Prelude and Liebestod from Richard Wagner's opera "Tristan und Isolde", played by the WDR Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Marie Jacquot. Recorded live on 02.12.2022 at the Kölner Philharmonie.
Richard Wagner - Tristan and Isolde - Prelude and Liebestod
WDR Symphony Orchestra
Marie Jacquot, Conductor
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Work Introduction:
Wagner, the musico-dramatic genius. So much for the official reading. And: Wagner, the composer of sheer endless monologues and dialogues that literally force the audience to take a nap. This is the experience of quite a few opera-goers. In Wagner's masterpieces "Tristan und Isolde" and "Parsifal," musings on interpersonal feelings and philosophical questions gain the upper hand over real phenomena. In none of his operas did he reduce the outer plot in favor of the inner, psychological plot as intensively as in "Tristan." Yet the originals on which this opera is based offer pure action: for example, various battles with a dragon or a giant. Wagner took none of this over. He is concerned with the interpersonal essence, the idealized love between Tristan and Isolde - and with the hope of being able to realize it in the here and now. The realization at the end of the three acts: earthly happiness is impossible, but in the exaggerated utopia the two lovers unite in perfect harmony. This is precisely what the music tells us: no composer before Wagner - and none after him - has understood how to transform longing and suffering for love into music as truly as the Bayreuth master.
The inspiration for this work is as romantic as it is banal: Wagner himself had fallen drearily in love with Mathilde Wesendonck, a witty, graceful and equally wealthy merchant's wife. Despite all hopes for a common happiness, it is basically clear from the beginning of this liaison: it will not be realized in the long run. When Wagner meets his muse, he writes the libretto to "Tristan und Isolde" in one go. As if in a frenzy, he composes the complex score of this opera within two years. As expected, Wagner's relationship with Mathilde ends - but admittedly less tragically and transfigured than the love between Tristan and Isolde in his musical drama. The essence of this fully composed longing for love embraces the work, beginning with the orchestral prelude and finally culminating in "Isolde's Liebestod."
Text: Otto Hagedorn
25 авг 2024
