La Damnation de Faust

Hector Berlioz's evocative but static 1846 setting of episodes from Goethe's famous poem that came to symbolize the Romantic spirit—beginning with the despair that leads to Faust's temptation by Mephistopheles, proceeding through his passionate affair with Marguerite, and ending with his condemnation and her redemption—isn't one of his most popular works. It's really more oratorio than opera (the composer termed it both an opéra en concert and a légende dramatique), which is how it's presented in this performance by Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony Chorus, recorded at London's Royal Albert Hall in 1989. The formidable orchestra and Margaret Hillis' superbly-trained chorus are arrayed across the stage, and soloists Keith Lewis (Faust), José Van Dam (Mephistopheles), and Annie Sofie von Otter (Marguerite) sit until they rise to sing their parts, scores in hand. Musically, the performance boasts the characteristic Solti virtues—propulsive, sumptuously played, and it would be difficult to imagine the Rákóczy March and the Ride to Hell more excitingly rendered—but the reading also seems somewhat slick and superficial. It's also debatable whether watching such a conventionally shot concert (with close-ups of the singers' grimaces, cuts to the conductor's swordplay with the baton, and pans across orchestra and chorus) adds very much to the experience of simply listening to the music without the visuals. Still, the score is a sporadically strong one, the soloists are excellent, the camerawork is solid (if unimaginative), and the LCPM stereo sound is rich and full. A strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)