"First the downside. It is a live recording in mono sound and this sound is not bad, but as we are spoilt by the glorious modern sounds of other Parsifals (Thielemann, Barenboim, Levine, Kubelik, Solti, Karajan to name a few) this can be a problem for some people. I do not consider Knappertsbusch conducting special, but the Bayreuth orchestra and chorus give a very fine performance that I prefer to other Knappertsbusch recordings which sounded messy to me. If you are a Kna fan you will disagree with me and if not I think you should give this version a try. The singers are a cast of very fine singers who knew their part to the T. Special mention should go to Thomas Stewart as Amfortas and Regine Crespin as Kundry who both sing excellent bel canto and act their roles perfectly. Klingsor is a role that poses no problem for Gustav Neidlinger and Josef Greindl is a fine and in this production remarkably subtle Gurnemanz. No Bayreuth bark on this CD. The Parsifal of Hans Beirer is very convincing with no problem in upper or lower registers. Having Theo Adam as 2nd Gralsritter and Gundula Janowitz in the Flower Maidens is a luxury icing on a very fine cake. I am surprised this Kna was difficult to find for such a long time and as long as the Rattle from London in 2000 is not released it will be in my top 3 live versions (together with Thielemann and Boulez 1970)."