Tannhauser - Spas Wenkoff Elisabeth, Nichte des Landgrafen - Celestina Casapietra Venus - Ludmila Dvorakova Wolfram von Eschenbach - Siegfried Lorenz Hermann, Landgraf von Thuringen - Fritz Hiibner Walther von der Vogelweide - Peter Bindszus Biterolf - Peter Olesch Reinmar von Zweter, Ritter und Sanger - Gunther Frohlich Heinrich der Schreiber - Henno Garduhn Ein junger Hirt - Carola Nossek Staatskapelle Berlin Chor der Deutschen Staatsoper Berlin Otmar Suitner Berlin, 1982 L. E. Cantrell 5.0 out of 5 starsRadiant De los Angeles in 1961 Bayreuth Tannhaeuser December 28, 2005 1961 live performance from the Bayreuth Festival. SOUND: Decent live-recorded mono. Voices and orchestra are fairly evenly balanced. There is some variation in the pick-up of the singers as they roam over the stage, changing their relationships with the microphones, but this serves to provide a certain feel of authenticity to the piece. As I have noted before with regard to live mono recordings, compulsive audiophiles who measure quality by the clarity of the fourth bassoon or the third viola, should turn away right now. This is not for you. You will hear neither here (nor, for that matter, would you be likely to hear them in any real theater or concert hall.) Some not terribly disturbing stage noises are present, as is the occasional voice of a prompter. There are some coughs, but the Bayreuth audience was generally well-disciplined. For those willing to listen to this set with a little goodwill, the sound is perfectly acceptable.