Berlioz - La damnation de Faust / von Otter · Terfel · K. Lewis · von Halem · PO · Chung

Hector Berlioz (Artist), Myung-Whun Chung (Artist), Anne Sofie von Otter (Artist), Bryn Terfel (Artist), Philharmonia Orchestra and Chorus (Artist), Keith Lewis (Artist), Victor von Halem (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 11, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Deutsche Grammophon
• ASIN: B000009ON4
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #89,332 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #18 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Divas > Otter, Anne Sophie von
  • #47 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Featured Performers, A-Z > M to P

Editorial Reviews

Berlioz - La damnation de Faust / von Otter · Terfel · K. Lewis · von Halem · PO · Chung (View amazon detail page) ASIN: B000009ON4 Binding: Audio CD Artist: Hector Berlioz, Myung-Whun Chung, Anne Sofie von Otter, Bryn Terfel, Philharmonia Orchestra and Chorus, Keith Lewis, Victor von Halem UPC: 002894535002, 028945350028

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, Dramatic Berlioz, April 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Berlioz - La damnation de Faust / von Otter · Terfel · K. Lewis · von Halem · PO · Chung (Audio CD)

This is one of the best versions available. I agree with the reviewer from Charlottesville: Terfel is excellent here. I also think von Otter is marvellous--la chanson du roi de Thule would melt your heart. The conducting is wonderful; Myung-Whun Chung organizes the performance superbly, and finds ways to integrate phrases into larger wholes (that, for example, elude Munch). Keith Lewis (Faust) is, alas, not up to the part. There are a couple of recordings of this work with good tenors. Nicolai Gedda, joined by Janet Baker and Georges Pretre, is excellent (EMI), as is Andre Turp in Monteux's BBC recording with Regine Crespin (IMG Artists). The present recording joins those two at the top of the discography. All three excell in their sopranos and the quality of chorus and orchestra, and the sensitivity and attention to detail of their conducting. All three are well recorded, though DG has the definite edge in sound quality. You rarely hear such glorious recorded sound.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful music and wonderful recording, June 14, 2003

By 

dolcissima2780 "dolcissima" (Pennsylvania, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Berlioz - La damnation de Faust / von Otter · Terfel · K. Lewis · von Halem · PO · Chung (Audio CD)

This is one of my favorite CD's. The work itself is electrifying, passionate Berlioz. Lust, drama, Heaven, and Hell. In Le Damnation of Faust, you have it all! Lewis is is an excellent Faust. His voice brings out the best in Berlioz's vocal writing. von Otter is a sympathetic Marguerite. The King of Thul ballad shows off her breath-taking voice and a drammatic yet innocent presence which I had never heard in her voice before this recording. I am normally not a big fan of Terfel, but in this recording he makes the perfect, seductive, evil, and even sometimes loveable Mephistopheles. The shining star of this recording, however, is von Halem as the Brander. His rather gruff tone allows the listener to picture a grotesque, hairy, and loud drunk. von Halem is the most believable Brander I have heard. The background "bar" chorus and Mephistopheles' "Flea Song" make the Ratskeller scene wild and vulgar--just as it should be! The chorus and orchestra also do a fantastic job of creating a frightening scene as demons in Hell, as Mephistopheles triumphs at conquering Faust's soul. The work ends in a well-conducted contrast when Marguerite is called into heaven.
The orchestra and Chung are top-notch in this recording. Chung brings out the contrasts and various dimmensions in the score. Great conductor, great soloists, great orchestra and chorus...what more could you ask for?

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensational, December 2, 2005

By 

Wayne A. (Belfast, Northern Ireland) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

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This review is from: Berlioz - La damnation de Faust / von Otter · Terfel · K. Lewis · von Halem · PO · Chung (Audio CD)

Something truly remarkable is happening; we're finally getting the kinds of recordings and performances of Berlioz that have been needed for years. This isn't a matter of a "new take" with Brahms or Beethoven, as we see often enough, this is a manifestation of a growing understanding of this incredibly misunderstood composer. Younger conductors are hearing the avant-garde qualities of the music and unapologetic-ally bringing out the extraordinary details. We're accepting that Berlioz knew exactly what he was doing. In a marvelous way one had to be brought through the experimentation of the last century in order to finally "get" him. Recording technology has also, and finally, reached Berliozian standards. It's as if he had been composing for us, not for his own time.

The still-brilliant, incredibly taut, Solti Faust had always been tops in my book but this version will probably supplant it in some ways. Years of listening to this exciting masterpiece and here I'm hearing imaginative details I'd never encountered before, the piece never sounded so modern. The interpretation is largely excellent, the vocalists outstanding with Terfel a brilliant Mephistopheles and von Otter great. Lewis strikes just the right note for his character. The sound is dazzling and the gut-wrenching tour of Hell can hold its own against the loudest rock. Just fantastic overall!