A recent release reviewed

OBSESSIONS: WAGNER & STRAUSS ARIAS AND SCENES
Deborah Voigt, Soprano; Symphonie- orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks; Conductor: Sir Richard Armstrong Angel Records
****

Deborah Voigt is one of the leading sopranos singing the heavier roles of Wagner and Richard Strauss today. This recital covers a good cross-section of her more famous roles in both composers' works, and while her Wagner excerpts are something of a mixed bag, the scenes from Richard Strauss's operas are very fine indeed. The excerpts from Tristan und Isolde are well sung but somewhat bland, although she does convey a sense of wonder in the Tannhauser aria. However, the scenes from Richard Strauss are another matter entirely. Voight brings a wonderful sense of ecstasy to Adriane's great solo, Es gibt ein Reich, but her most memorable singing on the disc is of the final scene from Salome, where her intensity is memorable. www.emiclassics.com

Colman Morrissey