Album: Wagner, Götterdämmerung (Halle)

Recorded live over two evenings at the Bridgewater Hall, Mark Elder's Götterdämmerung ideally combines dramatic urgency and exquisitely metered orchestral timbre.

Gripping yet measured from the Norns' first scene, it boasts a resolute yet vulnerable Brünnhilde from Katarina Dalayman. The Hallé is, however, the star, with thrilling brass and glowing strings. When Opera North's Ring Cycle comes to fruition, it will have to be theatrical dynamite to dispel the memory of this concert performance.