KNAPPERTSBUSCH AT THE WIENER FESTWOCHEN 1962 (NTSC)

Picture Format: 4:3, 1 DVD
Sound Format: LPCM Mono
Running Time: 81 mins
Region Code: NTSC All
Booklet Languages: GB, F, D
Subtitle Languages : GB, F, I, E

Cat. No: DVWW-CLHK62M

• TDK are very pleased to make these classic Knappertsbusch recordings available at midprice. This footage is taken from the live broadcast made by Austrian Radio on both television and radio and provides an exciting and valuable historical document of this memorable concert given in 1962 by uncompromising conductor Hans Knappertsbusch, an unsurpassed interpreter of Wagner.

• The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Hans Knappertsbusch formed a celebrated partnership for 35 years, giving 210 concerts and playing for innumerable performances at the Vienna State Opera. This particular concert was one of the first to be given in the majestic setting of the newly restored Theater an der Wien, and it forms a magnificent backdrop to the powerful repertoire.

• The soloist performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto in G major is Wilhelm Backhaus, a phenomenal 78 years old at the time of the recording, while the Swedish soprano Birgit Nilsson, a Wagner specialist and among the stars of Wieland Wagner’s New-Bayreuth Ensemble, shows off the unique radiance of her voice and the virtuosity required for this demanding role.