Uploaded June 2009 | Updated September 2026, 6 hours ago

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Eleven basses and baritones sing one of the most famous lines in all of opera:

"Wer meines Speeres Spitze fürchtet, durchschreite das Feuer nie!"

Your Wotans---of the past, present, and future---are, in chronological order of performance:

1. Friedrich Schorr - 1940, Metropolitan Opera, c. Erich Leinsdorf
2. Hans Hotter - 1955; London Recording, c. Leopold Ludwig
3. Jerome Hines - 1960; Bayreuth Festival, c. Rudolf Kempe
4. Theo Adam - 1965; Bayreuth Festival, c. Karl Bohm
5. Thomas Stewart - 1969; Bayreuth Festival, c. Lorin Maazel
6. Donald McIntyre - 1974; Bayreuth Festival, c. Horst Stein
7. Sigmund Nimsgern - 1986; Bayreuth Festival, c. Peter Schneider
8. James Morris - 1993; Metropolitan Opera, c. James Levine
9. John Tomlinson - 1995; Bayreuth Festival, c. James Levine
10. Rene Pape - 2008; NDR Concert appearance, c. Alan Gilbert
11. Albert Dohmen - 2008; Bayreuth Festival, c. Christian Thielemann

Enjoy!