Die Walküre (Feb. 2, 1957)

Composer: Richard Wagner
Librettist: Richard Wagner

Mitropoulos; Harshaw, Schech, Thebom, Vinay, Edelmann, Böhme

Metropolitan Opera Orchestra

Approximate running time: 3 hrs. 3 min.

This most popular part of Wagner’s Ring cycle has it all—a pair of impetuous lovers who will stop at nothing to be together; a young half-goddess who changes from a sassy girl to a strong woman when she learns the meaning of love; and her father, the leader of the gods, trapped in a quagmire of his own making, who has to sacrifice the person dearest to him to retain his position. This searing drama is brilliantly conducted here by the legendary Dimitri Mitropoulos.