Kirsten Flagstad blasts a deafening curse in her final Isolde (1951)

*Her final recorded live Isolde on the operatic stage. She of course recorded the famous studio recording a year later and sang several excerpts in concert until 1955.
All surviving excerpts from the 1951 Covent Garden Tristan run can be found in this playlist: • Tristan und Isolde exc...
Not much to say about this performance that isn't obvious. A true masterclass in dramatic singing. Something interesting is the F5 at 1:56 which she chooses to take in 'mixed' voice rather than head voice.
Isolde - Kirsten Flagstad
Brangane - Constance Shacklock (?)
Conductor - Clemens Krauss
Music - Richard Wagner
Covent Garden
May, 1951.
Photo courtesy of the Kirsten Flagstad museum.

[@dramaticsoprano5168]

To those who follow my channel, I apologize for the lack of edits/uploads in the last few weeks. I have been quite busy with work amongst other things but things are beginning to settle down now. I will be uploading a few videos shortly including ‘Dramatic sopranos sing Abigaille’s cabaletta’ and a video on dynamics and agility. Please enjoy this video in the meantime!

[@Ruffiello]

Please, don't apologize. Just send them when you can!

[@jeffreymiller4814]

Oh. My. Goodness. That was her greatest ever, and I’ve heard almost all of her Narration and Curses. My first Flagstad experience was the excerpt from Tristan love duet (with Melchior) on the RCA Lp “Opening Nights at the Met”. That was 55+ years ago. It was love at first hearing and I’m STILL in love with her voice and her singing. Thanks a million for posting this. When people try to bash her, at this stage of my life I roll my eyes and walk away. Poor things. She was SUPREME, and anyone who doesn’t “get” her (or love dogs) is no friend of mine!

[@teodorojaranilla5008]

it s the SHEER BEAUTY of her VOICE RIDING on such incomparable power..! it s likely impossible another will appear approaching her stature..

[@cmarley4259]

There must have been something in the air at Covent Garden ‘51, because just like in her Kundry a few weeks prior, she unleashes her fortissimos in a way never heard before or again! Absolutely thrilling, thank you!

[@rumenmarinov6538]

Viva la Flagstad! Her Isolde AND her Kundry are monuments of art! … her Brünnhilde just about godlike!

[@g_vezz]

Simply glorious...

[@TheHighestPurpose]

Love how she showcases vocal acrobatics in 4:08 she literally swallows the high note!

[@pixelchords3201]

Those high notes are straight up terrifying

[@Pachinanonim]

3:58

[@MrStpendouslvforjo]

Incredible!! What a voice!!

[@teodorojaranilla5008]

it s INCREDIBLE...HER high notes...have WEIGHT...and FULLNESS...even the great BIRGIT NILSSON KNOWN for her high notes and laser like power..imo...NEVER had such WEIGHTED high notes..FLAGSTAD ,, more than ANY wagnerians was THE wagnerian. my god ,.how she prolongs her last two high notes with such fullness , power, and clarity...so many just sound "happy" to hit those..inaccurately..loudly...then QUIT as fast they could ...but NOT FLAGSTAD...makes the hair stand...

[@elsalohengrin7777]

Fkagstad ❤❤❤ and this age!!!! The final, she is still able to sing those notes! Most sopranosbare already at this point poweted out.. To sing Wagner needs a lot of stamina. And think, hours in full opera...

[@user-mt7xl1li3s]

I've known people who heard Madame Flagstad in person. They said the sound surrounded you ... As if you were inside a bell. .. I asked about Nilsson. The opinion was she was very good.

[@ER1CwC]

Listening to this particular excerpt, I am reminded of Heifetz. Both she and he stopped before any significant dip in standards could be detected. Everything is glorious, but second High B here does reveal her limit at this stage. The note is thrilling, but she is working hard. That adds to the excitement of course, but had she continued singing full Isolde's two-three years later, people would've started talking about a 'decline,' however dignified it might have been. In other words, she winded things down in the best way possible. The only recording I can think of in which she sounds _slightly_ 'frayed' is in the studio Gotterdammerung a few years later, but I think she just really wanted to record it.

[@dramaticsoprano5168]

Interesting you point out the second B. I think the first B sounds more difficult in this performance, with the pitch sounding to be kind of a wild guess. I agree with the general sentiment of your comment though. I also don’t mind the 1956 Götterdämmerung at all. Comparing quality, the La Scala ring just doesn’t do it for me.

[@ER1CwC]

@@dramaticsoprano5168 I'm really nitpicking though, her vocal condition is incredible here. The 1956 Gotterdammerung (if I recall correctly) is more than respectable too, as are the Walkure scenes with Solti.

[@henrygingercat]

An amazing experience and she's in better voice than in the complete recording. In my youth I remember meeting two people who'd been at this Liverpool performance and both said they'd never heard anything like it before or since. Do you know if any more of it was recorded? This was the cast for the London performance just prior: Young Seaman Edgar Evans Isolde Kirsten Flagstad Brangäne Constance Shacklock Kurwenal Sigurd Bjorling Tristan Set Svanholm Melot Geraint Evans King Mark Norman Walker Shepherd David Tree Steersman Rhydderch Davies

[@dramaticsoprano5168]

I have some small excerpts from Act 2, including “Dein werk? O törge magd!” and the beginning of “Isolde! Tristan! Geliebter!” (she takes the first high C btw - but admittedly is a little flat). Will post them later when I get around to cleaning the tapes.

[@henrygingercat]

@@dramaticsoprano5168 Excellent and thanks.

[@dramaticsoprano5168]

@@henrygingercat Hello, I come with an update about these recordings. Unfortunately, these excerpts I posted are not from the Liverpool run in July but a London performance at the Royal Albert Hall in May. The cast and conductor remain the same. I had originally believed this was the Liverpool performance because the person who gave me these recordings told me it was her final Isolde (i.e., the Liverpool performances), but he had meant her final recorded Isolde, which was in London. Still though, I believe these are very rare recordings never heard/posted before and of course Flagstad is still excellent.

[@henrygingercat]

@@dramaticsoprano5168 Thanks for the update.

[@teodorojaranilla5008]

her counterpart in VERISMO..i think..is RENATA TEBALDI..same combination of perfect technique power , intensity...no "cheating" as TEBALDI said about many singers after their generation...though tebaldi was SPINTO.....Suited for the dramatic Italian roles...and not the biggest dramatic voices needed for WAGNER and STRAUSS..

[@cmarley4259]

Is that a high C at about 3:12? I will say it is more convincing than anything Schwarzkopf could have pulled off!

[@dramaticsoprano5168]

It is a high B, a little sharp. She kept her high Bs pretty much till the end of her career.

[@SilfredoSerrano]

@@dramaticsoprano5168 For Wagner that was pretty much what you needed.

[@omarsomehow69]

And also, the tape seems a little bit sharp. Like +30 cents as per usual. Or it must just the way how the tuning the orchestra. I don't know.

[@dramaticsoprano5168]

@@omarsomehow69 Covent Garden in the 50s, so orchestra tuning will be a bit below mainland Europe. Right now it is A=442, could be about 10 cents lower (minimum is A=439), but I doubt a full 30. Check the second B, it is perfectly 30 cents lower than the first. First one is just quite sharp I suppose.

[@omarsomehow69]

@@dramaticsoprano5168 well, can't say anything about it, but the second top B was right on pitch for sure.