Wagner/Swensen: Ring Odyssey in Bloomington, MN

Various attempts have been made over the years to condense the 16-hour bulk of
Wagner
's cycle of four
Ring operas
to concert length. Even
himself, needing money, took a shot at it. Generally, this involves vocal greatest hits or instrumental excerpts, but this one, from the
Orchestre National de Bordeaux Aquitaine
and conductor
Joseph Swensen
, is more unusual in mixing the two. The program is devised by
Swensen
, who sticks to
's notes except for a few percussion strokes. Does it work as an introduction to the
Ring
? One might note that the booklet, although it includes texts, doesn't have any kind of summary of what is going on in these operas, something that might be useful for newcomers. There are three singers,
Christiane Libor
,
Michael Weinius
, and
Derek Walton
, covering a total of six roles, and all are competent Wagnerians, although the conductor and orchestra lack the flash of groups more central to the tradition. The best feature is that
does capture the dynamic of this giant artwork, at least insofar as it is possible to do so, while eliminating 87 percent of it. He sacrifices some of the vocal "greatest hits" (there is no "Liebestod," for example) in favor of instrumental-vocal combinations that suggest the scope of the thing, and this will be good for new listeners. Many of the act Preludes are included, and they are followed by pieces that seem to pick up the action, so to speak. Sample the Act III Prelude of
Siegfried
and Brünnhilde's subsequent "Ewig war ich" romantic number for an idea. The sound from the orchestra's own Auditorium de Bordeaux is clear enough, and listeners without days to invest in the
Ring Cycle
may wish to check this out. The album made classical best-seller lists in the autumn of 2024. ~ James Manheim