Birgit Nilsson
Her name is inseparable from that of Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss, of both of whom she was one of the most eminent interpreters of the last century. Thanks to her phenomenal vocal powers, the career of this great Swedish dramatic soprano was exceptionally long: she sang Isolde on stage, when she was over 60 years old. A country girl, with a forceful personality and a savage sense of humour, she once declared that she started singing before she learned to talk, by imitating her mother who had a nice voice. Birgit Nilsson wasn't an actress, but her voice has such an exceptional power that it naturally has an imposing stage presence. The vigour of her temperament, the clarity of her attacks, the stupefying ease with which she tackles the high notes, a vocal strength that is also capable of the most infinitesimal pianissimo nuances, have all contributed to her unequalled glory. Between 1957 and 1970 she reigned in Bayreuth, singing Isolde (her favourite), Sieglinde, Elsa, and to be sure, Brünnhilde in productions of Wieland Wagner which completely modernised Wagnerian stage design, by giving it the new breath of life that it needed.
Thanks to her vocal talents, Birgit Nilsson was also the peerless performer of great dramatic roles like Elektra, Salomé and Die Frau Ohne Schatten (Strauss), Tosca (Puccini) and Aïda (Verdi). She was also a splendid Leonore, the staggering lead in Beethoven's only opera, Fidelio. But the almost-superhuman strength and magnetism of her voice fit especially well to the character of Turandot from Puccini's opera of the same name.
The intrinsic character of this voice should not, however, obscure the way that Nilsson personified her characters, thanks to her great intelligence and her innate sense for giving a very close rendition of the roles she played, matched with a perfect understanding of the composers that she sang with great nobility and style.
Music lovers the world over are spoiled for choice today, as yesterday, thanks to the famous discographic recordings from DECCA as well as the very numerous live takes which will forever preserve this phonogenic voice of voices, which had the good fortune of being recorded in all of its major roles, with the greatest supervisors and under high-quality technical conditions. Suffice it to cite the famous Ring (Wagner) recorded by Georg Solti between 1958 and 1965, remastered in recent years with a sound that hasn't aged one iota. But we will also find another complete Wagnerian Tetralogy recorded at Bayreuth and other indispensable studio recordings like Elektra and Salomé under the direction of the self-same Solti, without forgetting her unforgettable Isolde under the incandescent baton of Karl Böhm at Bayreuth, or, in the studio, under Solti's direction.
In 1984, at the age of 66, Birgit Nilsson gave up singing to concentrate on teaching. She created a foundation bearing her name, to support singers, conductors, and to encourage lyrical productions.
© FH / Qobuz
Artistas semelhantes
-
Birgit Nilsson
Classical - Lançado por Decca em 1 de jan. de 2006
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Richard Strauss: Salome (1961)
Birgit Nilsson, Grace Hoffmann, Gerhard Stolze
Opera - Lançado por Classical Moments em 4 de mar. de 2015
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Birgit Nilsson Chante Verdi
Birgit Nilsson, Royal Opera House Orchestra, Argeo Quadri
Classical - Lançado por Decca Music Group Ltd. em 14 de dez. de 1962
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Richard Strauss : Elektra
Birgit Nilsson, Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti
Classical - Lançado por Decca Music Group Ltd. em 2 de nov. de 1967
A discografia ideal da QobuzQualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Die Walküre; Götterdämmerung ; Tristan und Isolde – Excerpts (Opera Gala – Volume 17)
Kirsten Flagstad, Set Svanholm, Birgit Nilsson, Sir Georg Solti, Hans Knappertsbusch
Classical - Lançado por Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. em 13 de nov. de 2020
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Strauss, R: Salome
Birgit Nilsson, Eberhard Wächter, Gerhard Stolze, Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti
Classical - Lançado por Decca Music Group Ltd. em 1 de jan. de 1962
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Duets from Parsifal & Die Walküre
Birgit Nilsson, Helge Brilioth, Royal Opera House Orchestra, Leif Segerstam
Classical - Lançado por Decca Music Group Ltd. em 4 de mar. de 1974
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Die Walkure
Astrid Varnay, Birgit Nilsson, Hans Hotter
Opera - Lançado por Urania em 11 de ago. de 2009
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Strauss: Salome; Wagner: Götterdämmerung – Excerpts (Opera Gala – Volume 18)
Birgit Nilsson, Sir Georg Solti
Classical - Lançado por Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. em 13 de nov. de 2020
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Tristan und Isolde, WWV 90 – Excerpt (Hans Knappertsbusch - The Opera Edition: Volume 2)
Birgit Nilsson, Grace Hoffman, Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Hans Knappertsbusch
Classical - Lançado por Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. em 1 de jan. de 1960
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Puccini: Turandot
Classical - Lançado por Orfeo em 21 de abr. de 2008
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Birgit Nilsson Live in Stockholm (1970, 1973)
Birgit Nilsson, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Geoffrey Parsons, Leif Segerstam
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Lançado por Bluebell em 1 de jan. de 1987
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Puccini - Turandot
Birgit Nilsson, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Francesco Molinari-Pradelli, Wiener Staatsoper Orchestra
Classical - Lançado por G.O.P. em 31 de jan. de 2024
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Tristan Und Isolde
Classical - Lançado por Decca Music Group Ltd. em 1 de jan. de 1961
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Grosse Stimmen - Birgit Nilsson
Classical - Lançado por Deutsche Grammophon (DG) em 1 de jan. de 1990
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Birgit Nilsson at the Churches of St. Jacob and Gustav Vasa
Classical - Lançado por Swedish Society em 1 de jan. de 2011
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Land of the Midnight Sun
Birgit Nilsson, Wiener Opernorchester, Bertil Bokstedt
Classical - Lançado por Decca Music Group Ltd. em 1 de nov. de 1965
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Puccini: Turandot
Renata Tebaldi, Birgit Nilsson, Jussi Bjoerling
Opera - Lançado por Past Classics em 24 de ago. de 2009
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Verdi: Aida – Excerpts (Opera Gala – Volume 13)
Birgit Nilsson, Sir John Pritchard
Classical - Lançado por Universal Music Australia Pty. Ltd. em 13 de nov. de 2020
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schierbeck: The Chinese Flute - Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle
Birgit Nilsson, Swedish Radio Orchestra, Bernhard Sonnerstedt, Tor Mann, Ferenc Fricsay
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Lançado por Bluebell em 1 de abr. de 2012
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Puccini - Turandot
Birgit Nilsson, Franco Corelli, Leopold Stokowski, Orchestra del Teatro Metropolitan
Opera - Lançado por G.O.P. em 13 de abr. de 2017
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo