This is an audio and video discography of Tristan und Isolde, an opera by Richard Wagner which was first performed on 10 June 1865 in Munich.
Recording history Tristan und Isolde has a long recorded history. In the years before World War II, Kirsten Flagstad and Lauritz Melchior were considered to be the prime interpreters of the lead roles, and mono recordings exist of this pair in a number of live performances led by conductors such as Thomas Beecham, Fritz Reiner, Artur Bodanzky and Erich Leinsdorf. Flagstad recorded the part commercially only near the end of her career in 1952, under Wilhelm Furtwängler for EMI, producing a set which is considered a classic recording.Holloway, Robin (1982) in "Opera on Record", Harper and Row , page 367. Following the war, the performances at Bayreuth with Martha Mödl and Ramon Vinay under Herbert von Karajan (1952) were highly regarded, and these performances are now available as a live recording. In the 1960s, the soprano Birgit Nilsson was considered the major Isolde interpreter, and she was often partnered with the Tristan of Wolfgang Windgassen. Their performance at Bayreuth in 1966 under the baton of Karl Böhm was captured by Deutsche Grammophon—a performance often hailed as one of the best Tristan recordings.Blyth, Alan (1992), "Opera on CD" Kyle Cathie Ltd, page 65. Some collectors prefer the pairing of Nilsson with the Canadian tenor Jon Vickers, available in "unofficial" recordings from performances in Vienna or Orange.
There are several DVD productions of the opera including Götz Friedrich's production at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin featuring the seasoned Wagnerians René Kollo and Dame Gwyneth Jones in the title roles. Deutsche Grammophon released a DVD of a Metropolitan Opera performance featuring Jane Eaglen and Ben Heppner, conducted by James Levine, in a production staged by Jürgen Rose, and a DVD of the 1995 Bayreuth Festival production with conductor Daniel Barenboim and featuring Waltraud Meier as Isolde and Siegfried Jerusalem as Tristan, staged by Heiner Mueller.
Audio recordings Yearcast:(Tristan, Isolde, Brangäne, King Marke, Kurwenal)Conductor,Opera House and OrchestraLabel Recordings of Tristan und Isolde on Wagner Discography1928 Gunnar Graarud,Nanny Larsen-Todsen,Anny Helm,Ivar Andresen,Rudolf BockelmannKarl Elmendorff,Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, Bayreuth Festival Chorus(abridged)Naxos Historical,Brown, p. 36Cat: 8.110200-021935Lauritz Melchior,Kirsten Flagstad,Karin Branzell,Ludwig Hofmann,Friedrich SchorrArtur Bodanzky,Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera ChorusImmortal Performances,Cat: IPCD 1078–31936Lauritz Melchior,Kirsten Flagstad,Sabine Kalter,Emanuel List,Herbert Janssen Fritz Reiner,Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra, Royal Opera House Covent Garden Chorus(Live recording and the sound is good considering the age of the recording)VAI Audio:VAIA 1004-3,Naxos «Historical,Cat: 8.110068.701937Lauritz Melchior,Kirsten Flagstad,Kerstin Thorborg,Ludwig Hofmann,Julius HuehnArtur Bodanzky,Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera ChorusImmortal Performances,Cat: IPCD 1040–31937Lauritz Melchior,Kirsten Flagstad,Margarete Klose,Sven Nilsson,Herbert JanssenThomas Beecham,Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra, Royal Opera House Covent Garden Chorus,(Only part of the EMI recording is conducted by Beecham; the rest is conducted by Reiner)EMI Classics,Cat: 640371943Lauritz Melchior,Helen Traubel,Kerstin Thorborg,Alexander Kipnis,Julius HuehnErich Leinsdorf,Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera ChorusNaxos Historical,Cat: 8.110010-21943Max Lorenz,Paula Buchner,Margarete Klose,Ludwig Hofmann,Jaro ProhaskaRobert Heger,Berlin State Opera Orchestra and ChorusPreiser,Cat: 902431948Set Svanholm,Kirsten Flagstad,Viorica Ursuleac,Ludwig Weber,Hans HotterErich Kleiber,Buenos Aires OperaMyto,Cat: H0311950Gunther Treptow,Helena Braun,Margarete Klose,Ferdinand Frantz,Paul SchöfflerHans Knappertsbusch,Bavarian State Opera OrchestraOrfeo,Cat: C355 943 D1951Max Lorenz,Gertrude Grob-Prandl,Elsa Cavelti,Sven Nilsson,Sigurd BjörlingVictor de Sabata,Orchestra of La Scala MilanArchipel,Cat: ARPCD 0027Brown, p. 131952Ramón Vinay,Martha Mödl,Ira Malaniuk,Ludwig Weber,Hans HotterHerbert von Karajan,Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, Bayreuth Festival Chorus(Recording of a performance at the Bayreuth Festival)Arkadia,Cat: CDHP 528.4 and other labelsBrown, p. 161952Ludwig Suthaus,Kirsten Flagstad (with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf providing some top notes in the Act II Love Duet),Naxos, Notes to Tristan und Isolde. Retrieved 11 December 2015Blanche Thebom,Josef Greindl,Dietrich Fischer-DieskauWilhelm Furtwängler,Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Opera House Covent Garden ChorusEMI Classics Naxos HistoricalCat: 8.110321-241955Set Svanholm,Astrid Varnay,Blanche Thebom,Jerome Hines,Josef MetternichRudolf Kempe,Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera ChorusWalhall,Cat: WLCD01351958Wolfgang Windgassen,Birgit Nilsson,Grace Hoffman,Josef Greindl,Erik SaedénWolfgang Sawallisch,Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, Bayreuth Festival Chorus(Recording of a performance at the Bayreuth Festival)Orfeo,Cat: 951 183 D1959Wolfgang Windgassen,Birgit Nilsson,Hilde Rössel-Majdan,Hans Hotter,Gustav Neidlinger Herbert von Karajan,Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro alla ScalaGolden Melodram,Cat: GM 1.00801961Fritz Uhl,Birgit Nilsson,Regina Resnik,Arnold van Mill,Tom KrauseGeorg Solti,Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna SingvereinDecca,Cat: 470814 1966Wolfgang Windgassen,Birgit Nilsson,Christa Ludwig,Martti Talvela,Eberhard WächterKarl Böhm,Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, Bayreuth Festival Chorus(Recording of a performance at the Bayreuth Festival, August)Deutsche Grammophon,Cat: 449772 1971Jon Vickers,Birgit Nilsson,Grace Hoffman,Franz Crass,Norman MittelmanHorst Stein,Buenos Aires Teatro Colón OrchestraVAI,Cat: VAIA 1178-31971-72Jon Vickers,Helga Dernesch,Christa Ludwig,Karl Ridderbusch,Walter Berry Herbert von Karajan,Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Berlin Deutsche Oper ChorusEMI Classics,Cat: 693191976Spas Wenkoff,Caterina Ligendza,Yvonne Minton,Karl Ridderbusch,Donald McIntyreCarlos Kleiber,Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, Bayreuth Festival Chorus(Recording of a performance at the Bayreuth Festival)Opera Depot,Cat: OD 10262-31980-81John Mitchinson,Linda Esther Gray,Anne Wilkens,Gwynne Howell,Phillip JollReginald Goodall,Chorus and Orchestra of Welsh National OperaDecca,Cat: 443682 1981Alberto Remedios,Linda Esther Gray,Felicity Palmer,John Tomlinson,Norman BaileyReginald Goodall,Chorus and Orchestra of English National Opera,Performance in EnglishOriel Music Society,OMS 1811981Peter Hofmann,Hildegard Behrens,Yvonne Minton,Hans Sotin,Bernd WeiklLeonard Bernstein,Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony ChorusPhilips,Cat: 2PH5410-447 1980/82René Kollo,Margaret Price,Brigitte Fassbaender,Kurt Moll,Dietrich Fischer-DieskauCarlos Kleiber,Leipzig Radio Chorus, Dresden StaatskapelleDeutsche Grammophon,Cat: 4032021995Siegfried Jerusalem,Waltraud Meier,Marjana Lipovšek,Matti Salminen, Falk StruckmannDaniel Barenboim,Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Berlin State Opera ChorusTeldec,Cat: 945682003Thomas Moser,Deborah Voigt,Petra Lang,Robert Holl,Peter WeberChristian Thielemann,Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Vienna State Opera Chorus (Live)Deutsche Grammophon,Cat: 474 9742004Plácido Domingo,Nina Stemme,Mihoko Fujimura,René Pape,Olaf BärAntonio Pappano,Royal Opera House Covent Garden Orchestra, Royal Opera House Covent Garden ChorusEMI Classics,Cat: 5.58006 2012Stephen Gould,Nina Stemme,Michelle Breedt,Kwangchul Youn,Johan ReuterMarek Janowski,Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Rundfunkchor Berlin Pentatone,Cat: PTC5186404
Video recordings