Richard Wagner: Overtures And Preludes

Read About This Recording

Far too often Richard Wagner is thought of simply as a composer of brilliant, if somewhat long, operas. What is too often overlooked, obscured by his mastery of composing for the human voice, is that Wagner was a brilliant orchestral composer. Overtures and Preludes demonstrates exactly how superb his orchestral writing was.

Daniel Barenboim — a conductor at home on the concert stage or in the opera house — leads the brilliant Chicago Symphony Orchestra through these exquisite orchestral gems, balancing passion and power. This volume of Overtures and Preludes features music from The Flying Dutchman, Tannhäuser, Lohengrin, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Tristan und Isolde.

Many Society Members have commented that they aren't "at home" with Wagner's operas, but that they'd like to hear some of his music. Well, this CD is exactly that: Wagner's great melodies without the singing!

—Jacob Anthony

Quotes

"The 20th century would be unthinkable without Wagner ... Bach, Beethoven, Wagner, Debussy: those four, they changed everything. Music was not the same after them." —Daniel Barenboim

Contents

The Flying Dutchman; Tannhäuser; Lohengrin (Acts I & II); Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg; Tristan und Isolde (Prelude — Liebestod).

Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Daniel Barenboim, Conductor.