Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau | |
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| Born | Albert Dietrich Fischer (1925-05-28)28 May 1925 Berlin, Germany |
| Died | 18 May 2012(2012-05-18) (aged 86) Berg, Upper Bavaria, Germany |
| Education | Berlin Conservatory |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 1947–2012 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 includingMartin Fischer-Dieskau |
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (German:[ˌdiːtʁɪçˌfɪʃɐˈdiːskaʊ̯]ⓘ; 28 May 1925 – 18 May 2012[1]) was a German lyricbaritone and conductor of classical music. One of the most famousLieder (art song) performers of the post-war period, he is best known as a singer ofFranz Schubert's Lieder, particularly"Winterreise"[2] of which his recordings with accompanistsGerald Moore andJörg Demus are still critically acclaimed half a century after their release.[3]
Because he recorded an array of repertoire (spanning centuries), musicologistAlan Blyth asserted, "No singer in our time, or probably any other has managed the range and versatility of repertory achieved by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Opera,Lieder andoratorio in German, Italian or English came alike to him, yet he brought to each a precision and individuality that bespoke his perceptive insights into the idiom at hand." In addition, he recorded in French, Russian,Hebrew,Latin andHungarian. He was described as "one of the supreme vocal artists of the 20th century"[4] and "the most influential singer of the 20th Century".[5]
Fischer-Dieskau was ranked the second greatest singer of the century (afterJussi Björling) by Classic CD (United Kingdom) "Top Singers of the Century" Critics' Poll (June 1999). The French dubbed him "Le miracle Fischer-Dieskau" andDame Elisabeth Schwarzkopf called him "a born god who has it all."[6] At his peak, he was greatly admired for his interpretive insights and exceptional control of his soft, beautiful voice. He dominated both the opera and concert platforms for over thirty years.[7]
Albert Dietrich Fischer was born in 1925 in Berlin to Albert Fischer, a school principal, and Theodora (née Klingelhoffer) Fischer, a teacher. In 1934, his father added the hyphenated "Dieskau" to the family name (through his mother, he was descended from the Kammerherr von Dieskau, for whomJohann Sebastian Bach wrote the "Peasant Cantata"). He started singing as a child and began formal voice lessons at the age of 16. When he was drafted into theWehrmacht during World War II in 1943, tending horses on theRussian Front, Fischer-Dieskau had just completed his secondary school studies and one semester at the Berlin Conservatory. He served in Grenadier Regiment 146 of the65th Infantry Division south of Bologna in the winter of 1944–45 and entertained his comrades at soldiers' evenings behind the lines.[8]
He was captured in Italy in 1945 and spent two years as anAmericanprisoner of war. During that time, he sang Lieder inPOW camps to homesick German soldiers. He had a physically and intellectually impaired brother, Martin, who was sent to an institution by theNazi regime andstarved to death.[9] Their family home was destroyed during the war.[10]
In 1947, Fischer-Dieskau returned to Germany, where he launched his professional career as a singer inBadenweiler, singing in Brahms'sEin Deutsches Requiem without any rehearsal.[11] (He was a last-minute substitute for an indisposed singer.) He gave his first Lieder recital inLeipzig in late 1947 and followed it soon afterwards with a highly successful first concert at Berlin'sTitania-Palast.
From early in his career he collaborated with famouslyric sopranosElisabeth Schwarzkopf andIrmgard Seefried, and the recording producerWalter Legge, issuing instantly successful albums of Lieder by Schubert andHugo Wolf.
In late 1948, Fischer-Dieskau was engaged as principal lyric baritone at theStädtische Oper Berlin (Municipal Opera,West Berlin), making his debut as Posa in Verdi'sDon Carlos underFerenc Fricsay. This company, known after 1961 as theDeutsche Oper, would remain his artistic home until his retirement from the operatic stage, in 1978.[11]
Subsequently, Fischer-Dieskau made guest appearances at theVienna State Opera and theBavarian State Opera. After 1949 he made concert tours in the Netherlands, Switzerland, France and Italy. In 1951, he made hisSalzburg Festival concert debut with Mahler'sLieder eines fahrenden Gesellen conducted byWilhelm Furtwängler. The same year he also made his British debut, at theRoyal Albert Hall in London during theFestival of Britain. He appeared inFrederick Delius'sA Mass of Life, conducted by SirThomas Beecham.[12] He made regular opera appearances at theBayreuth Festival between 1954 and 1961[11] and at theSalzburg Festival from 1956 until the early 1970s.
As an opera singer, Fischer-Dieskau performed mainly in Berlin and at theBavarian State Opera in Munich. He also made guest appearances at theVienna State Opera, at theRoyal Opera House in London, at theHamburg State Opera, in Japan, and at the King's Theatre inEdinburgh during theEdinburgh Festival. His first tour in the United States took place in 1955, when he was 29, with his concert debut inCincinnati on 15 April (Bach's cantataIch will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen), BWV 56, and 16 April (Brahms:Ein Deutsches Requiem). His American Lieder debut, singingFranz Schubert songs, took place inSaint Paul, Minnesota, on 19 April. His New York City debut occurred on 2 May atThe Town Hall, where he sang Schubert'ssong cycleWinterreise without an interval. Both American recitals were accompanied byGerald Moore.
In 1951, Fischer-Dieskau made his first of many recordings of Lieder with Gerald Moore atAbbey Road Studios in London, including a completeDie schöne Müllerin, and they performed the work on 31 January 1952 at theKingsway Hall, London, in the Mysore Concerts of the Philharmonia Concert Society.[13] They gave recitals together until Moore retired from public performance in 1967. They continued to record together until 1972, in which year they completed their massive project of recording all of the Schubert lieder appropriate for the male voice. Moore retired completely in 1972, and died in 1987, aged 87. Their recordings ofDie schöne Müllerin andWinterreise are highly prized as examples of their artistic partnership.
Fischer-Dieskau also performed many works ofcontemporary music, includingBenjamin Britten (who chose Fischer-Dieskau as the baritone soloist when writingWar Requiem),Samuel Barber,Hans Werner Henze,Karl Amadeus Hartmann (who wrote hisGesangsszene for him),Charles Ives,Ernst Krenek,Witold Lutosławski,Siegfried Matthus,Othmar Schoeck,Winfried Zillig,Gottfried von Einem andAribert Reimann. He participated in the 1975 premiere and 1993 recording ofGottfried von Einem's cantataAn die Nachgeborenen, written in 1973 as a commission of the UN, both withJulia Hamari and theWiener Symphoniker conducted byCarlo Maria Giulini.[14]
Beyond his recordings of Lieder and the German opera repertoire, Fischer-Dieskau also recorded performances in the Italian operatic field. His recordings of Verdi'sRigoletto (alongsideRenata Scotto andCarlo Bergonzi) and Rodrigo in Verdi'sDon Carlos are probably the most respected of these ventures. (Others, such as the title role in Verdi'sMacbeth (withElena Souliotis), Giorgio Germont in Verdi'sLa traviata, and Scarpia in Puccini'sTosca (withBirgit Nilsson), are not delivered by him with the same degree of effectiveness.) As conductorFerenc Fricsay put it, "I never dreamed I'd find an Italianbaritone in Berlin."
Fischer-Dieskau retired from opera in 1978, the year he recorded his final opera, Reimann'sLear, which the composer had written at his suggestion. He retired from the concert hall as of New Year's Day, 1993, at age 67, and dedicated himself to conducting,teaching (especially the interpretation of Lieder), painting and writing books. He still performed as a reciter, reading for example the letters of Strauss toHugo von Hofmannsthal (whose part was read byGert Westphal), for theRheingau Musik Festival in 1994; and both performing and recording Strauss's melodramaEnoch Arden. He also became an honorary member of theRobert Schumann Society.
In 1949, Fischer-Dieskau married the cellistIrmgard Poppen [de]; they had three sons: Mathias (a stage designer),Martin (a conductor), andManuel [de] (a cellist with theCherubini Quartet). Irmgard died in 1963 of complications following childbirth. Fischer-Dieskau was later married to the actressRuth Leuwerik, from 1965 to 1967, and Kristina Pugell, from 1968 to 1975. In 1977 he married the sopranoJúlia Várady.
His older brotherKlaus Fischer-Dieskau was a Berlin choral director who conducted for Fischer-Dieskau several times, including in his only recording of a passion byHeinrich Schütz in 1961.
Fischer-Dieskau smoked during a large part of his career. In an interview withB.Z.-News aus Berlin in 2002 he said, "I quit smoking 20 years ago. I smoked for 35 years, and then stopped in a single day."[15]
On 18 May 2012, Fischer-Dieskau died in his sleep at his home inBerg, Upper Bavaria, 10 days before his 87th birthday.[16]
Throughout his career, his musicianship and technique were frequently described as flawless by critics. AsGreg Sandow of Opera News put it, "Overall, his technique is breath-taking; someone should build a monument to it."[17]
As "the world's greatest Lieder singer" (Time magazine), he regularly sold out concert halls all over the world until his retirement at the end of 1992. The precisely articulated accuracy of his performances, in which text and music were presented as equal partners, established standards that endure today. The current widespread interest in German Romantic art song is mainly due to his efforts. Perhaps most admired as a singer of Schubert Lieder, Fischer-Dieskau had, according to criticJoachim Kaiser, only one really serious competitor – himself, as over the decades he set new standards, explored new territories and expressed unanticipated feelings and emotions.[18]
Few artists achieve the level of recognition, admiration and influence of Fischer-Dieskau, and even fewer live to see that influence realised during their own lifetime. Ushering in the modern recording era, he challenged our perception and processes of how recordings could be made, explored the possibilities of modern recording and exploited the potential for the popularity of classical music – and all this while setting standards of artistic achievement, integrity, risk-taking, and of the aesthetic ideal that became our new norm. Whenever we bask in the beauty of his tone, revere the probing, questioning power of his intellect, or simply wonder at the astonishing physical abilities throughout all that he has achieved in his long recording career, we must also pause and say THANK YOU to this great artist, whose legacy, like a great and bright star lighting the way for those who follow in his passion for singing, is exemplary in every way.—Thomas Hampson, May 2012, Hall of Fame, Gramophone Magazine.
After Fischer-Dieskau's death,Le Monde, France's most internationally known newspaper, wrote that Fischer-Dieskau's vocal artistry bordered on a miracle ("cela tenait du miracle"): "As soon as he opened his mouth, they believed every word he sang. Not a single word, not an intention, not a nuance did he pass over in his diction" ("dès qu'il ouvrait la bouche, on y croyait. Pas un mot, pas une intention, pas une nuance n'échappait à sa diction").[19] In an obituary inThe Guardian, pianist and conductorDaniel Barenboim, Fischer-Dieskau's longtime accompanist in lieder, called the baritone a "revolutionary performer" because he was the first singer ever to succeed as a single person in delivering equally extraordinary performances in all three genres: opera, oratorio and lieder:
In his interpretations, he [Fischer-Dieskau] created a unity between text and music unlike few before or after him. He set the benchmark in enunciation, and he emphasised key words through changing the sound of the note on which the word was sung. Thus, he not only clarified the sense of the word, but he let every syllable and every note sound together and thereby created a unity of harmony and colours unlike anyone else. [...] He created a new dimension of the comprehensibility and understandability of the text.[20]
In an interview on the occasion of the centenary of his birth,Christian Gerhaher noted his encyclopedic recording of Lieder, in an intellectual approach that served as a way of positive and strong authenticity after World War II. He described Fischer-Dieskau's voice, especially in early recordings, as relatively dark and velvety, which a natural richness of colours and sound".[21]
Fischer-Dieskau recorded mainly for theEMI,Deutsche Grammophon, and Orfeo labels.
| External audio | |
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 Fischer-Dieskau asPapageno with theRIAS Symphony Orchestra conducted byFerenc Fricsay in 1955on archive.org |
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