One of the most important releases in our history, this unforgettable performance in a new restoration: best sound ever, extensive notes and rare photos. Includes long missing Act I  finale from 18 June 1937. Bonus: extra Act II from 22 June 1937. Steane talks about the Covent Garden 1937 season; Beecham conducts Vaughan-Williams’ Flourish for the Coronation, London Philharmonic and Chorus 1937 premiere on disc. The ultimate edition!

From Henry Fogel’s review published in FANFARE magazine's Nov/Dec 2014 issue:

“ . . . an utterly remarkable performance of Tristan und Isolde available now in a version that so completely supersedes all prior versions as to render them irrelevant. Richard Caniell has given his usual attention to detail, removing hiss, grit and noise to the extent possible but without destroying the color of the voices and the orchestra. . . If you told me I could take only one to that mythical desert island, I would choose this one.

“Flagstad is often accused of being matronly, stolid, lacking in passion. To be sure, there are performances of hers that merit at least some of that criticism, though for me it always pales when set against the sheer glory of the voice itself. But this performance, perhaps inspired by Beecham, shows Flagstad not only at her vocal best, but responsive to text and to dramatic moment. She is girlish, she is impassioned, she is anguished, she is furious, she is tender; she is, in short, a complete Isolde. In no prior releases of this performance did her voice glow and shine the way it does in Immortal Performances’s transfer. The rich beauty of her top notes comes through with remarkable impact.

“Melchior too benefits from the sonic improvements of this edition . . . This is the Tristan of one’s dreams, combining urgency, vocal beauty, and a very musical way of putting forth a phrase.

“The other prime beneficiary of the superb sonic restoration here is Beecham, or rather Beecham and the orchestra. No other edition of this performance offers this degree of richness and variety of orchestral color, this dynamic range, and in particular this beauty of string tone. . . What we have here is one of the greatest performances of that opera ever to be captured in recorded form, finally transferred in a way that respects the quality of the music-making and brings it all vividly to life.

“Richard Caniell also gives us extensive and thoughtful notes that are way beyond what we get in most releases, either by the major record companies or certainly those specializing in historic material. . . And one must also note the wonderful photographs included in the two accompanying booklets.

“There are many labels, major companies and small independent producers, that make historic material available. None does it with the consistently high standards of Immortal Performances. Those of us who believe that the history of the art form of opera must be well documented, for our own enjoyment and for future generations, owe this company an enormous debt of gratitude.”

Best sound over all other editions. Includes articles about the composer, the work, singers & performance.

From Henry Fogel’s review published in FANFARE magazine's Nov/Dec 2014 issue:

“To have in one performance, even if it existed only in our dreams, Melchior, Flagstad, Thorborg, Tibbett, and List is to have as close to a Wagnerian ideal as there is. . . .The key to any performance of Tannhäuser is the tenor in the title role, and it is doubtful that there was ever a better one than Melchior. Seven Met broadcasts exist in some form featuring the great Dane, most having been released on multiple labels . . . Of those, I am familiar with 1941 (on Arkadia CDs), 1942 (Music & Arts), 1944 (Gebhardt), and 1948 (Myto). In all cases the transfers are not very good, exhibiting pitch problems, muffled sound leading to colorless voices, and dynamic compression.

“For this transfer . . . Caniell has gotten a far superior, more natural, orchestral and vocal sound from the material than is even heard on some of the other labels’ later performances. What we have here sounds like the voices we know from later studio recordings, caught in the heat of performance.

“Melchior was as good as it gets in this fiendishly (difficult) role, retaining freshness of voice throughout the opera and characterizing the music with more specificity and dramatic meaning than he is usually credited with. The sound itself is glorious, his ability to sing an even, gentle legato and then to let his voice peal forth with glorious power without ever losing richness of tone is unique to him among Heldentenors. Captured here in his prime, he gives a performance to treasure.

“This is the only recording Tibbett left of a complete German role . . . and if there has ever been a Wolfram with a richer or more beautiful timbre I have not encountered him. He, like Melchior, is capable of a seamless legato, and his singing of the Hymn to the Evening Star has far more of a face to it than his studio recording.

“Flagstad too contradicts the clichés about her glorious voice being married to a too stolid temperament. She sings with variety of color and dynamic shadings, and inflects with specificity in a way that brings Elisabeth vividly to life. And indeed that voice is something of a miracle of nature in its glow and evenness from top to bottom.

“The principal issue in this Tannhäuser is Margaret Halstead’s Venus, a completely unacceptable singer in the company of Melchior, Flagstad, Tibbett, and List. She was apparently a last-minute substitute for Gertrude Wettergren. Caniell has substituted Kerstin Thorborg from a 1941 Met broadcast . . . The insertions are extremely natural and smooth, sonically and musically, and one is not jarred. For those who wonder about the justification for this kind of technical wizardry, Caniell has inserted after the conclusion of the first act some excerpts of Halstead’s performance. It is fairly gruesome singing, with intonation problems and a hollowness of sound that is really hard on the ear. What is particularly impressive is that instead of just lifting Thorborg/Melchior from 1941, because he wanted to keep Melchior from 1936 (where Thorborg wasn’t present) he had to keep switching between the two performances when they sang sequentially. That one cannot hear it is an impressive achievement. ”

“Thorborg’s rich vocal colors and sensitive shaping of Venus’s music more than justifies Caniell’s decision to bring her in from 1941 to remove the disastrous Halstead. None of the insertions are audible, and if we weren’t told . . . we would never realize that this was not a single performance.

“The individual bonus recordings speak for themselves—all are famous among collectors, and all have been restored lovingly and beautifully. . . As is normal for Immortal Performances, there are excellent notes about the opera itself, the singers involved, and the history of the recording as well as insights into the thought processes of Caniell in putting this together. ”

Remastered from a new source with a substantial improvement in sonics over our previous Guild Music release. Plus: two rehearsal portions from Die Walküre. Bonus: Overture to Rienzi, Flying Dutchman rehearsal & broadcast, Tannhäuser Prelude Act III (3 CDs for the price of 2)

Stunning performance by Rose Pauly in best sound ever. CD-2 offers All Strauss 1938 Concert including Don Juan, two lieder and Salome Finale (with Pauly) conducted by Barbirolli. Bonus: rare 78s of Pauly.

From Henry Fogel’s review published in FANFARE magazine's Nov/Dec 2014 issue:

“ “. . . the performance of Elektra somewhat abridged by Rodzinski is the real reason for this set. Rose Pauly . . . was a hugely successful dramatic soprano in Germany in the 1930s, but had to leave as the Nazis rose to power . . . She made very few recordings, and so we don’t think of her in the same way we think of other great dramatic sopranos of her day and the next generation—Flagstad, Leider, Lawrence, Varnay, Borkh and then Nilsson. This Elektra and the astonishing Salome final scene from a New York Philharmonic concert with Barbirolli in 1938 make clear that she is of the same caliber as any of them. . . . (Her) vocal brilliance and steely power, combined with a sufficient warmth of tone to provide vocal beauty as well as sheer volume, are part of the picture. But of equal importance is her understanding and communication of the text. . . Her rage and hatred are reflected in her tone, as is the ecstasy when she recognizes her brother. For those to whom Elektra is an important work, it would be essential to get to know this recording.

“The excerpts from the 1938 all Strauss New York Philharmonic concert are valuable too, giving us more documentation of the art of John Barbirolli. . . the accompaniments to Pauly in the two songs (Verführung and Gesang der Apollopriesterin) are sensitive, and the singing is remarkably intimate . . . Then comes the other highlight of this set: the final scene from Salome. Pauly manages to convey the sense, through vocal color and phrasing, that this girl is indeed a teenager. At the same time, she rides the orchestra with power. This is one of the great recording performances of this scene.

“The excerpts from Die Ägyptische Helena are immensely valuable. . . The conducting strikingly beautiful—not surprising since it is Fritz Busch. These four scenes, as well as the Ford Hour broadcast from Detroit of Allerseelen with Reiner, are extremely gratifying extras in this set, as is the Fidelio aria.

“Immortal Performances’s usual high production standards apply. The transfers are all infinitely superior to what has been around before of this material. The essays by Caniell himself and by London Green are illuminating, stimulating, and models of what we would hope to find in historical re-issues but almost never do. And the artwork and photographs are up to the same level. The texts and translations of the two songs are given as well.

Gala performance included Nureyev in the Polovtsian Dances. Good sound, broadcast commentary; rare photos. Bonus: Interview w/Igor Gorin who sings Arie Antiche

From Henry Fogel’s review published in FANFARE magazine's Nov/Dec 2014 issue:

“ The principal value of this important release is Gorin’s Igor, a towering achievement vocally and dramatically. His rich, resonant, firmly focused voice is based on an extremely sound technique, and he sings with presence and character. Those who really love this opera should know this performance, which is as richly characterized and beautifully sung as any.

“In addition to Gorin, this performance boasts Boris Christoff in the dual roles of Galitsky and Konchak . . . In his excellent notes, producer Richard Caniell notes that Christoff is not in quite as firm voice as he was on his earlier EMI Boris Gudonov recording. That may be true, but he sounds pretty good to me here, and with much firmer tones than he shows on the later EMI set.

“There is one more highlight in Prince Igor, and that is the tenor David Poleri’s sensitive and lovely singing here. This version of Vladimir’s Cavatina can stand with some of the finest.

“So the monumental presence of Christoff and the rich Prince of Gorin are the reasons for serious collectors to explore this set. That is especially true because of the added bonus of a 1961 studio recording originally on the Golden Crest label called Arie antiche, with Gorin accompanied very nicely by pianist Willard Straight. . . . A brief interview rounds out the Gorin material here.

“As usual, Immortal Performances’s production standards are top of the line. The notes are both informative and interesting . . . overall this is a natural sounding early 1960s monaural radio broadcast, and for this kind of material the sound is really terrific.”