Reminiscences of Tristan & Isolde

Photo credit: Rosarii Lynch

The late Alan David Aberbach first introduced me to Richard Wagner’s Tristan & Isolde. In a Saturday morning SFU class, he shared with us excerpts from several different productions, one of which I vividly remember from Japan had Jessye Norman as Isolde on a stage with minimalist and somewhat oriental sets. Another had Birgit Nilsson in the role along with Jon Vickers as Tristan. He described the music as some of the most sensuous music ever written. But the sensuality of Tristan & Isolde is only one aspect of this complex opera. Aberbach made a lifelong study of Wagner and the philosophies that influenced his beliefs and his compositions. The concept of the human soul as having masculine and feminine parts and is only complete when fully united is probably portrayed more fully in T&I than in any other of Wagner’s operas.

I was intrigued with the explanations and examples presented by Aberbach, but was still not prepared for my very first live Tristan and Isolde performance in Seattle in August, 1998. The beauty of the voices of heldentenor, Ben Heppner, and dramatic soprano, Jane Eaglen, both at their absolute peak in 1998, added to the orchestral music to create one of the most memorable performances of any opera I have seen before or since. The sensuality and sheer physicality of this production under the direction of Francesca Zambello was incredible. As my husband and I drove home from Seattle early the next morning, we did not turn on the radio for fear that it would disturb the music and scenes in our heads. Some of those memories of that performance and music are still there.

After half a dozen Tristan & Isolde performances later, which included a Kupfer production emphasizing the homosexual tendencies of König Marke and Tristan, and a recent Bayreuth production that totally de-emphasized the human aspects of all of the characters except for Kurwenal, I was curious how Director Peter Kazaras would treat Tristan & Isolde this summer in Seattle. I was not disappointed. In contrast to Zambello’s 1998 sexually explicit production, the human soul was foremost in his presentation of Tristan & Isolde on stage. At no time during the first and second acts was there physical contact between any of the characters on stage. Tristan, sung by Clifton Forbis, and Isolde, sung by Annalena Persson, either acted in unison or as exact opposites. It was only in the third act when Isolde arrived at Kareol that she and Tristan joined hands as he died. Kazaras’ take-home message was obviously that the male and female aspects of the soul could not be completely unified except in death.

Seattle Opera’s orchestra, so familiar with Wagner’s music, played magnificently. Both Persson and Forbis certainly had the volume and stamina required for the taxing lead roles. They looked and acted their parts well. However, neither had the beauty in their voices that Eaglen and Heppner had in 1998. Forbis’ voice was, in fact, quite rough in his lower register. The supporting roles of Brangäne and Kurwenal were superbly sung by Margaret Jane Wray and Greer Grimsley, respectively.

So was Seattle’s 2010 Tristan & Isolde a memorable performance? The answer is no, certainly not like the one in 1998. However, was it worthwhile to see? Yes, it was – mainly because of Kazaras’ interpretation. I think this is one production that Alan Aberbach would have appreciated.


~ D.S. Spring