Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra & Andris Nelsons - Wagner: Der Fliegende Hollander (2014)

Product Description
The Wagner year 2013 brought something special to the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra's concert schedule. The RCO pulled out all the stops with a full performance of this Wagner opera in concert version. Busy carving out an impressive career for himself and making his fifth appearance at Bayreuth last summer, Andris Nelsons has certainly earned his spurs as a Wagner specialist. He is led the RCO and a cast of international soloists in 'Der Fliegende Holländer', an opera about the captain of an infamous Dutch ghost ship who can be freed only by a woman who consents to marry him.

Review
Performance: ***** Recording: ***** BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE CONCERTO CHOICE '[a] musically illuminating performance ... Perhaps the most striking aspect of Gerstein s interpretation is his ability to make the piano writing sound muc lighter and more transparent than usual ... Instead of the conventional barnstorming bravura, Gerstein brings poetry, balletic grace and an infinitely wide range of timbres ... Gerstein and James rise to the challenge [of Prokofiev s second concerto] with a gripping performance that offers immense emotional weight in the first movement' --Erik Levi BBC Music Magazine, March 2015

BBC RADIO 3 CD REVIEW DISC OF THE WEEK 'it s worth hearing for the chorus and orchestra at the very least, and that s a major reason why this is the CD Review Disc of the Week' --Andrew McGregor - BBC Radio 3 CD Review Disc of the Week, 14th February