What a pleasure it is to hear an orchestra discover, almost in real time, the heights it can climb. In this anticipated live recording of Wagner’s Ring Cycle, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra under music director Fabio Luisi emerge as an ensemble completely equal to the demands of some of the most astonishing, demanding music ever written. Released to coincide with the orchestra’s 125th anniversary season and marking 150 years after the first performance of the complete Ring at the Bayreuth Festival, this recording is taken from a series of semi-staged performances in May and October 2024.

The biggest revelation, if you haven’t yet guessed, is the orchestra itself. There’s a seriousness and integrity to the playing, speaking to both the musicians’ commitment and Luisi’s ambitious leadership. This repertoire isn’t exactly bread and butter stuff for the orchestra, so their achievement here is especially notable. The strings play with focus and finely judged phrasing, while the horns provide both burnished power and delicacy when required. The woodwinds are beautifully expressive, providing some of the Cycle’s most special moments. Luisi’s interpretation is notable for its sure sense of pacing and grasp of both the detail and bigger picture. There’s always a sense that he’s getting exactly what he wants from the orchestra.

The cast assembled here is not quite as consistently distinguished, but that’s the risk one always runs with the Ring. What stands out to me is an admirable sense of shared purpose, a real whole-of-company attitude. As Brünnhilde, Lise Lindstrom is characteristically nuanced and moving. You sense that she’s really grown into the role over the years (she did her first full Cycle in the role for Opera Australia’s 2016 production), and, like a master of her craft, has pared back her portrayal to its absolute essentials. There’s nothing extraneous here, just a complete engagement with the text and music. Those who have reservations about Lindstrom will observe her relative lack of body in the lower register and wide vibrato, but it’s the totality of her performance that matters most to me.

Daniel Johansson, a relatively young singer to take on Siegfried, is not dissimilar to Lindstrom in terms of vocal profile. He has a lean, steely instrument which he uses intelligently, and while he noticeably fatigues in the more difficult passages (very few don’t), it’s a promising portrayal overall. I appreciate the youthful sensitivity and lyricism that he brings to the role and look forward to seeing his Siegfried develop over time.
Mark Delavan is a solid Wotan/Wanderer, drawing out the vulnerability in this dual(ish) role. He sings with real authority and intent in Die Walküre and is especially effective in his final confrontation with Siegfried, a highlight of the recording.

Beyond this principal trio, I was impressed by Štefan Margita’s Loge, who brings heaps of vocal personality to his portrayal of the trickster god. Tómas Tómasson’s truly unsettling Alberich is another standout, as is Deniz Uzun, who takes on both Fricka and Waltraute with real assurance.
With this Ring, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra have planted their flag and given us a wonderful new entry in the Cycle’s storied discography.

Listen on Apple Music

Composer: Wagner
Work: Der Ring des Nibelungen
Performers: Dallas Symphony Orchestra/Fabio Luisi
Label: Delos DE3624 (13CD)