Long, loud and densely scored, this opera cannot be easy for its singers…[Heliane] receives a touching, vulnerable and beautifully sung portrayal from Annemarie Kremer…Ian Storey is strong and warm as the Stranger. Fabrice Bollon and his outsize team draw out the opera’s strengths, even if they occasionally fall prey to its weaknesses.

First impressions are good, with Fabrice Bollon conducting the heavenly-chorus prelude in a warm, sculpted sweep of music, the Freiburg forces clearly unfazed by the multi-layered intricacy pf Korngold’s orchestral writing…Kremer, as Heliane, is at her most affecting in the quieter moments…The choral singing is fervent, and blends richly with the orchestral playing – which, under Bollon’s shapely, impassioned direction is the real glory of this performance.

Obtaining this Naxos set will certainly yield many rewards