Busoni Doktor Faust
A realisation of Busoni’s magnum opus proves not to be the sum of its parts
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Ferruccio (Dante Michelangiolo Benvenuto) Busoni
Genre:
DVD
Label: Arthaus Musik
Magazine Review Date: 3/2008
Media Format: Digital Versatile Disc
Media Runtime: 0
Mastering:
Stereo
DDD
Catalogue Number: 101283
![](https://reviews.azureedge.net/gramophone/media-thumbnails/807280128390.jpg)
Tracks:
Composition | Artist Credit |
---|---|
Doktor Faust |
Ferruccio (Dante Michelangiolo Benvenuto) Busoni, Composer
Andreas Winkler, 1st Student from Cracow, Tenor Ferruccio (Dante Michelangiolo Benvenuto) Busoni, Composer Gabriel Bermúdez, Asmodus, Baritone Giuseppe Scorsin, Gravis, Bass Gregory Kunde, Mephistopheles, Tenor Günther Groissböck, Master of Ceremonies, Bass Günther Groissböck, Wagner, Bass Martin Zysset, Lieutenant, Tenor Matthew Leigh, 3rd Student from Cracow, Baritone Miroslav Christoff, Megäros, Tenor Philippe Jordan, Conductor Randall Ball, Belzebuth, Tenor Reinaldo Macias, Soldier, Tenor Reinaldo Macias, Duke of Parma, Tenor Sandra Trattnigg, Duchess of Parma, Soprano Thilo Dahlmann, 2nd Student from Cracow, Bass-baritone Thomas Hampson, Doktor Faust, Tenor Tomasz Slawinski, Levis, Bass Zurich Opera House Chorus Zurich Opera House Orchestra |
Author: Guy Rickards
Presented here is Jarnach’s version, which Philippe Jordan prefers on musical grounds, “whether it really fits with the rest of the work or not”. He approves of Jarnach’s use of Wagnerian leitmotif and darker conclusion, finding it “simply overwhelming” and Beaumont’s more positive finale “drier”. I disagree profoundly; Jarnach’s version is – unavoidably – a misrepresentation of Busoni’s vision and stylistically jars the moment it starts. Beaumont’s may be a musicologist’s rather than composer’s edition but it gives us more of Busoni’s intentions.
That aside, this production has many strengths. Hampson, after seeming ill-at-ease in the first Prelude (parts of his role he finds “unsingable” but the whole a “masterpiece”), audibly grows into the role. Trattnigg is beguiling as the Duchess and Macias shines as the Soldier (Gretchen’s grief-stricken brother) and pompous Duke. The show is stolen, however, by Gregory Kunde’s Mephistopheles, a portrayal vocally superb throughout and brilliantly acted. The Zürich Opera House Chorus are excellent. Some of Jordan’s tempi are a tad measured but the orchestra’s playing is assured.
There are minor annoyances: for instance in Prelude 1, why do the Students not bring Faust the book, key and paper they sing about? A major omission is the Students’ serenade to Wagner (Faust’s former familius) at the start of the final scene. Wagner’s replacement of Faust as Rector is included in the sung text and meaningless without its representation onstage. Musically, the cut section provides vital contrast between the defiance of the second scene’s close and the denouement. Felix Breisach’s video direction is commendably unfussy, catching both the scale of the production’s biggest moments as well as Kunde’s mischievous expressions. The Devil is truly in the detail.
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