There was much to look forward to when Deutsche Oper Berlin (DOB) announced the second season of their latest Ring Cycle, directed by Norwegian Stefan Herheim and which premiered over the course of 2020-2021.

Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, his sprawling music drama spanning more than 16 hours over 4 performances (not including intervals), saw the Europe-based Australian conductor Nicholas Carter — Chief Conductor and Co-Opera Director of Oper Bern since 2021 — helming the pit for the opening cycle.

Another Australian and a regular fixture of the house, bass-baritone Derek Welton, was to take on the role of Wotan in Die Walküre, the role already under his belt in the premiere season’s Das Rheingold.

When you’re so far from home, in the thick of some of the world’s most acclaimed opera houses, that Australian presence is always a buzz.

Thomas Blondelle as Loge in Deutsche Oper Berlin’s Das Rheingold. Photo © Bernd Uhlig

Carter never disappointed, exacting a thoughtfully punctuated reading bringing out a wealth of life within. The magic in the pit lasted the distance with Carter creating affectingly contrasted and expressive music with seeming effortlessness while providing carefully balanced support to his...