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L Y R I C O P E R A O F C H I C A G O
November 1 - 30, 2017
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• What elements of the production captivated you the most?
• Wotan struggles with following his heart vs. doing what others want him to do.
What ethical choices have you been faced with, and what would you have done if
you were Wotan?
• The love between Siegmund and Sieglinde burns through any obstacle, even
morality. What statement do you think Wagner could have been making?
• Wagner gives every role and event a musical theme called a
leitmotif
. Compare each
leitmotif
and how it helps reveal each character and situation.
• The immorality of Siegmund and Sieglinde’s love upsets Fricka, but Wotan’s
infidelity goes completely unmentioned. Does his status as king of the gods exempt
him from punishment?
• Brünnhilde always seems to be striving to do what is right. In contrast, her sisters,
the Valkyries, do as they’re told. Why do you think Brünnhilde is different
from the rest? Are the qualities in her character that make her the favorite of her
father, Wotan?
• Was Brünnhilde’s punishment justified? Why did Wotan have pity on her, and if
he did feel this pity, why didn’t he let her go completely?
Die Walküre
After the Curtain Falls
To continue enjoying
Die Walküre
, Lyric dramaturg
Roger Pines suggests the following performances:
CD – Birgit Nilsson, Régine Crespin, Christa Ludwig, James
King, Hans Hotter, Gottlob Frick; Vienna Philharmonic,
cond. Sir Georg Solti (Decca)
CD – Astrid Varnay, Gré Brouwenstijn, Georgine von
Milinkovič, Ramon Vinay, Hans Hotter, Josef Greindl;
Bayreuth Festival, cond. Joseph Keilberth (Testament)
CD – Eva Marton, Cheryl Studer, Waltraud Meier, Reiner
Goldberg, James Morris, Matti Salminen; Bavarian Radio
Symphony Orchestra, cond. Bernard Haitink (EMI Classics)
CD – Rita Hunter, Margaret Curphey, Katherine Pring, Alberto
Remedios, Norman Bailey, Clifford Grant; English National
Opera, cond. Sir Reginald Goodall (Chandos – sung in
English – available as part of ENO’s complete
Ring
cycle)
DVD – Dame Gwyneth Jones, Jeannine Altmeyer, Hanna
Schwarz, Peter Hofmann, Sir Donald McIntyre, Matti
Salminen; Bayreuth Festival, cond. Pierre Boulez (DG),
dir. Patrice Chéreau
DVD – Susan Bullock, Amber Wagner, Martina Dike,
Frank van Aken, Terje Stensvold, Ain Anger; Orchestra of
Oper Frankfurt, cond. Sebastian Weigle (Oehms Classics),
dir. Vera Nemirova
DVD – Deborah Polaski, Linda Watson, Lioba Braun, Richard
Berkeley-Steele, Falk Struckmann, Eric Halfvarson; Gran
Teatre del Liceu, cond. Bertrand de Billy, dir. Harry Kupfer
(Kultur Video)
DVD – Eva Johansson, Eva-Maria Westbroek, Lilli Paasikivi,
Robert Gambill, Willard White, Mikhail Petrenko; Berlin
Philharmonic, cond. Sir Simon Rattle, dir. Stéphane
Braunschweig (Bel Air Classique)
When the performance is over, try discussing it with your companions
and any other opera lovers you know! You can continue your pleasure
in
Die Walküre
for hours – even days – by exchanging ideas about it.
Here are some topics we can suggest:
One of the few American Brünnhildes of the early
20th century, Maine native Lillian Norton, who
gained international fame as Lillian Nordica.