This historic recording of Busoni's Doktor Faust appears on the market for the first time with this CD. Unfortunately, this is a selection, which was made at the time, however, in 1959. Conductor Adrian Boult had asked Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau for advice on what to do with this large but unfinished opera (which would last almost three hours in total). had to. They cut nearly an hour and a half from
… work, leaving what they believe are essential parts. Whatever we may think about this nowadays, the performance is very compelling and Fischer-Dieskau is at times overwhelming in its technique and drama. The documentation for this CD is somewhat disappointing; there are no sung lyrics and the explanations, although informative, are on the meager side. However, most listeners will happily resign themselves to this once they hear these driven performances. Indeed, a recording of historical significance. (TC)more