WAGNER Die Walkure

Stig Andersen Siegmund

Yvonne Howard Sieglinde

Clive Bayley Hunding

Egils Silins Wotan

Susan Bullock Brünnhilde

Susan Bickley Fricka

Miranda Keys Gerhilde

Elaine McKrill Ortlinde

Sarah Castle Waltraute

Linda Finnie Schwertleite

Katherine Broderick Helmwige

Alison Kettlewell Siegrune

Ceri Williams Grimgerde

Leah Marian Jones Rossweisee

Halle / Sir Mark Elder

Following their Gramophone Award winning recording of Götterdammerung the Hallé under Sir Mark Elder announces its long awaited release of the live recording of Wagner’s Die Walküre, taken from the acclaimed Manchester International Festival 2011 performance at the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester.

“[The Hallé’s concert performance of Die Walküre was] a two-day emotional journey that left me feeling torn apart. Act I was captivating and potent; Act II fiercely moving; Act III enough to make one rush from the hall and plunge in a Manchester canal. The gigantic orchestral climax interrupting Wotan's Farewell was as convulsively emotional as I could want it. Subtleties of orchestral shading and balance went by like an express train. The conducting was inspired; the immense structure cohered; one looks forward to the issue of the live recording happily being made.”

The Sunday Times, July 2011 - Paul Driver

Thought by many to be Wagner’s greatest opera, Die Walküre is a psychological drama charting the full range of emotions in music that is powerful, tender and everything in between and with orchestral and vocal writing which perfectly displays the master craftsman at work.

This is the latest release in Elder and Halle’s stunning Ring cycle and was recorded live at sell out Bridgewater Hall concerts which formed highlights of the 2011 Manchester International Festival. The performances received stunning reviews, including:

The Hallé excelled in supporting the human voice, lifting the vernal lovesong of Siegmund and Sieglinde in a light lilt … The cast was outstanding.

Hilary Finch - Monday 18 July 2011 - The Times

[The Hallé’s] Wagner is simply beautiful, and if that burnished lyricism was more glamorous than dangerous in Act I of Die Walküre, the duet with Siegmund (Stig Andersen) and Sieglinde (Yvonne Howard) had a tenderness beyond renegade intoxication. Elder is a skilful accompanist, metering the blend to suit the timbres of his cast … [he] conducted as though in love with a score that was in love with love itself.

Anna Picard - Sunday 24 July 2011- The Independent on Sunday

The recording features soloists of the highest calibre, perfectly cast by Elder who displays his opera credentials and achieves performances which are both moving and dramatic.

Halle 4cds CDHLD7531