"When I heard Birgit Nilsson sing Isolde at Bayreuth in 1959," he said, "it was like seeing the sun rise for the first time."

"I told Wieland that although I had sung Isolde 87 times, I'd forget all those performances and begin anew," she said.

But overall this sumptuously sung Isolde was the real thing.

My first opera; I had heard her sing Isolde.

When she sang Isolde or Brünnhilde, her voice pierced through and climbed above it.

She also sang Isolde at Geneva, as well as Sieglinde and Kundry.

She is scheduled to sing Isolde in a new production at the Metropolitan Opera in 1999.

Ms. Voigt, meanwhile, turned down all the opportunities to sing Isolde elsewhere when other companies found out about Vienna.

Hildegard Behrens is a known factor, having sung Isolde at the Metropolitan Opera.

Miss Norman does not sing Isolde on the opera stage.