To all the Wagner-by-James-Levine- fans (and other really slow guys)..... (I like Levine although not really for his Wagner - the longest ring in Bayreuths history....) It is a fact that Wagner performances got slower and slower after his death. Maybe this has to do with the German need for pathos at that time.... read Nietzsche....But also Wagner himself complained about his works being performed too slowly. In his book "On Conducting" Wagner i.e. points out -concerning the Meistersinger Prelude that by "sehr maessig" he means "allegro maestoso", "a true animated Allegro with four vigorous crochets in each bar, soon turning to a sweeping alla breve with two beats per bar, but he also insists that when he conducted it, he took "a few seconds over eight(!) minutes" - (Roger Norrington in the booklet of his Wagner-CD EMI 5 55479-2). There is a lot more examples for playing Wagner given in this excellent booklet (and recording). Of course people who are used to the "grandiose" tradition (which does not go back to Wagner himself) find it hard to accept Norrington or Boulez. But then again I think the only thing that matters in liking a certain way of interpretation is that one is simply used to it. If Norrington in a year would say "oops, Ive been wrong, the ...ouverture is supposed to be ...long, I just found it out from..." Id be glad to hear it. I think flexibility is of great importance. (I know of course that some people don't give a small animals behind how a composition aas actually played at the time (I know of course it is not possible to know everything, yes....) and they of course have every right to that option (how couldnt they..). so: Please discuss under my "Praemisse" - otherwise it is futile...Period performances is a whole new ballgame....if you do not even accept the rules....enjoy your Bernstein, Karajan, Giulini, whatever - we could discuss the rules some other time) Parsifal....the long and windling road....not with Pierre Boulez! he has a firm grip on the score and it is to me by no means boring like Levines. This "celebration" may be something for Wagnerianer (the term makes me get suspicious...) but for "normal" music lovers it might be frightening - and perhaps their musical "intuition" is right. Years ago I simply found the Eroica boring (having heard Giulinis and Abbados i.e.). Then Norrington, Gardiner, and others came up with theirs and I was completely "done for". Ive played these recordings to some of my not-so-into-classical-music friends and borrowed a Giulini recording for them to compare. (did the same with Mozart-Gardiner vs. Boehm). Everybody said that they preferred the period performance because they were much more vivid. Id like to talk about Wagner and Nietzsche (whose works I really appreciate). Recently I heard thatafter Parsifal Wagner said that even hee knew that the romantic style had come to an end and that the now appropriate music would be lighter, swifter... James Zehm <[log in to unmask]>