With all those redundant# daughters around, why would Wotan sacrifice his
only (?) son just because Fricka harangues him?

 [# Right: as if you could really tell Gerhilde from Siegrune.]

Tonight, at the SFO Cycle-3 "Walkuere," it became clear what can do Wotan
in.  When you're facing an adversary with twice your voice, choices are
few.

Elena Zaremba (vocally) towered over the good-size (tall, with big voice)
Alan Held, and effortlessly advanced her point of view.  I haven't heard a
mezzo of this power in the War Memorial since another Elena: Obraztsova's
Adriana Lecouvreur in 1977.

Zaremba's Fricka is also amazingly exotic: a Russian- accented Italian
voice doing a very German role.  Think Eboli in full fury.  In fact, if
it were Eboli, we'd know who wears the eyepatch in this family!

Cycle 3 is the B Team, the younger, slimmer cast, and while it doesn't
measure up to the Runnicles-Eaglen-Morris version, it's pretty darn good.

Besides the holdovers of Deborah Voigt's Sieglinde and Mark Baker's
Siegmund (both easing up on their performances against the standard of
previous evenings), the Valkyries, and Reinhard Hagen's Hunding (yes, I
still resist remarking on that name business), it was an all-substitute
affair:

Michael Boder conducting instead of Donald Runnicles, Held's Wotan instead
of James Morris, Frances Ginzer's Bruennhilde instead of Jane Eaglen,
Zaremba for Marjana Lipovsek (a pretty scary Fricka herself).

How was it? Fine.  And a fine `Walkuere' is hard to get.  And there is a
potential time machine business here: Held sounds like Morris did 15 years
ago.  He has a big, well-grounded voice, good projection, OK diction,
acting still in a state of becoming but getting there...  Morris in his
first `Ring.' What ain't Held got? Well, duh, the experience, maturity,
majesty.  So let's check back in 15 years.

Ginzer, who has the most annoyingly squeezed Hoyotoho-heiaha's, sang
a better Bruennhilde when she substituted for Eaglen last week -- but
then, she sang with Morris, who was then in a career-best performance (and
getting a bit tired this week).  Ginzer is good now, but I don't think she
has the potential future growth Held may well have in store.

Boder is doing very well: he opened the first act with a stronger, faster
storm than Runnicles ever tried, and maintained excellence in the big
scenes.  Where it's the younger Boder's task is to learn from his senior
colleague is to invoke internal tension, tautness from the orchestra
throughout the evening.

Speaking of the orchestra, I just found out tonight -- through a
chance conversation with a violinist -- that every musician plays every
performance!  To appreciate that, consider this week's schedule: Monday
and Saturday, `Siegfried'; Wednesday and Sunday, `Walkuere'; Thursday,
`Goetterdaemmerung'; Friday, `Rheingold.' Repetitive stress syndrome city!
I never thought SF would be different from Bayreuth or the Met, in not
double-casting the orchestra, not just the singers.  But nooooo.  Morituri
te salutant...

Janos Gereben/SF
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