ENJOYING WAGNER’S RING

How many times have you heard people say they don’t like opera because they can’t understand it? The general director of the Seattle Opera, Speight Jenkins, offers help, at least for those interested in learning more about Wagner’s Ring of the Nibelung. There are four cassettes in the program; each one is dedicated to sections of the opera: “Das Rheingold,” “Die Walkure,” “Siegfried” and “Gotter-dammerung.” Carefully and with musical examples, Jenkins talks listeners through the entire opera, explaining the characters, their relationships and even the rhetorical implications of certain themes in the music. There’s also a helpful booklet with which listeners can follow along. Overall, Jenkins inspires listeners to enjoy the usually overlooked majesties of Wagner’s RING. R.A.P. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT 97]