John Adams: Doctor Atomic
John Adams’ 2005 opera explores the personal and moral issues surrounding the invention of the atomic bomb. Captured live in concert, it has colossal power and conviction. At its centre is Gerald Finley’s commanding performance as Robert Oppenheimer, a scientist wracked by doubts. Having sung it at the premiere and many times since, he produces a magnificently characterised creation. Julia Bullock, Brindley Sherratt, Samuel Sakker and Andrew Staples are all superb in supporting roles and Adams himself draws virtuoso playing from a truly galvanised BBC Symphony Orchestra. A major recording of a modern operatic classic.
"We are bedeviled by faulty detonators"
"Many of us are inclined to say"
"This is a petition"
"What if it's a dud?"
"The test must go on as scheduled"
"No, before the bomb is used"
"The motive of it all was loneliness"
"What the hell is wrong with the weather?"
Gerald Finley, Marcus Farnsworth, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams
"Five hundred U.S. Superfortresses are raining bombs"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams, Marcus Farnsworth, Gerald Finley
"I'll sign the report, sir"
Gerald Finley, John Adams, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Marcus Farnsworth, Aubrey Allicock
"With respect, sir, anyone with two good eyes"
Samuel Sakker, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Aubrey Allicock, Gerald Finley, John Adams
"I have been preoccupied with many matters"
John Adams, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Gerald Finley, Samuel Sakker, Aubrey Allicock
"Get them out of here. From now on, I'm making my own weather predictions"
John Adams, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Aubrey Allicock
"General, you are bearing up with remarkable fortitude"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams, Gerald Finley
"To the farthest west, the sea and the striped country"
"A delay in the Potsdam Ultimatum"
Jennifer Johnston, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams
"Fermi is taking wagers"
John Adams, Brindley Sherratt, Aubrey Allicock, Gerald Finley, BBC Symphony Orchestra
"I've spent a great deal of time indulging in controlled fantasies"
"Edward, the test will be delayed an hour"
Marcus Farnsworth, Jennifer Johnston, John Adams, Gerald Finley, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Brindley Sherratt, Aubrey Allicock
"This program has been plagued from the start"
Aubrey Allicock, BBC Singers, Gerald Finley, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams
"To keep the weakness secret"
"I just finished reading The Magic Mountain"
"The winter dawned, but the dead did not come back"
"And love, which contains all human spirit"
"The only saviors are the ham sandwiches"
John Adams, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Brindley Sherratt
"Lieutenant Bush, keep a weather eye on Oppenheimer"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams, Brindley Sherratt
"To what benevolent demon do I owe the joy of being thus surrounded"
"The sky is clear to the east"
"In the midnight, in the flame-brilliant midnight"
Production
- Friedemann EngelbrechtProducer
- René MöllerRecording Engineer, Mixing Engineer, Mastering Engineer, Editing Engineer
- Wolfgang SchiefermairEditing Engineer