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 center 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 characterized 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 galvanized 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?"
Marcus Farnsworth, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Gerald Finley, John Adams, Aubrey Allicock
"Five hundred U.S. Superfortresses are raining bombs"
Gerald Finley, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams, Marcus Farnsworth, Aubrey Allicock
"I'll sign the report, sir"
John Adams, Marcus Farnsworth, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra
"With respect, sir, anyone with two good eyes"
Samuel Sakker, John Adams, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Gerald Finley
"I have been preoccupied with many matters"
John Adams, Samuel Sakker, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, 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"
John Adams, BBC Symphony Orchestra, 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, John Adams, Aubrey Allicock
"Fermi is taking wagers"
Brindley Sherratt, BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams, Aubrey Allicock, Gerald Finley
"I've spent a great deal of time indulging in controlled fantasies"
"Edward, the test will be delayed an hour"
John Adams, Jennifer Johnston, Gerald Finley, Brindley Sherratt, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Aubrey Allicock, Marcus Farnsworth
"This program has been plagued from the start"
John Adams, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock, BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Orchestra
"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, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Brindley Sherratt, Gerald Finley, Aubrey Allicock
"Lieutenant Bush, keep a weather eye on Oppenheimer"
BBC Symphony Orchestra, John Adams, Brindley Sherratt, 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