OP2562. DAS RHEINGOLD, Live Performance, 16 Dec., 1961, w.Leinsdorf Cond. George London, Norman Mittelman, Karl Liebl, Paul Kuen, Jerome Hines, Ernst Wiemann, Irene Dalis, Jean Madeira, etc. (E.U.) 2-Walhall 0360. Specially priced. - 4035122653601

CRITIC REVIEWS:

"London attempts his first Met Wotan, pouring out reams of tone whose opulence is buttressed by conviction and trenchant diction. The free emission of his top voice is welcome, as is the noble manner he summons as an antidote to the whining in the Nibelung caverns....Dalis invariably shines more in her Teutonic assignments....apt for the German venue, and the firm command of language and style, the residue of her Berlin years, is reassuring....Madeira could have made a career out of the role [of Erda]; her deep tones and somber manner are impressive....her dense timbre is constant throughout its range, and several top tones are securely struck....Paul Kuen's....portrait is varied in nuance and lively enough to make the Nibelung's subterranean lair almost inviting....The German tenor was celebrated for his portrayal of the role at the Bayreuth Festival, and to have gained him was a coup for Bing."

- Paul Jackson, SIGN-OFF FOR THE OLD MET, p.292



"The voice of the Bavarian tenor Karl Liebl was recognised while he was studying to become a school teacher. In 1945, after serving in World War II, he became a Jugendlicher Heldentenor at the Stadttheater of Regensburg. Here he sang, among others, Riccardo in BALLO, Radames and his first Wagner role: Siegmund. The first of his frequent appearances at the Staatstheater of Wiesbaden was in 1951, thereafter, he began to develop into a Heldentenor. From 1955 through 1959 he sang at the Cologne Opera including Huon in OBERON at the opening of the new house. From 1956-59 he was a member of the Staatsoper in Vienna, where he sang in premiere of MATHIS DER MALER by Hindemith. From 1959 to 1968 he performed at the Metropolitan Opera (debut role: Lohengrin) in such roles such as Tristan, Walther von Stolzing, Erik, Loge, Siegmund, Siegfried, Parsifal and Herod in SALOME - in all, eight major roles in 57 performances. He died in 2007."