Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, RIP

[amateur51]

There's an earlier thread here, MickyD

http://www.for3.org/forums/showthread.php?5389-Dietrich-Fischer-Dieskau-RIP

Sad news indeed.


[Edit: Both threads now merged - ff]

[MickyD]

Thanks, amateur...I didn't realise it had already been flagged up. Glad it has brought in so many tributes.

[ardcarp]

DFD has somehow 'been there' for ever, and it's hard to believe he is no more. The Today programme actually played a few bars of Mache Dich this morning as a tribute to him. We could have done with the whole aria, but maybe we are not a wholly Philistine nation to have a bit of St Matthew on a general news programme.

[Budapest]

I don't wish to confuse threads here, yet I will post a YouTube vid that gives a good example of Dieskau:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKtRombx5DM

[Edit: Both threads now merged - ff]

[gurnemanz]

George Hall's tribute in The Guardian comes with several interesting clips ...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012...au-guide-clips

Also Robert Ponsonby (for it is he) in the Indie. Informed and not a slavish eulogy:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/dietrich-fischerdieskau-baritone-hailed-as-the-greatest-lieder-singer-of-the-20th-century-7766909.html?origin=internalSearch

[BBMmk2]

One opf 20th Centuries Meistersingers indeed! he had everything in his voice!

I only caught thgis yesterday and haven't had time to post in the end.

RIP Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

One of the reasons that it took so long for recording companies to produce a stereo Die Meistersinger was the refusal of D.F-D to sing the part of Sachs. The first stereo Sachs was Theo Adam with Karajan. After that it was not long before D.F-D relented, but only for the Jochum recording. His reluctance was due to his belief that he had the personality for Sachs, but not the voice.

[amateur51]

I don't wish to confuse threads here, yet I will post a YouTube vid that gives a good example of Dieskau:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKtRombx5DM

[Edit: Both threads now merged - ff]

Many thanks, Budapest - I did not know of this wonderful recording

[Don Petter]

Five years later he gave a talk at the Wigmore Hall, during which he modestly appeared dissatisfied with several of his recordings, but quite pleased with the Dichterliebe with Demus that had recently been rediscovered by DG.

Was that the first, mono, recording with Demus? This has always been my absolute favourite, right from the LP days.

It did, eventually, get onto CD on DG 459 012-2.

[Bax-of-Delights]

I went to a Britten Sinfonia concert in Brighton last night in which the Ruckert Lieder was sung with Roderick Williams. My only recording of this was the DF-D version on LP from the 60's.

As I was leafing through the notes it suddenly dawned on me that Mahler died in the month of May and when I checked the dates on returning home I found that DF-D died on exactly the same day - the 18th May - as Mahler had done in 1911.

[gurnemanz]

I went to a Britten Sinfonia concert in Brighton last night in which the Ruckert Lieder was sung with Roderick Williams. My only recording of this was the DF-D version on LP from the 60's.

As I was leafing through the notes it suddenly dawned on me that Mahler died in the month of May and when I checked the dates on returning home I found that DF-D died on exactly the same day - the 18th May - as Mahler had done in 1911.

I love his 1968 Mahler songs with Bernstein on piano (a great twofer with Chrsita Ludwig on the other disc). We saw the same concert as you in Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts, on 12 May (not a relevant anniversary as far as I know). A very enjoyable evening and we loved Roderick Williams' voice and communication in a more intimate setting, having only seen him previously at ROH as Ned Keene in Peter Grimes last year.

[Roehre]

Very, very sad news indeed.
With D F-D not only one of the greatest singers of the 20th century has passed away.
His thoughts about music in general and obviously Lieder more specifically, as written down in a couple of (for me) much cherished books, are of great importance too.
And please let us not forget he was a fine -but not very much recorded- conductor (especially Schumann, Brahms and Schubert) too.

RIP D F-D

[LeMartinPecheur]

Hmmm, sad news indeed. It means I shall probably have to have another go or two at trying to like his voice and style...

It's not for want of trying - I've got a fair few of his discs (one of my very first LP purchases as a student was his HMV Schwanengesang with Moore). Too hectoring, barky, verbal-stressy IMHO, even though I fully recognise that when he wanted his legato singing was exceptional: some of his very earliest recordings (78s) among the best because he hadn't yet got carried away by the words and tempted into neglecting the long line of the tunes. But all in all he's never quite done it for me.

Really wish he had - I could have bought dozens more DG discs and would now have a nice, tidy, solid, complete-boxed-set Lieder collection

I don't want to sound boorish and petty at such a time, and really do salute his massive contribution to art song.

[affenkopf]

A good obituary from the Economist:

http://www.economist.com/node/21555877

[Tarantella]

DF-D, a great singer whose like we won't see again in our lifetime. What style, panache and artistry. He will be sadly missed.