathsome insect. The many levels of the stage are used very effectively. All in all an exceptional DVD, especially for those newly embarked on the musical journey.