Review

If, as they say, Verdi murdered sopranos then Richard Strauss simply adored them. His operas are all about women, the soprano being the heroine, their very essence. (Rosenkavalier has no less than three of them!) Interestingly the great Anna Netrebko, who became a shining star in the Italian, French and Russian repertoire, had never sung Strauss, but even so DG chose her to celebrate his anniversary. Netrebko, always up for new challenges, once again surprised everyone with a rapt, luminous account of the elegiac Vier Letzte Lieder (1948), Strauss’ last and greatest contribution to this genre. Her voice of unique colour, sumptuous beauty, lovely intonation and musical intelligence makes her interpretation stand up favourably to the formidable competition of great German sopranos of the past, not to mention the tremendous contribution of Barenboim’s lush and luxurious orchestral support that will silence all snobbish prejudice once and for all.

Barenboim was 11 when he was introduced to Furtwängler, who premiered the Four Last Songs, and now some 60 odd years later the “boy” is taking over. And how! He was first noticed as a young pianist, but now the celebrated music director of two most venerable opera houses (Milan and Berlin), with some recent, simply earth-shaking performances of musical genius, here gives his account of Ein Heldenleben, a problematic score that’s notoriously given headaches to Strauss apologists. Even Karajan’s stellar version descends sometimes into cacophony and bombast, but Barenboim instead chooses understatement, clarification of orchestral detail and, with each part subservient to the whole, emphasizing compositional strengths (rather than weaknesses). Unquestionably first choice.