Description:

Despite the success of Salome, Richard Strauss was never entirely satisfied with the casting of the title role, as it demands a soprano with immense vocal power and an actress capable of convincingly portraying a virginal princess. He even implored Elisabeth Schumann to take on the part, promising to rescore the orchestration to suit her voice, though she ultimately decided it would be too much for her lyric soprano.

It’s a shame Strauss didn’t live to hear Anja Silja in the role, as she comes remarkably close to the ideal. In 1967, still in her twenties, Silja possessed a voice capable of cutting through Strauss’ dense orchestration with ease while maintaining an exceptional purity of tone. From her very first lines, she embodies a Salome grappling with the awakening of her nascent sexuality and struggling to hold onto her tenuous grip on reality. By the opera’s conclusion, she achieves an almost holy transfiguration in her final declamation.

While Franz Mazura may lack the suavity to be a credible object of Salome’s obsessive desire, he compensates with fiery intensity, and his final rejection of Salome is chillingly cruel. Martha Mödl, though limited vocally, brings high camp flair to Herodias. Under Georges Sébastian, the orchestra emphasizes the lyrical side of Strauss’ score, adding a poignant counterpoint to the drama.

The sound quality is fair.

BONUS:
Anja Silja sings “Allein! Weh, ganz allein!” from Elektra
1964

OD 10648-2