Paul Whelan sings the role of Wotan, king of the gods - in 'Das Rheingold'. Photo / Supplied
Paul Whelan sings the role of Wotan, king of the gods - in 'Das Rheingold'. Photo / Supplied
Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra's 2011 Westpac Opera in Concert was Wagner's Das Rheingold, presented without the high-tech wizardry of Robert Lepage's Metropolitan Opera production which screened around the country last year.
But as more austere stagings prove, Wagner's essential drama lies in the music which, on Friday night, was extremely wellserved.
There may have been a few treacherous rocks in the Rhine when conductor Eckehard Stier launched the Prelude but, for 2 hours, the APO emerged triumphant from one of its most demanding calls.
Paul Whelan was an impressive young Wotan - his final confrontation with Alberich had the glow of truth and humanity. A finely modulated Elizabeth Campbell was a perfect partner as Fricka, their first scene beautifully underlined by Stier's players. Anna Leese, as Fricka's sister Freia, had little to do but register distress, with the occasional shrillness.
Wagner is not afraid of the literal. The giants stomp in like cartoon heavies, and you hear it in the scoring. Peter Rose and Gary Jankowski sustained this image well.
Wagner's villains not only fuel the drama but they entertain, even if John Wegner's Alberich was showing vocal strain in the final scene.
Matthias Wohlbrecht's Loge stood out. With little need for a printed score, he was a font of maliciousness alongside Richard Greager's magnificently malevolent Mime. Completing the line-up of Gods, Patrick Power's Donner was solid enough although Jose Aparacio was alarmingly thin-voiced as Froh.
Deborah Humble's Erda invested her one song of warning with the resonance of a great Mahlerian moment.
Towards the end, the sometimes saucy surtitles had Wotan querying the Rhinemaidens' song as "What's that wailing?" A calumny indeed, considering the central role of Jenny Wollerman, Anna Pierard and Sally-Anne Russell's effortless trio work in opening and closing this historic work.
