Richard Wagner - Der fliegende Holländer [DVD]

You can taste the salt spray and feel the waves heave beneath your feet. You can almost see Captain Jack Sparrow mincing saucily on the fo'c'sle deck. This brilliantly evocative 1975 film of Wagner's tale of the Flying Dutchman, replete with mighty square-rigged ships, storm-tossed waves, pea soup fog, ghosts of dead sailors who are reanimated and the grisly green corpses of dead sailors who are not, breathes life into Wagner's early score, making for a splendidly atmospheric musical experience. Filmed in the studio, with the singers lip-synching the score, it is blessed with wonderful period sets and costumes, its 19th Century hyperreality heightened by mighty ocean waves and their tempest-swept ships, an effect filmed in two huge water tanks. Der Fliegende Hollander lightens our burdens aboard ship as if it were a two hour long sea shanty. Wagner lends himself to full-scale film presentation (as opposed to filmed stagings). His Ring Cycle seems to be especially ideal for some future CGI film extravaganza.Directed with visionary zeal by the Czech opera director Vaclav Kaslik, a veteran of 150 opera productions in the theatre, usually working with the great Czech scenographer Josef Svoboda, he exhuberantly tackles any of Wagner's stage directions or text that call for a special effect. Distinctive examples of visual intensity are the phantom ship with its red sails approaching the shore at speed and anchoring and the ghost crew arising from the dead in response to the taunts of the Norwegian sailors at the end of Act III. The conductor of the splendid Bayerisches Staatsorchester and Chor is Wolfgang Sawallisch, a Hollander specialist since his first performances of the work in Augsburg in the 1940s. He utilizes as his musical text Wagner's earlier thoughts on the score as it was originally performed for its premiere in Dresden, which Sawallisch has come to prefer over the years as being more effective. This version includes the so-called 'blunt' ending to the Overture and the performance of Act III without the harp-dominated Tristan-influenced redemption music, as well as louder and wilder brass commentaries throughout the entire opera. It makes for a much more visceral experience, a gutsier opera that seems to scrape against the nerves as one listens, causing one to sit-up and take notice as the supernatural tale unfolds.Donald McIntyre is a charismatic Hollander, dressed in black leather and tall boots. He sings the part well. Senta is played by Catarina Ligendza, who appears troubled and confused, not quite grasping the attraction she feels for this strange man. Her voice is good, although it wobbles ocassionally. Daland is the very fine Bengt Rundgren. Erik is Hermann Winkler. The cast is quite good, which is especially important because so much of this film depends upon their acting as well as their vocal work. The superb orchestra is always right there to comment on the action, bringing dramatic unity to the performance. The result is an effective whole that is often quite riveting in its totality.The digitally remastered film is crystal clear, as is the sound in PCM stereo and DTS 5.1. The disc lasts 117 minutes and is coded 0 worldwide. The usual DGG menus, catalogs and translations are here, along with a booklet.This beautifully filmed, visually evocative performance is an especially atmospheric Fliegende Hollander. Strongly recommended.Mike Birman

This is undoubtedly the best version of the opera to SEE. I have other versions I prefer to hear. But visually this is a great video and captures the essence of Wagner's work. If you want to SEE the Flying Dutchman this is the only version to get. If you want to HEAR a great version of this opera then get the Met Opera version with James Morris in the title role. Maybe I am partial to that version as I saw it live and James Morris is my all time favorite Wagnerian bass-Baritone. But I am reviewing this video.I like this video for the atmospheric presentation which brings the opera alive the way a stage presentation cannot.What I didn't like was the 1834 version of the opera which basically omits, among other things, the transcendant ending and the glorious redemption music as the souls of Senta and the Dutchman ascend from a dark, and stormy sea into a golden glow of eternity. The Dutchman was one of the first operas I ever saw and it was at the "old" Met. I still remember that glorious remdemption music and the golden sky with the sun rising out of the sea. So I really wanted that ending in this movie. I think the 1934 version has become more popular these days.I am still giving this 5 stars as I think it is a great visual realization of an opera which is really hard to stage even with all the modern tools of stages today. Because of the staging demands, it lends itself to a film.The singers are very good, but not great. I am not partial to Donald McIntyre in Wagnerian roles, although many like him. His voice is much lighter than I like. I prefer Morris or Franz Grundheber in the role. The best Senta on CD is still Leonie Rysanek, actually one of the best Senta's ever.But although this does not represent my ideal cast or conductor, they are still very good and the visuals alone make it a great introduction to the opera and worth 5 stars. Too many operas on CD are Eurotrash, updated stagings which cater to the ego of the director rather than the vision of the composer.

Wagner's musical/dramatic sensibility was rooted in the concept of "Gesamtunstwerk" -- the idea that everything -- the words, the music, the production values -- everything should combine to create a seamless work. This is similar to Aristotle's view that drama must be characterized by "magnitude" -- that unity of dramaturgy so integrated that everything contributes to the integrity of the whole. That said, I have to say that Wagner would have loved the idea of filmed versions of his work -- if they're done right! I like the filmed operas of Franco Zefferelli. But after seeing this film version of Hollander, however, Zefferelli's Traviata and Otello seem garish. In every moment of this movie the sight and sense echo one another. I could write pages about the richness of detail. How else but in film could one see the Dutchman deliver his monologue in the water, clutching an anchor? The singing and acting and playing are superb, with no less than Wolfgang Sawallisch conducting? Everything looks and sounds right. Even the steersman looks like what one imagines when hearing his music. I was shocked that some reviews were negative -- way too cerebral. This is opera, folks, written when composers sought to touch the human heart and reach a wide audience, unlike today's music which is too often written by academics for academics. What this film achieves is what Wagner wanted at Bayreuth -- a cohesion of what one sees and what one hears. Yes, I'm a groundling -- a philistine who seeks goosebumps -- not fodder for dry intellectual discourse -- in opera. I loved this movie! Like the Met's recent representational Ring -- before all of those god-awful wooden panels they have now -- it represents the composer's vision awesomely.

I am quite content (especially vocally speaking) with with this video production (Deutsche Grammophon/Unitel Classics 00440-073-4433). Alas, no DVD is likely ever to come along which documents the production that I saw that the great Sarah Caldwell direct and conduct, in Cambrindge, Mass. (at the Kresge Auditorium of M.I.T.) many years ago. That performance was live but it managed, though all sorts of ingenious stage, laser, and lighting techniques, to be almost hallucinogenic in its intensity, which is suitable for this opera about the sailing "undead" and Senta's obsession with the ship's haunted, despairing captain. So, something more down to earth, like this Deutsche Grammophon DVD is okay, given that kind of inevitabie comparison with a theatrical experience from the past. The D.G.G. set is a film of the opera, basically a motion picture of what seems mostly to be a stage production with some supplemental filming to "juice it up" a bit. It works, although one really does miss some greater theartricality at the very end of the opera.Best of all, the cast really sings very, very well.The two basses, for instance, who sing Daland and the Dutchman, have wonderful vocal heft and depth of vocal projection. One could not do too much better than they do (referring to Bengt Rundgren and Donald McIntyre). Catarina Ligendza is the "full deal" as Senta, too. She does not by any means obliterature memories of renowned sopranos of the past in the part (e.g., Emmy Destinn, Johanna Gadski, orLeonie Rysanek) who are so identified with the role that they almost make comparison with later singers in the part frustratingly inevitable. The cast of the opera in this filme production, however, consists of singers who manage to perform heroically in the best Wagner tradition. Among the men, Harald Ek, as Daland's steersman and drowsy sentinel, has a lighter, more lyrical voice, a tenor, than the other male in the cast, and a jaunty youthfulness, which suits the role eminently well and the music for it.The only exception to all of this vocal and acting excellence is Hermann Winkler as Erik, the other tenor role. That character is Senta's local Norwegian boyfriend, whom she discards for the Dutchman. Winkler sings too unrelentingly loudly, which grows tiresome. More musical and dynamic nuance would have helped to make hid portrayal of Erik more sympathetic. Winkler also is butt-ugly, which Erik really should not be. He should have some youthful charms physically as well as vocally, and Winkler "does not cut it" on that level. Still, Winkler has the "vocal goods" for Erik, just not the artistic imagination to use his voice more pleasingly. As to his looks, that is the one role where perhaps having him or, better yet, some more imaginative tenor, dub the music for an actor who looks less creepy. I usually prefer for the singers themselves to appear on screen, but there are times when "some switcheroo" can help out.Sawallisch and the Bayreuth orchestra and the Bavarian State Opera Chorus conduct, play, and sing superbly well. It might have been a good idea to have some professional dancers join in the sailors' dancing. As once sailor myself long years ago, I assure readers that mainers dance more vigourously and less sedately than the onstage singers do as they lumber awkwardly through their steps!This is a quite satisfying DVD (especially vocally) of this opera, even if not epically and equally good in every respect.

Perfect! Perfect orchestra, perfect singers, good scenarios...a bit dark but this was the purpose, I suppose.

I was a bit uncertain at the beginning of this film as to how "authentic" this performance might be. I need not have worried. The film is a superb rendering of the opera, closely following Wagner's libretto and very prescriptive stage directions, unlike some staged performances on DVD which mess around with Wagners stated intentions. The imaginative effects enhance the story-telling in a manner of which Wagner would certainly have approved. The casting is superb. It was fascinating to see a relatively young Donald McIntyre as the Dutchman; his wonderful bass-baritone as powerful and authoritative as in his more recent performances as Wotan. Catarina Ligendza is a particularly convincing Senta with a voice to match her very striking physical beauty. I was particularly impressed by Herrman Winkler's Eric. This character is often portrayed as a rather subsidiary figure and frankly, a bit of a wuss. Winkler's very powerful and rich tenor, coupled with very impressive acting imbued his role with real significance and tragedy. Some (real) critics point out that this opera is perhaps the least "Wagnerian" of his operas and therefore in some way inferior to his later works. I would agree that it is obviously less earnest and philosophical than his other operas but all the more entertaining for that. The third act is almost like Gilbert and Sullivan in terms of wonderfully catchy tunes, amusing libretto and exuberant action by a large chorus. It really is great fun and a revelation to anyone who is only familiar with Wagner's later, more heavy operas. My only (slight) reservation is that the lip-sync is sometimes a little wayward and the actors facial expressions do not always accurately reflect the more intense emotions of the voice. This was probably unavoidable given the technology available in 1975 and the difficulty of having to mime to particularly passionate and expressive music. However, that said, it does not diminish the pleasure of a fantastic performance. This film is a brilliantly conceived and performed version of a most entertaining opera and would be an ideal introduction to the works of Wagner for those unfamiliar with his operas. I am sure that I will watch this DVD over and over, especially when I could do with being cheered up! Highly recommended

Es existiert also doch: das unheimliche Geisterschiff mit den blutroten Segeln - zumindest in der dieser DVD zugrunde liegenden Fassung. Während ein Großteil neuerer Aufführungen sich mit Andeutungen des Schiffes und/oder mit symbolischen Deutungen desselben (z. B. die sturmzerfetzten Segel als überdimensionale Vulva in Harry Kupfers Bayreuther Inszenierung aus dem Jahr 1978 - ebenfalls auf DVD erschienen) begnügt, wird es in dieser filmischen Umsetzung des "Holländer" von Vaclav Kaslik als durchaus spukhafte Erscheinung dargestellt, wenn es mit seinen leuchtend-roten Segeln plötzlich aus Nebelschwaden auftaucht. Die Aufnahmen dieser Produktion wurden im Studio gedreht, die Szenen mit den Schiffen in eigens präparierten Bassins. Die Szenen in den Innenräumen wie der Spinnstube ähneln noch am ehesten denen einer Bühnenaufführung, während man sich bei den Schiffsszenen schon beinahe an Filme wie "Moby Dick" u. ä. erinnert fühlen kann, insbesondere wenn ganze Wogen von Wasser auf die Decks klatschen.Insgesamt fußt diese Verfilmung vor allem auf dem ursprünglichen Kern dieser in der Tradition der Schauerromantik stehenden Seemannssage, worauf auch die Einblendung des entsprechenden Textes von Heinrich Heine aus dessen "Memoiren des Herrn von Schnabelewopski" während der mit stimmungsvollen Bildern unterlegten Ouvertüre hinweist. Die milieugetreue Gestaltung der Schiffe, der Innenräume wie auch der Kostüme ergibt ein stimmiges Bild. Sieht man die Besatzung an Deck und in der Takelage die Segel setzen, bereitet es doch gleich eine umso größere Freude, den Chor der Seeleute zu hören ("Mit Gewitter und Sturm..."). Ebensolches gilt für die Lieder der Frauen beim Anblick der rotierenden Spinnräder mit der Wolle auf den Rocken und bei den Vorbereitungen zur Willkommensfeier für die heimgekehrten Gatten. Gerade in diesen Szenen wie auch in den Tanzszenen der Seeleute zu Beginn des dritten Aktes ("Steuermann, lass die Wacht...") gelangt der volkstümliche Charakter dieses Wagner'schen Frühwerkes besonders gut zur Geltung.In der hier vorliegenden Aufnahme wird der "Fliegende Holländer" einfach als romantische Oper inszeniert, wie er ursprünglich mal gedacht war, als dramaturgische Umsetzung der dem Stoff zugrunde liegenden Sage mit Schauerelementen wie den hier drastisch gestalteten Auftritt der Mannschaft des Holländers als einen von Untoten. Kaslik greift in seiner Inszenierung auf die ursprüngliche, etwas kürzere Dresdner Fassung des "Fliegenden Holländer" zurück, in der die Erlösungsthematik - zumindest musikalisch - noch nicht so stark im Vordergrund steht, wie in den später neukomponierten Teilen der Ouvertüre und des Finales.Die sängerischen wie auch darstellerischen Leistungen des Ensembles sind durchweg herausragend. Die schwedische Sopranistin Catarina Ligendza (*1937; eine renommierte Wagnerinterpretin) ist eine großartige, romantisch-träumerische Senta mit kraftvoller und zugleich doch immer klarer Stimmführung. Donald McIntyre, der Wotan des "Jahrhundert-Rings" von Boulez/Chéreau, überzeugt sowohl stimmlich wie auch seiner Erscheinung nach als dämonischer, unheimlicher Holländer. Auch Hermann Winkler als eindringlicher, selbstbewusster, keineswegs schwächlicher Erik und Bengt Rundgren als leutseliger und zugleich standesbewusster, auf seinen materiellen Vorteil bedachter Daland überzeugen mit überdurchschnittlichen Leistungen. Das Bayerische Staatsorchester unter der Leitung von Wolfgang Sawallisch bietet ebenfalls einen musikalisch mitreißenden "Holländer".Fazit: Diese packende, kurzweilige Inszenierung des "Fliegenden Holländer", die sich wenn auch mit filmischen Mitteln strikt an Wagners Konzeption des Werkes orientiert, wird auch bei mehrmaligem Ansehen und Anhören ein Erlebnis bleiben.

I first saw this opera in what is now regarded to have been the finest staging of the 20th century - the Sadlers Wells Opera - production on tour at the Opera House Blackpool in 1965 with Donald McIntire as the 'Dutchman'. As another reviewer who also saw that production remarked, the arrival of the phantom ship was indeed, a disturbing, yet brilliant piece of stagecraft.McIntire really made this rôle his own in the years following, all over the world, & was hailed for his performances as 'Wotan' / 'Wanderer' in 'The Ring' as well.Although this film was not shot in the Munich Opera House, the set-designs, & the two ships - Dalland's & the ghost vessel, have a theatricallity about them which just adds to the charm of this production. There's a lot of water & the chorus have a lot of action, especially the sailors in Act III. In stage productions the 2nd male chorus of the Dutchman's Crew are usually unseen, here they appear as zombies, similar to those in the film 'The Fog'!Given the technical limitations, the lip-sync quality is acceptable, & all the other principle characters are sung with absolute excellence & commitment.The orchestra give a brilliant account of Wagner's early work - those opening chords of the Overture send shivers down one's spine & the wind really does blow out when you open the score.My only quibble is that the coda to the Overture & to the opera itself, has been replaced by dramatic chords rather than the original calm music that Wagner later returned to & re-set to great effect at the very end of the Ring Cycle in Götterdamerung. In that Sadlers Wells Flying Dutchman, after Senta threw herself into the raging sea, this redemptive music accompanied a stage picture of the waves calming & the tide appeared to recede as the curtain fell.......unforgettable! The applause was deafening, & the 'calls' lasted for 20 minutes. Most of today's stagings however are just the hideous results of directors & their over- indulgent designers & should be avoided!Instead, enjoy this version.This film is the nearest thing we have to that earlier thrilling stage production which, if the designs still exist, should be revived to the accommpaniment of dancing in the streets!HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.( excellent booklet included)