Birmingham Symphony Hall, 3 March 2012
Not only was this Tristan part of the 21st birthday celebrations for the Symphony Hall but is marked the start of a substantial international tour for the CBSO which includes concerts in Vienna and a repeat of this remarkable Tristan in Paris.
A straight-forward concert performance, rather than the semi-staged Wagner which we are becoming increasingly used to, this was music making of the highest quality. Stephen Gould is that rarity today, a helden-tenor who can not only sing the part with sensitivity and lyricism but who has the stamina to maintain a line as convincingly at the end of Act 3 as he did at the opening of Act 1. It is exceptional to hear Tristan’s death so positively structured by a voice that has no difficulty carrying across the weight of Wagner’s orchestration.
If Lioba Braun’s Isolde took a little time to warm up it was as if the love potion released an inner strength which carried her through the whole of Act 2. Christianne Stotijn’s warmly sung Brangane proved a very human foil to the steelier tones of Braun’s Isolde, and she impressed not only with the lyricism of her singing but the clarity she brought to the narrative.
If there are times when King Mark can seem long-winded this was certainly not one of those, with Matthew Best bringing nobility and authority to his characterisation, and a sense of pathos at the end which was very moving.
The men of the CBSO chorus added fire to the end of Act 1, stirred on by the passionate drive from Andris Nelsons. His approach seems to be based on a more visceral, if not violent, reading of the emotional tensions which are only finally released in the closing moments. Solo voices in the orchestra were all finely balanced, and the cellos and basses at the opening of Act 3 were magnificent. Off-stage forced were well placed without seeming to be over-clever in their acoustic.
This was the second Wagner performance of the season, and we still have Parsifal and Die Walkure to come!
BH