This November, Concerto Köln alongside conductor Kent Nagano will present historically-informed performances of Wagner’s “Das Rheingold.”

The performances come as part of their “Wagner Readings” project, which was started in 2017 and began to develop this artistic/scientific approach to the tetralogy, bringing together scholars of multiple disciplines. The first concert will be held on Nov. 18 at the Kölner Philharmonie, and the second will be held on Nov. 20 at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.

While the “Ring” cycle is often the subject of musical discussion and research, “a systematic approach to the tetralogy from a historically informed perspective has not yet taken place in this form,” says Nagano. “We have now been working on the reconstruction for about four years – I am very pleased that our ‘Rheingold’ will soon be performed and perhaps stimulate a discussion or two.”

The cast includes Derek Welton as Wotan, Johannes Kammler as Donner, Julian Prégardien as Loge, Tansel Akzeybek as Froh, Stefanie Iranyi as Fricka, Sarah Wegener as Freia, Gerhild Romberger as Erda, Daniel Scmutzhard as Alberich, Thomas Ebenstein as Mime, Tijl Faveyts as Fasolt, Christoph Seidl as Fafner, and Carina Schmeiger, Ida Adrian, and Eva Vogel as the Rheinmaidens.