Among the immortals

Yet another of the immortals has left us. Valhalla has opened its gates once more for another of Wotan's daughters who join their father. Astrid Varnay was one of the great Brunnhildes and after a Metropolitan Opera career that neglected her true gifts, they bore fruit in Bayreuth under Wieland Wagner's watchful eye and in the company of her beloved father Hans Hotter (another artist who's true worth was not recognized by the Wagner-myopic Rudolf Bing).

Varnay's career began as a world catastrophe began, it survived it and thrived in its wake. She'll be remember for her warrior maidens, greek goddesses and other mythical figures. And as an artist who trusted her own instincts and whose instincts brought to life amazing characterizations spanning fifty-five years.

Her memoir is one of the most readable and remarkable of its kind. Coincidentally I happened to be listening to the new Testament release of the 1955 Bayreuth Walküre, which makes one wish to go back into a time machine and relive those remarkable days. This recording captures an superlative performance in superior sound and gives us the incredible pairing of Varnay and Hotter for all time. The price is a bit dear, but to my mind worth every penny.

Valhalla is full of the Wotan and his daughters now. We shall not soon see their like again.