Germany Bayreuth Competition 2024 [1] – Wagner, Tristan und Isolde: Soloists, Bayreuth Competition Refrain and Orchestra / Semyon Bychkov (conductor). Recorded stay (directed by Michael Beyer) on the Bayreuth Festspielhaus, 25.7.2024. (JP)

Forgive a visit down reminiscence lane however I first went to Bayreuth virtually – however not fairly – 4 many years in the past and a spotlight of these early idyllic days weren’t solely the operas however the interval suppers with Wolfgang and Gutrun Wagner, household (together with latterly a younger Katherina) and different buddies. My visits had been more and more frequent till the world shut down due to the pandemic. That and the sooner heightened safety for numerous causes in 2016, in addition to tempus fugit means my time standing atop the Inexperienced Hill is changing into a distant reminiscence. Fortunately I can nonetheless communicate with new productions via these livestreams from Stage+.

Why look again? Effectively, one characteristic of my first visits to Bayreuth was how unforgiving the audiences had been to singers giving lower than stellar performances. Booing – and I’m not advocating anyone ought to be ‘booed’ ever – is now principally restricted to the manufacturing group on the primary evening of something new. Whereas it appears essentially the most unsatisfactory of performances lately raises the roof of the Festspielhaus.

I do know I’m reviewing a recording and my colleague Mark Berry will report quickly on listening to this new Tristan und Isolde stay, however I stay assured in what I noticed and heard. On this event I heard Andreas Schager as Tristan run out of vocal stamina lengthy earlier than the tip of his Act III ravings; despite the fact that he nonetheless had the bodily vitality to thrash round onstage. Schager had sung relentless very loud for a lot of the efficiency and whereas a few of his softer singing had a lot to commend it that was the exception somewhat than the rule. Equally Camilla Nylund as Isolde – who might not have the amount for the position anyway – was throwing her head again and infrequently singing louder than pretty. I don’t assume this was a fault of Semyon Bychkov’s singer-friendly, passionate account of a rating wealthy in orchestral color, although he appeared to be accompanying what was taking place on the stage somewhat than bringing thrust and impetus to the drama. The worst factor was that this can belto – and really mannered (watch Nylund and Günther Groissböck) – singing distracted from the nuanced performing the forged had been able to when not singing. Absolved of all criticism was Christa Mayer who melded empathetic and anxious performing with a wealthy, intense and expressive mezzo-soprano.

So, this was one other new Tristan with Roland Schwab’s 2022 manufacturing having been swiftly changed for some cause. It’s directed by Icelandic theatre director Thorleifur Örn Arnarsson (with stage designs from Vytautas Narbutas) and appears to hark again to earlier Bayreuth Tristans from Wieland Wagner (I do know solely from photographs), Heiner Mϋller’s 1995 wasteland and Christoph Marthaler’s 2005 ship’s decrease deck (each of which I did see a number of instances). What we get from Arnarsson may need been extra provocative had it had extra coherence and dramatic cogency.

There are components of rigging with ropes hanging down onto the stage and characters wander via a lot dry ice and stay on the very darkish stage for a lot of the first act. Sibylle Wallum’s costumes are comparatively plain all through the opera, principally greys or black with some leather-based (or pleather?). That is other than Isolde who’s in a voluminous – and I imply enormous! – marriage ceremony gown (accomplished by a blinged-up headpiece) on which with a quill she appears to be scribbling phrases from the libretto and including to these it’s lined in. Few within the Festspielhaus would realise that’s what she is doing even when they had been within the first few rows. Her enormous prepare is a major leitmotif of this staging and reappears over the three acts and is one thing referred to by the characters as if it recounts the continuing story. In any other case, Isolde typically has puffed sleeves which supplies her the looks of an avenging angel. There is no such thing as a potion drunk from a goblet only a small bottle which is forged apart unopened when Tristan and Isolde’s eyes lastly meet (they’ve been principally singing out into the viewers) and their destiny is sealed. On the finish of the act a chasm seems centre stage and the lovers peer down via it to the deck under.

For Act II we seem like within the engine room of a wrecked ship, filled with Isolde’s (?) piled-up belongings being taken to her new life in Cornwall. Is {that a} photograph of her youthful self Isolde appears to be like longingly at? There’s additionally a big globe, statues, stuffed animals, skeleton, clocks, books, newspapers, empty image frames, in addition to a Casper David Friedrich portray, amongst a lot else. There are small lighting bars inside this detritus which shall be lined or uncovered through the act. Tristan and Isolde are sometimes on totally different sides of the stage and particularly at the beginning of ‘O sink’ hernieder, Nacht der Liebe’ which heralded among the higher singing of this efficiency. There’s a lot staring into one of many image frames which I didn’t realise wasn’t an empty one – however supposedly a mirror – solely when Tristan smashes his hand via it. Although Tristan brandishes a sword and cuts his hand at one level there isn’t any swordfight with Melot and Tristan drinks from the bottle of potion and collapses.

Lastly for Act III I ponder whether the ship has now beached as we get the ropes and dry ice as within the first act together with among the stuff from the second. The Shepherd has an attention-grabbing shaggy white coat whereas Tristan’s shirt and trousers are written on now and he can even write on his personal arm at one level. Tristan sings about ‘That evil wound’ which is extra psychological than bodily as a result of for Arnarsson it’s all concerning the ‘Accursed drink’ and close to the tip he introduces a Romeo and Juliet second as Isolde tries to drink from the empty poison bottle. King Marke might sing ‘Tot denn alles!’ nonetheless there isn’t any combating and no person is useless other than Tristan, with everybody (once more) sitting or standing about. Nylund begins her Liebestod und Verklärung gently and quietly on the ground of the stage and ends it ravishingly as if carried via it on waves of emotion earlier than sinking down once more.

I assumed Olafur Sigurdarson was miscast as Kurwenal; he was too bluff and easy for my liking and has a somewhat rough-textured, stentorian baritone voice. Günther Groissböck wore a black sparkly Astrakhan overcoat and gave a somewhat odd Baron Ochs-like rendition of King Marke’s Act II narration, passable but not significantly memorable while surprisingly uncomfortable to look at in close-up at instances. At his second interval curtain name Groissböck really did endure some booing however not on the finish. Finishing the forged there have been glorious vignettes from Birger Rådde (Melot), Daniel Jenz (Shepherd), Lawson Anderson (Steersman) and Matthew Newlin (Younger Sailor).

So, make of all this what you’ll although perhaps with Werkstatt Bayreuth Arnarsson’s Konzept will coalesce higher in coming years for these privileged to be there.

Jim Pritchard

Featured Picture: Camilla Nylund (Isolde) and Christa Mayer (Brangäne) © Enrico Nawrath

Manufacturing:
Director – Thorleifur Örn Arnarsson
Stage design – Vytautas Narbutas
Costume – Sibylle Wallum
Lighting – Sascha Zauner
Dramaturg – Andri Hardmeier
Refrain director – Eberhard Friedrich

Solid:
Tristan – Andreas Schager
Isolde – Camilla Nylund
King Marke – Günther Groissböck
Kurwenal – Olafur Sigurdarson
Melot – Birger Rådde
Brangäne – Christa Mayer
A Shepherd – Daniel Jenz
A Steersman – Lawson Anderson
Younger Sailor – Matthew Newlin