Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791):
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| Tamino | NICOLAI GEDDA |
| Pamina | GUNDULA JANOWITZ |
| Papageno | WALTER BERRY |
| Queen of the Night | LUCIA POPP |
| Sarastro | GOTTLOB FRICK |
| Speaker | FRANZ CRASS |
| First Lady | ELISABETH SCHWARZKOPF |
| Second Lady | CHRISTA LUDWIG |
| Third Lady | MARGA HÖFFGEN |
| Papagena | RUTH-MARGRET PTZ |
| Monostatos | GERHARD UNGER |
| First Armed Man | KARL LIEBL |
| Second Armed Man | FRANZ CRASS |
| First Priest | GERHARD UNGER |
| Second Priest | FRANZ CRASS |
| First Boy | AGNES GIEBEL |
| Second Boy | ANNA REYNOLDS |
| Third Boy | JOSEPHINE VEASEY |
Introduction
Otto Klemperer brings his special wisdom and nobility to Mozart's allegorical Singspiel. The young lovers are exquisitely cast with Gundula Janowitz and Nicolai Gedda and Lucia Popp reigns brilliantly as the Queen of Night.
Synopsis
An idiosyncratic blend of naivety and sophistication, slapstick and the sublime, Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) is one of Mozart’s last works, first performed in Vienna in the year of his death, 1791. Rather than a formal opera it is a Singspiel, with both musical numbers and dialogue.
In a setting inspired by Ancient Egypt it tells an apparently simple, but sometimes puzzling story, with symbolism and philosophy borrowed from Freemasonry and the Enlightenment, and knockabout comedy from popular theatre. A young prince, Tamino is sent by the apparently benign Queen of the Night to rescue her daughter, Pamina, from the High Priest Sarastro. Tamino is protected by the gift of a magic flute and accompanied by Papageno, a comic bird-catcher who is in search of a mate.
The overture, both solemn and animated, sets the scene for the music that follows. This includes Tamino’s soaring aria on seeing a portrait of Pamina, Papageno’s whimsical song of introduction, Sarastro’s dignified pronouncements, the Queen of the Night’s coloratura fireworks, the lovely duet ‘Bei Männern’, sung by Papageno and Pamina, and Pamina’s tragically tinged aria when she believes herself spurned by Tamino, sworn to silence as part of a trial of his fortitude.
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Compact Disc 1 63.20 ACT ONE |
Compact Disc 2 70.34 ACT TWO
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