A few extra thoughts about San Francisco's Ring Cycle

One of the things that I realized after hearing the Ring Cycle in San Francisco was how good the Seattle Opera orchestra is. Even though the orchestra of the San Francisco Opera is one of the best in the land, it stumbled and fumbled here and there during each opera in the Cycle. I have heard the Seattle Opera Orchestra play the Ring operas at a higher level. Perhaps the frequency of the Ring Cycle in Seattle has helped the musicians there to become very familiar with the extreme demands of Wagner's music.