Vocally this performance doesn't quite equal the first Bayreuth set on Decca (5/52—nla), which ought to be reissued, but it has many virtues. Thomas Stewart, perhaps an underrated Wagnerian in his day (his worthwhile Sachs can now be heard on the recent Myto issue of a Die Meisteringer, recorded for the work's centenary in 1968, taken from DG tapes but for some reason never issued at the time), gives us a rough-hewn seaman, possibly lacking in that indefinable element of spiritual anguish (''Wie aus der Ferne'' wants inner torment in the voice). For the most he is equal, in tone and accents, to the severe demands of the part, though he tires towards the end of the duet with Senta. He is the peer of Adam (Klemperer) and superior, by virtue of better German, to Estes (Nelsson). Uhde on the Decca set is still without rival, apart from Hotter on a wartime Acanta set (nla). Jones, then at the start of her auspicious career at Bayreuth, is already unsteady and occasionally edgy when her tone comes under pressure, as DC pointed out, but she is as ever, willing to throw herself wholeheartedly into the role in hand. That, and her exquisite piano singing, make her portrayal significant, but Silja (Klemperer) is just as effective in that respect and much steadier; her shining tones are also ideal for the part.

In Ridderbusch, this DG version boasts one of the most impressive Dalands on disc; absolutely steady and warm in timbre but quite as colourful with the text as others. Esser, not the most pleasing of tenors, catches the agony of Erik and follows Wagner's injunction in not singing his role in a conventional way. Choir and orchestra are all one has come to expect from this source—listen to the start of the final scene (or Act 3 if you prefer it). The recording has the benefit of Bayreuth's excellent acoustics, which were here caught to perfection. Klemperer would still be my choice at mid-price—but he takes three CDs to Bohm's two. If you want the most economic version, I would certainly prefer this to the recently reissued Karajan (EMI).

Alan Blyth, GRAMOPHONE (8/1993) Review of reissue DG 437 710