As early as 1911, Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal had the first ideas for the opera Die Frau ohne Schatten, but it was several years before work began in earnest. The First World War also delayed the premiere, which took place in Vienna on 10 October 1919. The initial reception was rather lukewarm, but as time went on the opera was performed more and more.
The plot of the opera is highly symbolic and not the easiest to understand. Using the mythology of the Arabian Nights and Egyptian and Persian references from Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, they created a very strange work about love, marriage and pregnancy. The woman without a shadow is the Kaiserin (Empress) who cannot bear children and must find a shadow from the human world in order to become pregnant.
Musically, the opera is one of Strauss’ most sophisticated, with a huge orchestral score that includes many percussion instruments. The five principal roles also present many vocal challenges. Over the years, there have not been many studio recordings of the opera, perhaps because of the technical difficulties of the work and the special nature of the work. On the other hand, there have been many live recordings, but unfortunately these have cuts, which is how the opera was originally performed.
One of the earliest recordings available is Winfried Zillig’s 1950 recording with the Sinfonie-Orchester des Hessischen Rundfunks. The singers include Annelies Kupper as an elegant and melodious Kaiserin, Erna Schlüter’s highly dramatic Färberin and Heinrichs Bensing’s imposing Kaiser. Zillig’s orchestral interpretation is inspired, but the sound quality requires a great deal of tolerance.
Rudolf Kempe was one of the great Strauss specialists, and his 1954 version of Die Frau ohne Schatten from the Bavarian State Opera in Munich is one of the very best, even though it is recorded live in mono. Kempe brings a characteristic warmth and intensity to the music. The singing team is brilliant, with Leonie Rysanek, who I think is the greatest Kaiserin preserved for posterity, a dramatic Hans Hopf as the Kaiser and with vocal brilliance also Barak and his wife, portrayed by Josef Metternich and Marianne Schech.
Karl Böhm has left several live recordings of the opera, such as the 1955 on Orfeo from the Vienna State Opera with a brilliant vocal team of Hans Hopf, Leonie Rysanek, Christel Goltz, Ludwig Weber and Elisabeth Höngen. Rysanek and Hopf sing with their usual passion and beauty. The rest of the singers are also of the highest calibre, not least Goltz’s dramatically intense Färberin and Weber’s warm, rich Barak. Moreover, Böhm has a unique feel for this work, finding a richness of detail with a convincingly powerful overall vision that only Georg Solti can match.
Böhms recording from the same opera house 22 years later (Deutsche Grammophon) is also recommended, and is in stereo. I still prefer the earlier version, with fresher singers throughout; even Rysanek himself sounds better in 1955 than her later self. Of course, Birgit Nilsson also impresses with her power and sensitivity. James King and Walter Berry give acceptable performances, but cannot match the vocal brilliance of their predecessors.
Herbert von Karajan conducted Die Frau ohne Schatten only once, at the Vienna State Opera in 1964. Two live recordings survive, the best of which is the Deutsche Grammophon release with – again – Rysanek as the Kaiserin and an otherwise consistently impressive vocal team of Jess Thomas, Christa Ludwig, Walter Berry and Grace Hoffman. Karajan imbues the music with a sensual beauty and lyrical ecstasy that is quite unique.
But no true connoisseur of opera can miss the second recording, made at the dress rehearsal, in which Gundula Janowitz sings the Kaiserin, a breathtaking musical experience, almost unreal, beautifully portrayed. Otherwise a strong singing team with Jess Thomas, Gladys Kuchta, Otto Wiener and Grace Hoffman. Unfortunately, the sound quality is far from the best, but all in all an invaluable historical document, unfortunately, as with the Deutsche Grammophon recording, with cuts.
In 1964, Deutsche Grammophon released a version from the Bavarian Opera conducted by Josef Keilberth. He was one of the great Strauss experts and his interpretation has both warmth and majestic splendour. The vocal team is one of the most successful on record, with Jess Thomas and Ingrid Bjoner as the Kaisern and Kaiserin. Thomas, as with Karajan, gives a heroically convincing performance, while the Norwegian soprano Bjoner, far too rarely presented on record, gives a powerful and passionate portrayal of the unhappy Kaiserin. Most impressive of all is Inge Borkh, who gives one of the best performances here as the Färberin, intense, sensual, ecstatic. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau gives an assured performance as Barak.
A highly recommended recording for the vocal connoisseur is Berislav Klobucar’s live recording from Stockholm on Sterling from 1975, in which we hear Siv Wennberg’s unique Kajserin. One of the best interpretations of the role ever, lyrical, warm and with a beautiful high register. Birgit Nilsson makes a Färberin with power and presence, even though she was at the end of her long career. Walter Berry’s Barak is of a high calibre, although tenor Matti Kastu as the Kaiser is not the most impressive. Both the orchestral playing and the sound quality are acceptable.
In the studio, Wolfgang Sawallisch recorded the first complete version of the opera for Warner in 1988 with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. The German maestro’s interpretation is brilliant: warm, detailed and full of intensity. The singing is of good quality throughout, with René Kollo’s Kaiser, Hanna Schwarz’ Amme and Cheryl Studer’s Kaiserin standing out, while Alfred Muff sounds a little grey and Ute Vinzing is quite instable. There is also a live recording with Sawallisch from the Munich State Opera in 1976, which is recommended, although the sound is much worse than the studio recording. It has a very strong vocal team consisting of Birgit Nilsson, Ingrid Bjoner, Astrid Varnay, James King and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.
Sir Georg Solti’s lifelong dream of recording the opera in its entirety, without cuts, was finally realised in 1992 on Decca. The production, the third ever in the studio, took many years to complete and became the label’s most expensive. Solti’s interpretation with the Vienna Philharmonic in glorious sound has everything one could wish for – virtuosity, dramatic power, elegance and long lines. The conductor’s love of the work is evident. Unfortunately, it is not so interesting vocally. Placido Domingo does not have the vocal resources necessary for the role of the Kaiser, and his interpretation lacks drama. Hildegard Behren’s Färberin is strained and her sound is not particularly pleasant to listen to. In contrast, José van Dam’s Barak and Julia Varady’s Kaiserin offer more vocal security and beauty.
1997 also saw the release on Teldec (now Warner) of Giuseppe Sinopoli’s recording of the opera, made live at the Semperoper in Dresden. The result was in many ways a disappointment, and it is not entirely complete. Sinopoli usually has a fine feel for Strauss, but here he fails to bring out the magic and drama of the work. Vocally, the recording is also very uneven, with Ben Heppner’s Kaiser standing out as the most impressive. Otherwise, the performances of Deborah Voigt, Franz Grundheber and Sabine Hass are rather flat.
Sebastian Weigle’s recording of the opera on Oehms was made live (without cuts) at the Frankfurt Opera. Weigle is passionate about Strauss, as he has shown in his series of recordings of Strauss’s symphonic poems on the same label. Vocally, however, this recording is far from the best and cannot be recommended.
In 2019, the Vienna State Opera celebrated the 100th anniversary of the opera’s premiere with a production conducted by Christian Thielemann. This was also recorded by the Orfeo label and has also received fairly good reviews. Personally, I am not so impressed. Thielemann’s interpretation is surprisingly pale throughout the first act, and it is only towards the end of the second that his performance comes to life. The singers are all among the very best of our time, but the overall impression is still unconvincing. Stephen Gould, who passed away recently, often sounds strained as the Kaiser, Nina Stemme’s Färberin is technically confident, but has a metallic tone in her voice that does not appeal to me. On the other hand, Camilla Nylund’s Kaiserin is very appealing throughout.
My first recommendation would have to be Karl Böhm’s 1956 Decca studio recording of the work – the very first on record – in stereo with the Vienna Philharmonic. The early release on CD had some major sonic shortcomings, but the very latest, available in the complete box set of the conductor’s recordings on Decca and Philips, is highly recommended. Böhm and his famous orchestra bring out all the layers of the work, and the interpretation has spontaneity and vigour. The vocal team is partly the same as on his live recording of the time, with Hopf, Höngen and Goltz in top form. Paul Schöffler’s Barak is also one of the very best on record. And last but not least, Rysanek is back as Kaiserin, and it’s hard not to be moved when she sings.
