Wagner: Lohengrin (Bayreuth Festival)

Georg Zeppenfeld (König Heinrich); Klaus Florian Vogt (Lohengrin); Annette Dasch (Elsa); Jukka Rasilainen (Telramund); Petra Lang (Ortrud); Samuel Youn (Der Heerrufer des Königs); Noblemen of Brabant (Stefan Heibach); Noblemen of Brabant (Willem van der Heyden); Noblemen of Brabant (Rainer Zaun); Noblemen of Brabant (Christian Tschelebiew);

Lohengrin is staged by the enfant terrible Hans Neuenfels, and offers a thought-provoking production of brilliant visual clarity. The performanceby Klaus Florian Vogt in the title role is staggering and impressive. Thereis beauty and purity in his voice, but in this role in particular, one truly senses something unheimlich, other-worldly, which fits superlatively bothwith work and production. Conductor Andris Nelsons brings out the best in the festival chorus and orchestra. It is a Lohengrin one does not easily forget and puts Bayreuth back in the vanguard of Wagner interpretation.

König Heinrich - George Zeppenfeld

Lohengrin - Klaus Florian Vogt

Elsa - Annette Dasch

Telramund - Jukka Rasilainen

Ortrud - Petra Lang

Der Heerrufer des Königs - Samuel Youn

Bayreuth Festival Orchestra and Chorus

Conductor - Andris Nelsons

Reviews

"Klaus Florian Vogthas been singing the role of Lohengrin for 10 years, but he never before sang it so painfully truthful, so beautiful and pleadingly, powerfully and inspired. Vogt is the miracle of this production." (www.stuttgarter-zeitung.de)

"A magic moment of music theatre." (Handelsblatt)

"Bayreuth's incomparable chorus really deserves a medal for its performance here." (International Record Review)

"All six solo singers are musically excellent and dramatically persuasive, with Petra Lang's excoriating Ortrud and Georg Zeppenfeld's grave yet warm-toned King Henry particularly memorable..." (Gramophone)

"Post-Wolfgang Wagner Bayreuth has its critics but this Lohengrin - and the Stefan Herheim 2008 Parsifal that will be broadcast and recorded this summer - shows it at its very best. I strongly commend this DVD to those who want to know what is current at Bayreuth...or to those who have seen it in the Festspielhaus or on TV and want to relive it." (Musicweb International)