Richard Strauss – Intermezzo

This release is the audio version of the Naxos audiovisual recording of Richard Strauss’s opera Intermezzo. Although the work is known in concert halls for performances of its four symphonic interludes, it remains a relative rarity on stage with very few audio recordings available of the complete opera. This refined Deutsche Oper Berlin production is therefore a welcome addition to the catalogue for all collectors of opera, and the works of Richard Strauss in particular. Performing the lead role of Christine, ‘Swedish soprano Maria Bengtsson gives the towering portrayal the opera needs to succeed.’ (The Flip Side)


8.660584-85

Richard STRAUSS (1864–1949)
Intermezzo
A bourgeois comedy with symphonic interludes in two acts (1924)
Libretto by the composer

Maria Bengtsson, Nadine Secunde, Anna Schoeck, Sopranos
Clemens Bieber, Thomas Blondelle, Tenors
Markus Brück, Philipp Jekal, Baritones
Elliott Woodruff, Actor
Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin
Sir Donald Runnicles

Richard Strauss summed up his two-act opera Intermezzo as a ‘bourgeois comedy with symphonic interludes’. The soprano role of Christine with its shimmering cantilenas represents Strauss’s wife Pauline, while the successful Kapellmeister Robert Storch serves as Richard Strauss himself in a domestic drama that was avant-garde for its time but now resonates with the accessibility of today’s reality shows. This production from the Deutsche Oper Berlin was acclaimed for its lush orchestral sound and superbly characterful cast led by a formidable central performance from Maria Bengtsson.

Listen to an extract from Act I Scene 2: Sie Esel!
About the artists
Recommended audiovisual recordings of operas conducted by Sir Donald Runnicles
2.110657
ZEMLINSKY, A.:
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Philip • Tsallagova • Magee • Mehnert
Orchestra and Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin
Runnicles • Kratzer
★★★★★
★★★★
‘Under the splendid direction of Donald Runnicles and with a first rate cast, the score’s lush beauty and lilting melodic lines are hard to resist; and the compelling themes of self image and what constitutes beauty are as relevant today as ever.’
American Record Guide
Also available on Blu-ray (NBD0108V)
2.110774
STRAUSS, R.:
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Orchestra and Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin
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‘[T]he singing-acting of the cast is excellent … perceptively staged … The momentum is brilliantly maintained by Donald Runnicles.’
BBC Music Magazine
Also available on Blu-ray (NBD0182V)
2.110780
STRAUSS, R.:
Intermezzo

Bengtsson • Jekal • Blondelle
Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin
Runnicles • Kratzer
★★★★★
★★★★★
‘It hardly needs saying how much Runnicles’ profoundly sympathetic direction adds to the evening. There is magnificent playing from the orchestra and the quality of the singing in all the parts is uniformly excellent … A thought-provoking, entertaining, musically rewarding experience.’
MusicWeb International
Also available on Blu-ray (NBD0188V)
2.107001 [7-DVD Boxed Set]
WAGNER, R.:
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Stemme • Hilley • Paterson
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Orchestra and Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin
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‘Down in the pit, it’s a straight slam dunk. Donald Runnicles leads pacy yet detailed readings of all four operas, and his orchestra is superb. His conducting abounds in characterful touches, witty gesture and refulgent emotion. Intellectually elaborate, emotionally complex and often provocative, this is a probing, thought-through production.’
Opera News
Also available on Blu-ray (NBD0156VX)


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