When they say Die fliegende Holländer was Wagner's first truly Wagnerian opera, they're also saying that it was his least truly Wagnerian opera. The familiar Wagnerian elements are certainly all in place -- the haunted hero, the tragic heroine, the redemption by love, and the leitmotifs that bind them all together -- but there are still atavistic elements present as well -- the sentimental tenor, the women's chorus, and the second-hand storm music. When the Holländer enters, the listener can hear the tramp of Siegfried and when Senta sings her ballade, the listener can hear the echo of Brünnhilde. But when Daland sings his aria, one can hear Bellini, when the women sing their spinning chorus, one can hear Meyerbeer, and when Wagner imagines redemption, one can hear the cadences of Luther's chorals. Nevertheless, anyone who loves the mature Wagner of the Ring and Tristan will have to have a recording of Holländer, and, since its release in 1962, the Holländer to have has been this one. With one unfortunate lapse, the cast is uniformly magnificent with
Gottlob Frick as Daland,
Fritz Wunderlich as Steuermann, and, in one of the finest dramatic performances of his career,
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau as the Holländer. The strength, nobility, and soul-searing intensity of his interpretation makes a compelling case for the character as one of Wagner's few really sympathetic tragic heroes.
Franz Konwitschny was an East German conductor who died relatively young, but his direction here is extraordinarily dramatic and extremely effective. Only the unfortunately edgy Marianne Schech is less than outstanding, and she's not enough to drag down the performance except for when she's alone on-stage. Berlin Classics' stereo sound is deep and detailed, but a bit dry.