# Friend hearing PARSIFAL for first time



## Meyerbeer Smith (Mar 25, 2016)

A friend's going to hear _Parsifal_ for the first time. It's a concert performance with Jonas Kaufmann in Sydney next year, so not a staged production. (Given some of the modern productions, maybe that's not a bad thing!)

_Parsifal_ is sublime but complex.

To introduce the work to her, I was thinking of:

- Playing some of the highlights: the Prelude; the Transformation Music and the start of the Temple scene, stopping just before Amfortas's lament; the Good Friday Music; and "Nur eine Waffe taugt"

- Showing her the DVD of the 1992 Met production, conducted by James Levine, with Siegfried Jerusalem, Waltraud Meier and Kurt Moll

- Giving her some articles to read, on the opera's themes, context, &c. I don't want to thrust Wolfram von Eschenbach or _The World as Will and Representation_ at her. Any suggestions?

Is there anything else people would recommend?


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## Don Fatale (Aug 31, 2009)

How nice. I'm glad that those down under get a chance to see Kaufmann.

When I first speed-read your post I didn't catch the 'don't want' and thought reading of _The World as Will and Representation_ WAS part of your primer. :lol:

You probably know this already, but here goes:

I often go with non-operaholic friends to operas. I give them links to key excerpts in advance. We always meet at a bar beforehand and I give a prepared run-through of the background, plot and moments to look out for. having this kind of interaction is better than simply reading a synopsis.

Get a seat with good acoustics for orchestra and few distractions. Alas that usually means paying as much as you can afford. Sometimes that can mean getting lucky with your immediate neighbours. I enjoy Wagner most when the distractions are at their minimum and I can be enveloped by the sound.

ps. I saw Die Meistersinger last time I was in Sydney (90's) and thoroughly enjoyed it. Such a great venue.


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

SimonTemplar said:


> - Giving her some articles to read, on the opera's themes, context, &c. I don't want to thrust Wolfram von Eschenbach or _The World as Will and Representation_ at her. Any suggestions?


Actually, it wouldn't hurt to give her a snippet or two from Wolfram; I find his story-telling quite enchanting. Like you say, it's probably best to stay off the Schopenhauer!


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

I introduced a friend to _Parsifal_ in high school. I had no complex thoughts to offer her then; I just gave her a synopsis to read, then the libretto, and then we sat down in front of the stereo, libretto in hand, and listened to it from start to finish.

I don't remember what we said about it that day, but in her senior yearbook, under her picture, she mentioned _Parsifal_ as one of her memorable high school experiences.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

SimonTemplar said:


> I don't want to thrust Wolfram von Eschenbach at her.


It depends on what kind of person she is, if she is a matter-of-fact person or if she likes dwelling on backstories. Personally, back when I wasn't interested in classical music, NPR did a rundown of Eschenbach's relation to Parsifal. That was so fascinating, it's stuck with me even to this day.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Eschenbach's _Parzival_ is really quite different from Wagner's version of the story, as is Chretien de Troyes' _Perceval._ Both are interesting and enjoyable, but neither gives much of an idea of what Wagner was doing.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

> A friend's going to hear Parsifal for the first time. It's a concert performance with Jonas Kaufmann in Sydney next year, so not a staged production. (Given some of the modern productions, maybe that's not a bad thing!)


Better a bad staging then 5 hours of torture by sitting in a chair, it should be forbidden. If the want Kaufmann to sing Wagner, make a special evening for him and the audience .


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

Woodduck said:


> Eschenbach's _Parzival_ is really quite different from Wagner's version of the story, as is Chretien de Troyes' _Perceval._ Both are interesting and enjoyable, but neither gives much of an idea of what Wagner was doing.


This is very true. Wagner both synthesises and departs from his source material, in _Parsifal_ as well as the _Ring_. To this extent, perhaps, he stands in the same tradition as JRR Tolkien and Monty Python (I'm not being facetious). Be that as it may, it's still interesting to get a flavour of the stories that inspired him, if only to discern the extent to which he transformed them.

Wagner was not alone in doing so, either. Whilst it doesn't deal much with Wagner's _Parsifal_, there's an entertaining documentary by Tony Robinson on YouTube ("The Real da Vinci Code", which highlights some of the many manifestations of the Grail Myth that have arisen in the centuries since Chrétien first wrote about it. It's quite remarkable how pervasive, and multi-faceted, the grail phenomenon has become.


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## Meyerbeer Smith (Mar 25, 2016)

Thanks for the advice, everyone!

She has her feet firmly on the ground, but is literate (she reads Virginia Woolf and Patrick Leigh Fermor), and goes to the opera regularly (including Strauss and twentieth century Slavic opera). She hasn't seen / heard much Wagner, though. _Dutchman_, I think, is the only one. I want her to get the most out of _Parsifal_ - which means understanding some of the opera's themes and back story.

I have the Solti _Parsifal_; the booklet has essays by William Mann and Carl Dahlhaus. Are there any similar articles or introductions people would recommend?


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## Faustian (Feb 8, 2015)

SimonTemplar said:


> Thanks for the advice, everyone!
> 
> She has her feet firmly on the ground, but is literate (she reads Virginia Woolf and Patrick Leigh Fermor), and goes to the opera regularly (including Strauss and twentieth century Slavic opera). She hasn't seen / heard much Wagner, though. _Dutchman_, I think, is the only one. I want her to get the most out of _Parsifal_ - which means understanding some of the opera's themes and back story.
> 
> I have the Solti _Parsifal_; the booklet has essays by William Mann and Carl Dahlhaus. Are there any similar articles or introductions people would recommend?


A user on this site took it upon himself to transcribe Michael Tanner's entire essay on Parsifal, "The Refusal To Transcend" in this thread sometime back, and it's definitely an interesting and stimulating read, though probably more beneficial for someone who is familiar with the work and wanting some further reflection on it.

One of my favorite writers on Wagner, and one who I think is especially good for an introduction is M Owen Lee, who used to provide the commentaries during intermissions for the MET opera broadcasts. His writing is clear and economical, and he examines the operas from several different angles, but is especially insightful when discussing how the works fit in the context of world mythology and archetypes. His wonderful essay on Parsifal, "Who is the Grail?" can be found in his book First Intermissions, and I would highly recommend it, not only for his words on Wagner but for his thoughts on several other beloved operas as well.


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## Reichstag aus LICHT (Oct 25, 2010)

I took this photograph of a set of electronic Monsalvat "bells" preserved in the Wahnfried Museum:









Basically amplified piano strings, but no less impressive for the time (1930s, I seem to recall).


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Faustian said:


> A user on this site took it upon himself to transcribe Michael Tanner's entire essay on Parsifal, "The Refusal To Transcend" in this thread sometime back, and it's definitely an interesting and stimulating read, though probably more beneficial for someone who is familiar with the work and wanting some further reflection on it.
> 
> One of my favorite writers on Wagner, and one who I think is especially good for an introduction is M Owen Lee, who used to provide the commentaries during intermissions for the MET opera broadcasts. His writing is clear and economical, and he examines the operas from several different angles, but is especially insightful when discussing how the works fit in the context of world mythology and archetypes. His wonderful essay on Parsifal, "Who is the Grail?" can be found in his book First Intermissions, and I would highly recommend it, not only for his words on Wagner but for his thoughts on several other beloved operas as well.


I'll second your recommendations of Lee and Tanner as guides for the relative newbie, but who can still teach us old Wagnerians something. I well remember Lee's contributions to the Met broadcasts, and also seem to recall an article he wrote on _Parsifal_ for Opera News. Tanner has another article on the opera in his fine little book, _Wagner. _


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## Becca (Feb 5, 2015)

SimonTemplar said:


> - Playing some of the highlights: the Prelude; the Transformation Music and the start of the Temple scene, stopping just before Amfortas's lament; the Good Friday Music; and "Nur eine Waffe taugt"
> 
> ...
> 
> Is there anything else people would recommend?


Claudio Abbado prepared and recorded an excellent symphonic synthesis of the major parts of Parsifal which does include a choral section from the last act. It is with the Berlin Philharmonic and available on DGG.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

You have to hurry though, out of stock for mounts now, only download available .
( perhaps second hand )


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

I just discovered this concert by Daniele Gatti on YouTube tonight. Here he conducts in concert some excerpts from the opera: the act one procession to the temple, the chorus of the knights, the prelude to act three, and the Good Friday music. I don't think I've heard anyone since Knappertsbusch conduct the transformation music with such uninhibited passion and power, bringing out all its ecstasy and pain. It's as if the universe is crying out! This whole performance seems to me so extraordinary that I have to share it with everyone. It should leave any newcomer to _Parsifal_ suitably overwhelmed:


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## Meyerbeer Smith (Mar 25, 2016)

Faustian said:


> A user on this site took it upon himself to transcribe Michael Tanner's entire essay on Parsifal, "The Refusal To Transcend" in this thread sometime back, and it's definitely an interesting and stimulating read, though probably more beneficial for someone who is familiar with the work and wanting some further reflection on it.
> 
> One of my favorite writers on Wagner, and one who I think is especially good for an introduction is M Owen Lee, who used to provide the commentaries during intermissions for the MET opera broadcasts. His writing is clear and economical, and he examines the operas from several different angles, but is especially insightful when discussing how the works fit in the context of world mythology and archetypes. His wonderful essay on Parsifal, "Who is the Grail?" can be found in his book First Intermissions, and I would highly recommend it, not only for his words on Wagner but for his thoughts on several other beloved operas as well.


Thanks for this!

I read Owen Lee's _Turning the Sky Round_ a decade ago, when I discovered Wagner.


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## anmhe (Feb 10, 2015)

Parsifal is the only opera I can think of where an audience member can identify with main character solely by not understanding what's going on. Don't take that away from your friend.


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## Barelytenor (Nov 19, 2011)

I was reading the online information about Hans Knappertsbusch and it seems that he had a "legendary" outburst against Birgit Nilsson. You certainly can't argue with Knappertsbusch's results -- at least, I won't -- but he was apparently pretty thorny to work with. And Nilsson was certainly thorny with some conductors too, notably Karajan. The online sources parrot one another. Does anyone know actually what this was about? We want details!


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## Don Fatale (Aug 31, 2009)

Today I bagged my ticket for Parsifal in Amsterdam on December 29th. This is my 4th live Parsifal, but I'm still in the discovery stage.


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## anmhe (Feb 10, 2015)

Barelytenor said:


> I was reading the online information about Hans Knappertsbusch and it seems that he had a "legendary" outburst against Birgit Nilsson. You certainly can't argue with Knappertsbusch's results -- at least, I won't -- but he was apparently pretty thorny to work with. And Nilsson was certainly thorny with some conductors too, notably Karajan. The online sources parrot one another. Does anyone know actually what this was about? We want details!


Oooooh...that seems like an interesting story. I second the motion for someone to fill us in on the details!

[Edited because the forum rules disagree with the notion that brevity is the soul of wit.]


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## Azol (Jan 25, 2015)

All I could find was from Wikipedia on Birgit Nilsson:



> Interactions with conductors
> Nilsson was known for standing up to conductors. In a 1967 rehearsal of Die Walküre with Herbert von Karajan conducting, Nilsson responded to the gloomy lighting of the production by wearing a miner's helmet (complete with Valkyrian wings). When on some occasion von Karajan urged a retake "and this time with our hearts - that's where your wallet has its place", Nilsson replied, "I'm glad to know that we have at least one thing in common, Maestro von Karajan!" When Georg Solti, in Tristan und Isolde, insisted on tempos too slow for Nilsson's taste, she made the first performance even slower, inducing a conductorial change of heart. After a tiff with Hans Knappertsbusch, Nilsson reported: "He called me by a name that begins with "A" and ends with 'hole'".


More info could be found here: http://dieterdavidscholz.de/nachrufe/nachruf-auf-birgit-nilsson.html


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