With the exception, perhaps, of his own transcriptions of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, Leopold Stokowski recorded more Wagner with the Philadelphia Orchestra than any other single composer.
This Sunday night on “The Lost Chord,” we’ll revisit some of Stoky’s early recordings, originally issued on 78s, including the controversial “Liebesnacht,” the original version of his symphonic synthesis after “Tristan und Isolde” – an arrangement that infuriated listeners, with its inconclusive ending – and the “Liebestod,” which he undertook by popular demand, in order to provide a more satisfactory conclusion.
We’ll also hear baritone Lawrence Tibbett, in a role he never sang on stage, in a superb recording of “Wotan’s Farewell and Magic Fire Music.”
That’s “Magic Fire” – Leopold Stokowski’s early Wagner recordings with the Philadelphia Orchestra” – this Sunday night at 10:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

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