Editing Parsifal (section)

===Recordings===
{{main|Parsifal discography{{!}}''Parsifal'' discography}}
''Parsifal'' was expressly composed for the stage at [[Bayreuth Festspielhaus|Bayreuth]] and many of the most famous recordings of the opera come from live performances on that stage. In the pre-[[LP record|LP]] era, [[Karl Muck]] conducted excerpts from the opera at Bayreuth. These are still considered some of the best performances of the opera on disc. They also contain the only sound evidence of the bells constructed for the work's premiere, which were melted down for scrap during [[World War II]].

[[Hans Knappertsbusch]] was the conductor most closely associated with ''Parsifal'' at Bayreuth in the post-war years, and the performances under his baton in 1951 marked the re-opening of the [[Bayreuth Festival]] after World War II. These historic performances were recorded and are available on the Teldec label in mono sound. Knappertsbusch recorded the opera again for Philips in 1962 in stereo, and this release is often considered to be the classic ''Parsifal'' recording.<ref>Holloway, Robin (1982) ''Opera on Record'', Harper and Row {{ISBN|0-06-090910-2}}</ref>{{page needed|date=July 2020}} There are also many "unofficial" live recordings from Bayreuth, capturing virtually every ''Parsifal'' cast ever conducted by Knappertsbusch. Pierre Boulez (1971) and James Levine (1985) have also made recordings of the opera at Bayreuth that were released on Deutsche Grammophon and Philips. The Boulez recording is one of the fastest on record, and the Levine one of the slowest.

Amongst other recordings, those conducted by [[Georg Solti]], [[James Levine]] (with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra), [[Herbert von Karajan]], and [[Daniel Barenboim]] (the latter two both conducting the [[Berlin Philharmonic]]) have been widely praised.<ref>[[Alan Blyth|Blyth, Alan]] (1992), ''Opera on CD'' Kyle Cathie Ltd, {{ISBN|1-85626-056-9}}</ref>{{page needed|date=July 2020}} The Karajan recording was voted "Record of the Year" in the 1981 [[Gramophone Award]]s. Also highly regarded is a recording of ''Parsifal'' under the baton of [[Rafael Kubelík]] originally made for Deutsche Grammophon, now reissued on Arts & Archives.

On the 14 December 2013 broadcast of [[BBC Radio 3#CD Review|BBC Radio 3's CD Review – Building a Library]], music critic David Nice surveyed recordings of ''Parsifal'' and recommended the recording by the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Rafael Kubelik (conductor), as the best available choice.<ref>{{cite web|last=Nice|first=David|title=Wagner 200 Building a Library: ''Parsifal''|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03ln1xd|work=CD Review|publisher=BBC Radio 3|access-date=26 December 2013}}</ref>