Rating: 
Summary: Unhappy with Levine's conducting
Review: In my view, that chief drawback of this dvd release lies in the lethargic conducting of Levine. There should be no doubt that the orchestra of the Met gives us playing of enviable standard here. Unfortunately, the music just drags on under the baton of Levine, who often fails to piece the many transitional passages together in a coherent and dramatic manner. His slow tempo also causes much straining on the part of the singers, and in particular Frau Behrens, whose slender and patchy voice cannot adequately cope with Brunnhilde's music. The other cast members are often little more than adequate. Surely not a great performance, which, as I've said, is unhelped by Levine's interpretation. Quite disappointing.
Rating: 
Summary: The 1990 Met Opera/PBS Production...
Review: Just in case anyone is unclear as to the content of this set (at the time of writing this, there were no technical details or official reviews here), the performances are from the June 1990 PBS broadcast from the Met, using their 'traditional' Ring staging. These have previously been released on laserdisc and VHS.
Rating:
Summary: Traditional staging with uneven performances
Review: Given the paucity of dvds for Wagner's Ring cycle, this release of the complete Metropolitan Opera production should theoretically be welcomed, especially for lovers of traditional staging. Indeed, the staging is a naturalistic one which no only is rather loyal to Wagner's original intentions but can also highlight the universality of this epic drama.Unfortunately, while I like the setting for the operas, the direction itself is quite unimaginative. At times, the singers are left all on their own such that they have to resort to repeating some stock operatic gestures. Some may consider the result to be dramatically pallid and even boring at times. Traditional productions certainly aren't mean't to be static or stylised! Actually, the most disappointing facet of the production is in the performance. While no one should expect that any present-day casting of the Ring cycle can reach the lofty standards of yester-years, the singing is often merely adequate. This is not helped by the wooden acting of some of the performers. James Morris's Wotan is in splendid voice, but his acting is sketchy. Christa Ludwig is past her prime as Fricka, but her performance still possess great authority. Gary Lakes is a rough Siegmund while Jessye Norman is a vocally gorgeous but stage-wise unconvincing Sieglinde. Siegfried Jerusalem is probably as good as one can get for Siegfried these days, his singing full of sensitivity and poise even though he is not a heldentenor in the traditional mould. Hildgard Behrens, sorely taxed by the music of Brunnhilde, is a big disappointment, for her voice sounds threatbare at times, especially in the middle and lower registers and she is unable to ride the big vocal climaxes with ease. The Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera produces great sounds in the pit and every section deserves the greatest of praise. Levine, of course, is their admirable conductor, although I sometimes find the forward momentum sagging a little from time to time, especially in Siegfried and Gotterdammerung. As I tend to focus more on the singers than the orchestra in opera, I must say that I'm quite disappointed by what I hear on this dvd set. Although I still think that the set is worth getting (every release of a complete Ring cycle is an event), I can't help feeling that the production has been let down by the singers as well as some stolid stage direction.
Rating: 
Summary: Not perfect, but I disagree with the carping of many reviewe
Review: Technically, I'd prefer to give this 4 1/2 stars. This rendition is not perfect, but it is far better than some of my fellow reviewers would have you believe. I own Rheingold and Walküre in DVD, and have seen Siegfried and Götterdämmerung on VHS. I'll be adding the latter two to my collection as money permits. I have watched the entire cycle now twice. I would like to see the Bayreuth/Boulez production, but no library around my home area has them. About the only criticisms I agree are (1) Behrens sometimes seems under-powered for the role; (2) the acting is sometimes less than dramatically powerful. I was also initially disappointed that there are no real horses in the Ride of the Valkyries, or the conclusion of Götterdämmerung. (There is a local Christian theater that uses live animals on its stage; why wouldn't the greatest opera house in the world be able to do it?) In defense of Behrens, at least she isn't fat or ugly. She convincingly protrays a beautiful warrior-maid who surrenders herself to human love only to be betrayed. I could go on at length about the artistic virtues of each of the other major characters; suffice it to say that they are all world-class. Morris as Wotan and Hagen (sorry, don't have the actor's name at hand) are especially powerful and convincing; Jerusalem as Loge and Siegfried is almost as good. Contrary to at least one other reviewer, Act I of Walküre (the meeting and elopement of Sieglinde and Siegmund) is well-done by Norman and Lake, respectively. The dramatic flaws are more than made up for by the intimacy allowed by television: the good-bye between Wotan and Brünnhilde (end of Walküre) is over-whelming; the reforging of Notung, the double oath sworn on Hagen's spear by Brünnhilde and Siegfried, and their love scene at the end of Siegfried, are just some of the highlights that come to mind as powerful, moving...(add your favorite adverb of artistic excellence). Whatever the virtues of the Bayreuth DVD production, I think that any person who wants to enjoy, appreciate, and understand Wagner's Ring owes it to himself/herself to see a traditional production. I will continue to enjoy the Met Ring for years to come.
Rating:
Summary: Traditional and Glorious Ring
Review: The Met's now classic Ring has been lauded to the heavens and criticized for its lack of innovation. It's a personal thing, I believe, and I believe this is a Ring to stand the test of time.
Traditional doesn't need to be a bad word, and this Ring resounds with glorious performances from the opening of Das Rheingold through the destruction of Valhalla and the flooding of the Rhine. It's a glorious, operatic adventure of a lifetime.
Some may quibble that Hildegard Behrens isn't a true dramatic soprano, but her fierce will, and often lovely voice, combined with an intensity that is electrifying make this a Brunhilde to treasure.
James Morris's Wotan, Christa Ludwig's Fricka, Matti Salminen, and the rest of the cast offer big committed performances under James Levine's baton. The production values are not stinted on here and we really get a sense of Wagner's "gesamtkunstwerk" or "total work of art."
Worth every penny!
Rating:
Summary: Not Perfect, but the best available
Review: Yes, sometimes the singers' voices are tired.
Yes, the acting could be better in places.
Yes, the subtitles for Die Walkure are all screwed up.
Yes, the dragon in Siegfried looks more like a giant crab than a dragon.
And Siegfried Jerusalem does make a better Loge (in Das Rheingold) than a Siegfried in the last two operas, but he's still very good. At times, Hildegard Behrens seems to be in over her head (she's no Birgit Nilsson); however, there are some excellent performances: James Morris is a great Wotan, Matti Salminen as Hagen could not be better, Christa Ludwig is perfect both as Wotan's wife (in Das Rheingold and Die Walkure) and as his daughter (in Gotterdammerung). The sets are traditional and probably exceed anything Wager could have wished. It's not the Solti CD set, but it's the best that's available on DVD and well worth owning. It's light-years ahead of that Stuttgart Opera hodge-podge.
Rating:
Summary: Great performances
Review: I'm no operaphile, and so cannot offer a sophisticated review as other more opera-savvy reviewers might. However, I have enjoyed and gotten a lot out of this edition of Wagner's Ring. The performances by Hildegard Behrens, Jessye Norman and James Morris are wonderful.
I've been watching the series on DVD to prepare for attending the September 2006 Canadian Opera Company (COC) presentation of The Ring in its entirety at the soon-to-be-built opera house in Toronto. I saw the COC production of Die Walkuere earlier this year. It was well done, but I must say that I prefer the version on this DVD, with its traditional sets (other reviewers called the sets blah) and its top-calibre Metropolitan Opera performers and conductor (Levine). The COC presents Siegfried, on its own, in February 2005. ***Note*** the Die Walkuere DVD has its subtitles for Act III screwed up. I emailed Deutsche Grammaphon about this, and they promptly and courteously shipped me a replacement, corrected DVD.
Rating:
Summary: A must have for all Human beings!
Review: Wagner's Ring is a gigantic monument to knowledge, philosophy, drama, psychology, art, mythology, love...the list goes on.
The Levine cycle is the only cycle to follow Wagner's own stage directions as Wagner intended. The production (with its sets, costumes etc.) is grand, beautiful, lush, and awe inspiring.
You couldn't ask for a better Wagnerian cast and Levine's interpretation is truly remarkable!
You will increase your cosmic knowledge and aquire much esoteric wisdom by investing in Levine's cycle of Wagner's Ring.
Don't hesitate, allow you destiny to be forever changed!
Rating:
Summary: Technical correction
Review: Just a technical correction, not a review. These DVDs are region 0 (play in all regions), not region 1 as advertised.
Rating:
Summary: Decent but not perfik.
Review: This has all the makings of a classic but ultimately it falls short; unlike a ring it is not perfik.
Firstly, I would like to say that I am delighted to be able to see a proper traditional staging of the Ring of the Nibelung instead of the usual half-baked, unintelligent modern productions I am treated to at my local opera house. Who wants to see Wotan as a mob leader and the Rhinemaidens as lap dancers!?! In what sense do such interpretations conform to Wagner's ideology that his operas, layden in symbolism as they are, portray worlds that exist outside space and time and hence outside any historical period. To impose a contemporary setting on a Wagner opera is to show a complete lack of understanding as to how these operas can be produced.
Anyway, it certainly makes a difference having such a traditional renditon of 'der Ring des Nibelungen' and there is no doubt that there are moments in this opera when I do feel drawn 'outside space and time'.
Now for some gripes.
I have perused many of the reviews of this DVD box set and I am in agreement that there have been some miscastings. I suppose over four operas it is almost inevitable that one or other of the lead performers is not going to be ideal or is not going to be to everyone's liking and I am willing to accept that the challenge of Wagner's staging and acting/singing requirements are unlikely to be ever completly met to my liking. Nevertheless, I feel that above all Siegfried Jerusalem, whilst excellent as Loge in 'das Rheingold', doesn't convince as his namesake in operas 3 and 4. Firstly, he is about twenty years too old which really does detract from credibility. Secondly, his acting is overly hammy; i know that Siegfried is something of a caricature but I think such an enthusiastic and grinning performance would be more commensurate with a tenor in his early twenties. Jerusalem also lacks the stature of a Siegfried-esque hero. He needs to be more upright and arrogant, in sum more gravitas needed.
I think Hildegard Behrens is another who doesn't quite fit the bill. The basic problem is that she seems too feeble to be Brunnhilde. She lacks power in her presence and also in her voice and is also devoid of a nymphish arrogance so important to the lead Valkyrie. In her defence I would say that her essence of vulnerability contrasts well with the authorative performance of James Morris as Wotan particularly in the culminating scene of Act 3 of 'die Walkure' which is excellent.
These are the most essential problems.
Other lesser gripes include:
Lack of stage action during 'ride of the Valkyries' to synchronise with the power of the music.
Dodgy acting by Gary Lakes as Siegmund in 'die Walkure' - his eyes are all over the place presumably looking at the conductor, which is very distracting.
Obvious lack of physical resemblance between Siegmund and Sieglinde.
Gripes aside I think there are many positives about this production.
The performances by those playing the parts of Wotan (as mentioned), Alberich, Mime, Sieglinde, Gunther, Hagen, Erda and the Rhinemaidens are all very good I thought, in terms of both singing and acting which are frankly of equal importance. The staging is generally top notch with a particularly spectacular finale in Gotterdamerung and a beautifully ethereal Valhalla, not to mention a well used apparent holographic effect on Erda and the Norns.
I disagree with a popular opinion amongst reviewers here that there is a lack of movement and energy on the set. I don't think serious Wagner operas generally require a lot of running around and pointless animation but when it was required there were good dynamics e.g. the relationship between Siegfried and Mime, Loge's character. I don't really want to see Wotan running around in circles after Brunnhilde or Fricke frankly. I also thought Levine did a good job of conducting and I much preferred his interpretation of the pivotal 'Siegfried's funeral march' to the typically brass drowned Solti version.
So all in all, this is certainly a worthwhile purchase and for serious Wagner fans to be preferred over any pretentious and paradoxically trivial modern staged version. With the exception of some cast changes I think this version is about as good a version of 'the Ring' as you're going to get though I think an animated version would be a very interesting idea as mentioned by another reviewer here.
Ultimately, no one version of the Ring is going to be to everyone's liking. Nothing is perfik, not even my spelling.
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