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Great Recordings Of The Century - Strauss, R.: Salome / Karajan, Behrens, Van Dam, Baltsa, et al |  | Artists: Herbert von Karajan, Hildegard Behrens, Jose Van Dam, Agnes Baltsa, Karl-Walter Bohm, Wieslaw Ochman
Creators: Richard Strauss, Herbert von Karajan, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Agnes Baltsa, Hildegard Behrens, José van Dam, Karl-Walter Böhm
Label: EMI Classics
Category: Music
List Price: $23.98
Buy New: $15.71
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New (17) Used (5) Collectible (1) from $13.99
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Rating:  16 reviews
Sales Rank: 103875
Format: Original recording remastered
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 2
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 5.7 x 5.1 x 1.3
MPN: 67159
UPC: 724356715929
EAN: 0724356715929
ASIN: B00000K4GF
Release Date: September 21, 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
Disc 1
| • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) |
Disc 2
| • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) | | • | Salome, opera, Op. 54 (TrV 215) |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Herbert von Karajan's mastery of the opulent idiom of Richard Strauss is everywhere apparent in this recording of Salome, made in 1977-78 in conjunction with the first-ever Salzburg Festival production of the opera, conducted (as well as directed) by the Salzburg-born maestro. Never has the shimmering, feverish intensity of Strauss's colorful scoring been more tellingly captured on disc, although Karajan's fastidious direction and iron grip on the music are only a part of the reason: a good deal of credit belongs to the Vienna Philharmonic, which was in top form on this outing. As Salome, German soprano Hildegard Behrens makes a strong impression. This was the production that brought her into the international spotlight, where she would remain for a dozen years or so, eventually singing Brünnhilde at Bayreuth and the Met. Although a newcomer, she was a mature artist--40 years old--with a potent instrument. While her approach might lack the hair-raising intensity that Ljuba Welitsch brought to the part (to name another Karajan collaborator, and one of the century's greatest Salomes), it fit Karajan's conception of the role like a glove. José van Dam makes a regal Jochanaan, and Karl-Walter Böhm gives a smarmily spot-on characterization as Herodes. The ensemble work is superb, once again reflecting Karajan's scrupulous attention to detail. The recording, made in the Sofiensaal and engineered by a Decca team that was headed by James Lock, is splendidly balanced and imposing in its impact. --Ted Libbey
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 16
 Hildegard Behrens: Ave Atque Vale August 20, 2009
Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
For those fortunate enough to have not only heard but experienced a performance by the recently deceased, much missed Hildegard Behrens, either in Strauss or in Wagner operas, this 1977 recording of SALOME is a most appropriate memoir. Behrens may not have had the biggest voice on the opera stage, but her musicianship was impeccable and her acting as fine as any legitimate actor. She was beautiful to see and to hear and could take the audience more deeply into the characters she illuminated than almost any of her colleagues.
In this SALOME her singing is rich and uncannily eerie and sensuous. And with Herbert von Karajan conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and a cast that includes the Jokanaan of José van Dam, the Herodias of Agnes Baltsa, and the Herod of Karl-Walter Böhm, there is consensus that this is the premiere recording of this opera. Though Behrens left a rich legacy of nearly all of the Wagner soprano roles on multiple recordings, this particular recording is likely to be the one that will grow in stature as time passes. It is as finely detailed and sumptuous as Strauss' score indicates, and it is as fine a Salome as we are likely to ever hear and see. For this listener it makes the memories of her appearance in the role with the LA Opera in 1998 and her subsequent appearance in the concert version of the opera in 2001 with the LA Philharmonic even more indelible. Hildegard Behrens was exceptional and the opera world will be less dynamic without her. Grady Harp, August 09
 Great opera October 24, 2008
Dana P. Mcdermott (Martinsburg, WV)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Salome is required listening of great opera by a modern programmatic composer. Richard Strauss was very much inclined to such music. Much of his other opuses are tone poems.
In this opera, Richard Strauss captures biblical moments of interest to many.
The Best Salome on Record! February 2, 2007
The Cultural Observer
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
This recording of Salome, made before the Salzburg Festival's assumption of the opera on the stage for their 1978 season, is perhaps the best recording of the masterpiece ever recorded. Herbert von Karajan isthe best Strauss conductor the world has or ever will see, as this recording and his Elektra, Ariadne, Frau Ohne Schatten, and Rosenkavalier has shown us. His complex understanding of Strauss' musical language and his innate sense of his rich, polyphonic lyricism has allowed his conducting of Strauss' music-dramas to bloom in such a way without the intruding loudness and excess energy that afflicts too any other conductors' perceptions of the pieces. No other recording has featured the waltz-like rhythms of Strauss' composition so effectively as Karajan's recording, and his vision is at once seductive, demented, and barbaric, each characteristic complementing each other without overpowering another.
That said, it is also the magnificent cast which makes this recording such a treasure for the music-lover. Although Hildegard Behrens was by no means a young soprano, her voice was at its freshest and most beautiful at this stage of her career. The vocal crisis that would soon affect her middle and low register and her diction are absent from this performance, and her high register glows like no other Salome had before. I find that her transformation from a naive teenager to a selfish, erotically charged, and almost demonic creature is the most compelling assumption of the role on disc, tying in very closely with Catherine Malfitano's excellent interpretation of the Jewish princess. The Jochanaan in this recording is Jose Van Dam, and while he does not have the Wotan-like dimensions of Hans Hotter (with Ljuba Welitsch, 1952) or Bryn Terfel (again, with Malfitano) on the role, he gives it an elegance of phrasing that gives his prophet a Biblical nobility overlooked by many gruff Baptists. A commanding performance. Salome's parents, Agnes Baltsa and Karl-Walter Böhm, are in many ways the best pairing on disc, with special mention going to Böhm for what is in my opinion the most royal and most commanding Herods on disc. I still like the Herodias of mezzos like Hanna Schwarz, Mignon Dunn, Astrid Varnay, and Leonie Rysanek, but Baltsa makes an aggressive creature out of Herodias which gives her character strength and bite. Wieslaw Ochman is the most beautiful Narraboth on disc. All in all, a strong cast with the most competent Strauss conductor to have taken the work to the studios. Highly recommended!
The Karajan Salome: A Winner! September 21, 2005
Rudy Avila (Lennox, Ca United States)
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
This 1978 studio recording of Salome is among the finest Salomes commercially available, though it can be argued, and it is, that Ljuba Wellitsch's earlier WWII Era recording is the ultimate, since her chilling portrayal of the heroine is largely considered as the creme de la creme. Other superior Salomes have included the Wagnerian/Strauss diva Birgit Nilsson in the 60's and 70's, whose mastership of the German repertoire is mind-blowing. Hildegard Behrens must have grown up admiring Birgit Nilsson for in this critic's personal opinion, Behrens can suitabely be hailed as the successor to the throne of Birgit Nilsson. Hildegard Behrens sang the same repertoire, including Brunhilde at Bayreuth and Tosca at the Met. Behrens arrived late into the opera scene. In this recording she is already 40. Nevertheless, she packs a punch as Salome, perfectly comforming to the vision of Karajan's interpretation, which this recording is all about. Her voice is light and she sings in such a way that she makes her voice appear grander and bigger than it actually is but it works for Salome, since we must take in mind that Salome is a teenager and so a relatively lyric voice with dramatic force behind it is absolutely perfect for the role. The final scene is so well-done and sends chills down my spine.
Herbert Von Karajan had never recorded or staged Salome, though it was inevitable since his involvement with the Salzburg Festival made use of Strauss operas- Ariadne of Naxos and most notably Der Rosenkavalier. Karajan's version of Salome is classical, not modern. He is evoking the Salome that caused a scandal in its premiere. When it was first performed in 1900 something, at the turn of the century, it rocked Edwardian sensibility. Its theme of necrophilia, sexual frustration and not to mention lascivious dancing and the beheading of the very beloved Biblical/Christian figure of John the Baptist was too much to take in for a work of theatre. It was banned in London and when the opera came out, Strauss got himself into trouble, for very few places outside his native Austria would perform the opera. It was banned at the Met for years and not until the 20's did it make a return. The primal intensity of the piece is quite clear throughout and the performers are convincingly dramatic. They include:
Jose Van Dam as Jochanan/John the Baptist. Van Dam is a supremely talented bass baritone. He has experience in such diverse roles as Leporello in Mozart's Don Giovanni, King Phillip in Verdi's Don Carlo and here he performs one very credible John the Baptist. His voice is sonorous and he does play the part of the Prophet well. He is mannered and refined in his lyricism as well. To my knowledge, no other baritone has sung the part so well.
Agnes Baltsa as Queen Herodias. She has a dramatically compelling mezzo soprano voice, though at time she may come off as looney, but as the vindictive and mean-spirited queen she is doing a fabulous job. Baltsa is yet another talented singer with many roles to her credit, among them Bizet's Carmen, Cherubino from Nozze Di Figaro and Rosina in Barber of Seville. She has no problem with the German language though it is also very evident she is more comfortable singing in Italian or French. She is not too bad as the Queen however, eventhough there are superior Queen Herodias out there.
All in all, this is a fine recording, the true stars being Karajan himself and his fine interpretation (not to mention the great recording engineering done in Vienna) Jose Van Dam's Jochanan, Agnes Baltsa's Queen, and the star of the show, the soprano Hildegard Behrens. This was the role that made her a star. She would go on to sing Brunhilde and Tosca, her career extending through the 80's and 90's. But if you are looking for other Salomes that are slightly better look for Solti's recording with the incomparable Birgit Nilsson, or the earlier one with Ljuba Wellitsch or the modern and recent one starring Inge Nielsen.
A recording to admire rather than love September 5, 2005
Santa Fe listener
7 out of 10 found this review helpful
This recording tried to trump the famous performance under Solti that showcased Birgit Nilsson in blazing form. Karajan waited to find a Salome who could compete on a different scale--smaller-voiced, warmer, younger, and without the Nilsson steeliness. He found her in Hildegard Behrens, but the result, to my ears, isn't really right.
Jose van Dam was a Karajan favorite then, but his Jokanaan sounds gritty, forced, and totally without the spirit of a Christian prophet. Behrens herself is a wonderful singer, but she puts a distance between herself and Salome's lurid decadence. As does Karajan. I think the missing ingredient here is Struass's vulgarity, which is the glue that holds this biblical shocker together when it works.
This is one of those rare occasions where an unsublte rip-snorter like Solti is preferable.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 16
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