Page "Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau" Paragraph 12

Beyond his recordings of Lieder and the German opera repertoire, Fischer-Dieskau also recorded performances in the Italian operatic field.

His recordings of Verdi's Rigoletto ( alongside Renata Scotto and Carlo Bergonzi ) and Rodrigo in Verdi's Don Carlos, are probably the most respected of these ventures.

Others, such as the title role in Verdi's Macbeth ( with Elena Souliotis ), Giorgio Germont in Verdi's La traviata, and Scarpia in Giacomo Puccini's Tosca ( with Birgit Nilsson ), are not delivered by him with the same degree of effectiveness.

They display his characteristic perceptiveness and intelligence but lack idiomatic Mediterranean vocal colour and temperament-perhaps, in short, seeming too Germanic.

However, as with the operatic interpretations of Schwarzkopf and Maria Callas, Fisher-Dieskau's performances on disc always seem thought out and are often true to the score.

As conductor Ferenc Fricsay put it, " I never dreamed I'd find an Italian baritone in Berlin.

" Fischer-Dieskau retired from opera in 1978, the year he recorded his final opera, Aribert Reimann's Lear, that the composer had written at his suggestion.