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?"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Marcus Farnsworth, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams
"Five hundred U.S. Superfortresses are raining bombs"
Marcus Farnsworth, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams, BBC Symphony Orchestra
"I'll sign the report, sir"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Marcus Farnsworth, John Adams, Aubrey Allicock, Gerald Finley
"With respect, sir, anyone with two good eyes"
Samuel Sakker, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams, Gerald Finley
"I have been preoccupied with many matters"
Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams, Samuel Sakker, BBC Symphony Orchestra
"Get them out of here. From now on, I'm making my own weather predictions"
John Adams, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra
"General, you are bearing up with remarkable fortitude"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams, Aubrey Allicock, Gerald Finley
"To the farthest west, the sea and the striped country"
"A delay in the Potsdam Ultimatum"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Jennifer Johnston, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams
"Fermi is taking wagers"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, John Adams, Brindley Sherratt
"I've spent a great deal of time indulging in controlled fantasies"
"Edward, the test will be delayed an hour"
Aubrey Allicock, Jennifer Johnston, Gerald Finley, Brindley Sherratt, John Adams, Marcus Farnsworth, BBC Symphony Orchestra
"This program has been plagued from the start"
BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock
"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"
Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams, Gerald Finley, Brindley Sherratt
"Lieutenant Bush, keep a weather eye on Oppenheimer"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Brindley Sherratt, John Adams, Aubrey Allicock
"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
- Wolfgang SchiefermairEditing Engineer
- René MöllerRecording Engineer, Mixing Engineer, Mastering Engineer, Editing Engineer