Karl Böhm conducts this monumental 1966 recording of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde captured at the Bayreuth Festival with that festival's orchestra and chorus. Birgit Nilsson's soprano voice cuts through with the power the role demands, while Wolfgang Windgassen offers a lyric tenor Tristan of great beauty. Wagner's score is the ultimate expression of Romantic longing and orchestral color—the prelude alone contains entire worlds of yearning. Böhm shapes the massive structure with architectural sureness, never allowing the long acts to sag. Christa Ludwig as Isolde's companion and Martti Talvela as King Mark provide stalwart support. This is a performance of extraordinary grandeur and depth.