Tristan und Isolde cover art

Tristan und Isolde

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Tristan und Isolde

By: Christopher Cook
Narrated by: Christopher Cook
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £5.99

Buy Now for £5.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Tristan und Isolde centers around two lovers who dream of romantic love and yearn for oblivion. No composer had written such a work before. Turning his back on traditional tonality, Wagner changed the course of Western music with Tristan und Isolde. But there’s also fact behind the fiction: while he wrote his opera, Wagner was in love with another’s man’s wife, Mathilde Wesendonk. So Tristan and Isolde are also Richard and Mathilde.

Christopher Cook explores the making of a masterpiece, the story of lovers gripped by a passion that can only be consummated beyond the grave, a forbidden love that is blind to duty, honor and social obligation.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2006 Naxos AudioBooks (P)2006 Naxos AudioBooks
Music
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Editor reviews

This audiobook investigates the revolutionary character of Wagner's opera Tristan and Isolde. Author and narrator Christopher Cook combines historical, musical, and critical information. He presents nuanced guidance to this stunning opera. Pointing out the radical nature of its composition in the context of western classical music, Cook leads listeners deep into the psychological heart of this tragic love story. Listeners will be shocked to learn some of philosophy that went on in the composition of the opera - for example, that the stage represented consciousness for Wagner, while the pit orchestra was supposed to be the "deep unconscious" of man. Cook's clear, engaging narration, combined with generous clips from the opera itself, will keep listeners from being pressing pause on this audiobook.

What listeners say about Tristan und Isolde

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    3
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A good place to start

A marvellous and informative introduction to this opera. Well read, intelligent and insightful. The mix of story, comment and music works very well. If Wagner has always felt inaccessible to you then this is a good place to start. Highly recommended.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Tristan and Isolde

A wonderful introduction to the story of the two fated lovers and to Wagner’s opera.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!