Der Ring Des Nibelungen

This is a superb Ring cycle. While not in stereo like the 1955 cycle released by Testament, it is marginally better sung. Hans Hotter in particular is in much better voice than he was two years later and I prefer Martha Mödl's Brünnhilde to Astrid Varnay's. Ramon Vinay and Regina Resnik are not my favorite Siegmund and Sieglinde pair, but that's about the only criticism I can make about this fabulous performance. The sound is excellent mono, with some distortion in some loud portions, especially in the bass tubas. I would call this an absolutely necessary addition to any serious Wagner collection. One caution, however: The first act of Siegfried is not by Keilberth; it is from the better known Krauss Ring of 1953. Every other release that I'm aware of that claims to have the Keilberth Siegfried from 1953 substitutes the Krauss first act. This substitution takes nothing away from the greatness of this set, since the three roles in the first act were sung by the same singers in both Keilberth and Krauss cycles that year, but it should be pointed out in any honest review.

Listening to this RING and the other 1953 recording conducted by Clemens Krauss, I'm puzzled as to why Keilberth was once criticized as a burden on talented singers (in OPERA ON RECORDS, the first major guide to the subject published). The other reviewers have stated the case for this cycle's excellence, so I won't add anything on that point, but if there's anyone who's been misled by the view that Keilberth was somehow inferior to the other great conductors of "New Bayreuth", I'd suggest he buy this set so as to hear what a great Wagnerian Keilberth was.

I'm very happy to have this recording available. While I own many mono recordings, there's something off on this one, as the voices are pushed to the left and something else is going on in the right channel. My guess is that it's something that's designed to make mono recordings sound less mono, but the overall effect is unpleasant and not truthful to the recording. People who buy these sets tend to be purists, and we all know that many of the great Bayreuth recordings were mono, so no need to "fix" that.Again, I'm very happy to own this set and recommend it strongly for the reasons already stated by others; we would kill to have artists of this quality available today.

Keilberth tears into the music with a red hot passion that fully realizes both Wagner's long melodic arcs as well as his insistent rhythmical coherence that keeps one on the seat's edge. Very good and immediate sound.

GREAT Ring

It's good to have this, though the sound does little justice to Wagner. (I suppose it's as good as you get from 1950s vinyl mono. Still, with Solti's any many other superb recordings available at a reasonable place, this is only for the Wagnerite who must have them all.

A treasure!

In summary buy this plus Keilberth 1955 plus Solti. All three are excellent.Then consider adding to it a few recordings of Die Walküre. In particular the Met 1941 with Flagstad’s and Melchior under Leinsdorf plus Leinsdorf conducting Walküre with George London from the 1960s.Then consider a few historical recordings of Die Walküre alone if you need more.Sure there are many more, but I doubt you’ll find better than these. As an aside for Tristan un Isolde the Fritz Reiner 1936 recording remastered by Ward Marston of Naxos is unbelievably good. It’s imo the best Tristan-even better than Furtwängler 1952, save for the Liebestod where Flagstad with the superior recording technology of 1952 will take your breath away). Overall I prefer Karajan 1972 Tristan due to better sound, and with excellent conducting and singing.Keilberth, and Solti are the best complete Ring Cycles. Leinsdorf 1961-2 with George London and LSO and the aforementioned Met 1940 with Flagstad are close to the equal best Walküre-but he didn’t record the whole Ring with this cast. London is almost as fine as Hotter as Wotan, although I prefer Hotter. John Vickers makes an excellent Siegmund and Brouwenstijn is excellent as Sieglinde. Sound in the later recording is close to Solti but without the larger than life sound effects.In this mono Keilberth, there is outstanding singing by all, especially Hotter as Wotan and Mödl as Brunnhilde. Although it’s mono, sound is very good. Overall it’s only bettered by Keilberth’s stereo 1955 recording on Testament and Solti.But you also want Solti and I’d probably get that if you only want one recording of the Ring. It’s sonically the best and all performers are excellent. But make no mistake: the Keilberth stereo 1955 is the best recording in stereo, because the singing is arguably the best on record.Some say singing is better in the Keilberth 1953. I disagree: both recordings have Hotter at his prime and the 1955 edges out this recording because it’s in stereo and arguably better recorded. Sonically it’s more involving in stereo. If in doubt listen to both and I suspect you’ll quickly agree.The Ride Of the Valkyrie is much better sung in the stereo version and the orchestra sound in the stereo is much better than the mono. The one qualification is that Hotter is marginally better in Wer Meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet in this 1953 recording. That is probably the finest Wer Meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet on CD. It’s that superb. He sings there with amazing authority.But the orchestra sound is better in the Keilberth stereo. So, you really should buy both, as there’s no perfect set (singing, orchestra, conducting, sound quality). In any event, you cannot go wrong with this 1953 set. For me it is a clear equal second place, only behind the 1955 Keilberth, with Solti equal second. Ideally get both plus Solti remastered plus Leinsdorf’s two Walküre. You’ll then have the best recordings. IMO Böhm Karajan Barenboim are not in the same league.The reason I suggest the Solti is simple: sonically it’s the best with Leinsdorf later, and most of the singers are excellent. That combination places it above much touted mono recordings and most stereo ones. Even the weaker singers (I personally think Mime overdoes it in Siegfried) are very good.However, aside from the best sonics, Solti delivers the finest Act two of Die Walküre with Leinsdorf. Here I prefer Solti and Leinsdorf to either Keilberth. Birgit Nilsson is superb as Brunnhilde for both Solti and Leinsdorf, and Christa Ludwig is remarkable as Fricka while Rita Gorr does an excellent job for Leinsdorf. Here Solti and Leinsdorf seem to understand that this is the most probing and meditative Act in the Ring and both deliver a marvellous engrossing performance with the aid of Hotter, Nillson and Ludwig. Elsewhere in the more demanding parts Hotter is finer in the Keilberth stereo, save for Wer Meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet in Keilberth mono, which is probably the finest on record.Whether you agree or not with Solti ‘s interpretation, he has (with Leinsdorf) the best stereo sound of all, and an excellent cast of singers. It’s only because Keilberth has very good to excellent sound especially in the stereo, better interpretation and much the same singers a decade or so younger that either of his recordings beats Solti for me-at least in singing and interpretation (with the exception of Walküre Act Two). It’s very noticeable in most of Die Walküre and Siegfried especially, with Keilberth delivering superior Ride Of Valkyrie, orchestral introduction, and Wer Meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet, for example.My ranking (I’ve photographed five recordings from my collection above):1. Keilberth 1955 stereo recording-Hotter and Varnay and Windgassen at their peak. An unrivalled combination. Sound excellent although it has a few stage noises. An extraordinarily enthralling and exciting orchestra beginning in Die Walküre, (easily the best I’ve heard), and breathtaking Ride of the Valkyrie (Walküre) (and here the singing is at least 20% finer than in Solti - which is already excellent), and Hotter’s majestic Heil Dir in the first Act of Siegfried. This is where stereo beats mono-mono can’t give the wonderful sound on offer in Keilberth 1955.Very close but Die Walküre only: Leinsdorf 1962 with George London as Wotan and the Met recording. Equal best Walküre with Keilberth 1955 and Solti. Orchestra sound is excellent as are the singers. George London makes a fantastic Wotan, a little different to Hotter with a slightly more metallic voice. Orchestra sound is better than Keilberth (a live recording after all), and equally as fine as Solti. Singers are all excellent.2. This recording and Solti: this recording has excellent singing and conducting, but mono sound. It’s half the price of the Testament recording so that may influence your choice. Hotter is amazing here, especially in Wer Meines Speeres fürchtet, and even better than he is in Keilberth stereo, but the orchestra sound is not as good in mono. I’d be very surprised if you heard a better Wer Meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet than Hotter in this mono recording. The mono sound doesn’t affect the voices much, only the orchestra.The Solti remastered set sounds much better than the original, and orchestra sound is outstanding. But Hotter is past his best, although still way better than other Wotans. Windgassen is likewise past his best. Fabulous sound but so too is Keilberth 1955 (but it’s live, and understandingly not as fine sonically as Solti’s studio recording). A rather sniveling Mimi, which is better interpreted in either Keilberth. Just remember that with Keilberth you are hearing a live Bayreuth performance beautifully recorded, and with the stereo version (or this mono version is not far behind), probably the best singers in stereo at their best. I’m excluding earlier great singers because the recording quality is mediocre thanks to the technology of the time.3. Karajan-more meditative but Thomas Stewart is very good as Wotan. Well recorded. The Ride Of the Valkyrie is well done, with a great distant sound where required. Thomas Stewart is not in the same league as Hotter in Wer Meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet. He’s a little underwhelming-still fine, but Hotter especially in this recording under review followed by the Keilberth stereo is just sublime.Equal 3. Böhm - I find Theo Adam sometimes good and sometimes not so good as Wotan. Very good in Wer Meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet (in which he pulls out all stops) but underwhelming -almost weak- in Heil Dir for example. After Hotter he’s like listening to a talented but not sublime artist. Also in the Ride Of the Valkyrie the singer fades at an important climax-hardly surprising, but there is greater authority in either Keilberth or Solti. Good in general and well conducted and recorded but can’t compete with Keilberth or even Solti IMO. Also consider Barenboim on Bluray for a good performance with visuals.So, for me 1 and 2 (both Keilberth and Solti) are essential versions. Both threes are very good. It’s just that nobody in the stereo era was or is as good a Wotan as Hotter, with the exception of George London who was also outstanding.It’s a great shame no one video taped Keilberth 1955: the photos in the Testament set (especially Hotter dressed as Wotan) are amazing. Barenboim has some strange and incongruous costumes and staging.I haven’t heard the Krauss 1953, but can’t imagine it beats Keilberth 1955-it’s mono after all. If you have a good hifi you will notice the far more involving sound in stereo Keilberth and Solti. As Krauss also has Hotter and several singers in the Keilberth set, it’s bound to be good. Some say the first Act in Siegfried in this Keilberth is actually Krauss conducting. It’s not mentioned in the CD but it could be. If so, Krauss is as good as the 1953 Keilberth, but I prefer the 1955 stereo. I considered buying Krauss but ultimately decided the stereo Keilberth and Solti are much better sonically and more than offset any superior conducting. Having said that I doubt you’ll hear better conducting and performance than Keilberth 1955.None of the above have a printed libretto, although the original Solti CD set does. But you would be hard pressed to find a better libretto than the excellent book - Wagner’s Ring-by Stewart Spencer, which I have in hardback (photo above.

Great passion. Classic

No conozco la edición estéreo de la versión que hizo Keilberth al año siguiente, pero puedo asegurar que esta no defraudará a nadie, ni siquiera por el sonido monofónico en que está grabada. La interpretación del director me parece una verdadera joya y, aunque conocía otras grabaciones de Keilberth (p.e., un soberbio Lohengrin), esta supera cualquier expectativa. Los intérpretes son de lo mejor de la época. ¿Qué decir de Hotter, Modl, Vinay, Windgassen? Y la orquesta está a un nivel de lo mejor de las grabaciones en vivo de Bayreuth. Mi recomendación es que no se lo pierdan por nada del mundo, por lo menos ningún wagneriano que se precie. Y todo por un precio irrisorio, que contrasta con la grabación aludida del año siguiente.

La description qui équipe la présentation du produit n'appelle aucun commentaire factuel étant traduite de la notice sommaire intégrée au boîtier. Un coffret extra-plat accueillant douze CD, chacun conditionné dans une pochette protectrice. Une présentation plus commode que celle des treize CD, empilés sans protection, d'un coffret concurrent chez Zyx ('The Ring of the Nibelungs' - Keilberth & Furtwängler, 1952-1953) où l'on retrouve le même Siegfried du 27 juillet 1953. L'on sait qu'en 1953, c'est Joseph KEILBERTH qui était en charge du premier cycle quand le second, nettement plus connu depuis l'ère du microsillon, revenait à Clemens KRAUSS.Autour du Wotan de Hans HOTTER, les deux distributions sont similaires mais le cycle dirigé par KEILBERTH permet d'entendre les trois Brünnhilde de Martha MÔDL en lieu place d'Astrid VARNAY avec KRAUSS et dans nombre d'autres Tétralogies captées à Bayreuth dans les années cinquante. Plus rare au disque, Martha MÖDL, Brünnhilde de la RAI, en 1953, avec FURTWÄNGLER (et celle de la Walkyrie, en studio, du même chef, en 1954) n'est pas aussi établie que sa rivale à laquelle elle ne cède rien en paraissant plus humaine. Voix plus sombre, plus cuivrée mais moins coupante et projetée, Martha MÖDL est néanmoins la préférée de quelques passionnés qui ne sauraient résister à l'intense expressivité de son chant. Ceux-là se réjouiront de cette réédition, chez Pan Classics (2015), d'un produit déjà connu chez Andromeda (2004). Ce coffret qui arrive auréolé d'un label "Choc Classica 2015" ne déçoit aucunement.Bien sûr, les connaisseurs pourront s'abandonner, avec délectation, à une "battle" comparative stimulante entre les deux cycles de l'année 1953 : "Keilberth vs Krauss". L'on pourra aussi débattre entre les cycles laissés par Joseph KEILBERTH (1952, 1953, 1955) comme l'on discute avec passion de ceux laissés par Hans KNAPPERTSBUSCH (1956, 1957, 1958). Le point fort et la singularité de Joseph KEILBERTH, en 1953, sont bien établis : les trois Brünnhilde de Martha MÖDL. Pour le reste, c'est souvent la même future "routine" superlative qui se met en place à partir de cette année 1953 : les deux Siegfried de Wolfgang WINDGASSEN (plus en verve, peut-être, chez KEILBERTH que chez KRAUSS), les trois Wotan d'Hans HOTTER... Il y a bien quelques menues déceptions. Le Siegmund de Ramon VINAY, un peu en retrait ce jour-là, et une Regina RESNIK par trop sombre qui, Sieglinde chez KEILBETH et chez KRAUSS, ne saurait convaincre qu'elle est en mesure de rivaliser avec une Leonie RYSANEK que, curieusement, Wieland WAGNER avait écartée de la Colline Sacrée avant que de la réinviter en 1958.Le son est très confortable et satisfaisant, comparable à ce que l'on connaît de meilleur venant de Bayreuth à cette période-là, avec un peu moins de brillance artificielle que dans certaines rééditions récentes des cycles concurrents. Joseph KEILBERTH, Bayreuth 1953, l'une des bornes milliaires de la discographie sachant, bien sûr, que le béotien aura tout intérêt à entrer dans l'œuvre par une porte moins dérobée.Pour tenter de vérifier une observation qui fait florès auprès de certains connaisseurs, je suis allé comparer l'Acte I de Siegfried avec celui de KRAUSS (édition Foyer). C'est la même excellente distribution, la qualité sonore est un peu différente mais, pendant le Prélude, quelques spectateurs toussent, au même moment et de la même façon. Ainsi, est-il possible d'accréditer qu'il y aurait une méprise qui, selon les analystes les plus pointilleux, ne concernerait que l'Acte I du Siegfried de cette édition. Pour autant, qu'il soit dirigé par Clemens KRAUSS ou Joseph KEILBERTH, c'est un formidable Siegfried et, à l'Acte III, l'on ne saurait douter que c'est bien Martha MÖDL (KEILBERTH), et non Astrid VARNAY (KRAUSS), qui se réveille aux ardeurs de Wolfgang WINDGASSEN.

Una grabación imprescindible para amantes del Anillo. En la época dorada del canto Wagneriano con un Wotan/Hotter en el mejor momento de su carrera, con una Modl intensa, Windgassen no es Melchior pero en mi opinión su Sigfrido está a un nivel altísimo. Keilberth dirige sin estridencias y consigue un todo casi perfecto, no le encuentro debilidades. Para mi, junto al Anillo de Krauss del mismo año (que lujo),el del 55 de Keilberth en estéreo, los de Kna (56/57/58) entre los cuales no me se decidir, quizás Furtwangler aunque con orquestas menos buenas y Solti estaría el "Anillo". Se suele decir que el primer Anillo que se debe escuchar es el de Solti en estudio,y estéreo pero si se quiere una grabación en vivo que refleje Bayreuth en su mejor época después de la Guerra está es una posibilidad muy adecuada. Tras escuchar un número razonable de Anillos, tengo que reconocer que siempre vuelvo al Bayreuth de la década de los 50.

The summer of 1953 must be the greatest summer ever for the Ring cycle as there a 2 superlative cycles, one with Clemens Krauss and one with Joseph Keilberth as conductors. The cast assembled is headed by the greatest Wagnerian singers of the time with special consideration given to Hans Hotter as Wotan. He is still unequalled !!! The sound on these discs , although mono, is amazing good. In fact, you would think that it is stereo, the quality is so rich. Even if you have a number of Ring cycles, you need this. one.