Benjamin Appl presents a tribute to the great German baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, with Brigitte Fassbaender, Christoph Eschenbach, Manuel Fischer-Dieskau and John Rutter.
For the 100th anniversary of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau’s birth, German baritone Benjamin Appl presents a personal tribute to his mentor and friend. He delves into previously unpublished letters and diaries to get behind the heroic figure and paint a complex portrait of Dieter through his inner thoughts and feelings, from his time fighting for the Nazi Regime to his symbolic performance in Britten’s War Requiem, and from the peak of his fame in the 1960s, 70s and 80s to his private life away from singing.
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau became a powerful cultural icon in the post-war world, and particularly in Britain through his close connections with both Benjamin Britten and his long-time accompanist Gerald Moore. In post-war , he was a singular figure, presenting old songs in a new way and thereby creating a bridge to the traditional world of art song and poetry. He also became one of the first artists to fully embrace new technology and he made over 400 recordings in his lifetime.
Benjamin Appl talks to some of those who knew Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau best to shed light on his enduring importance beyond the world of Art Song and to assess his legacy. He talks to close friends and collaborators, the mezzo-soprano Brigitte Fassbaender who, like Dieter, grew up in Berlin, and performed on the operatic stage with him, and to the conductor-pianist Christoph Eschenbach who accompanied him in many recitals and recordings. Benjamin also talks to bass-baritone and fellow Fischer-Dieskau student, Andreas Schmidt, who is now Professor at the University of Music in Munich, and to the cellist Manuel Fischer-Dieskau, who is Dieter's third son.
In Berlin, Benjamin finds out what it was like to work in Fischer-Dieskau's masterclasses from two Lied-pianists who worked with him over many years: Claar ter Horst, who teaches at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, and Karola Theill, who is Professor of Song Interpretation at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Rostock. Benjamin also visits the Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau Archive at the Staatsbibliothek in Berlin where he talks to the curator, Dr Jean-Christophe Gero about his legacy.
Benjamin travels to Aldeburgh to visit the Archive of Britten Pears Arts where he talks to Head of Library and Archive, Dr Christopher Hilton, about the enduring importance of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau in British culture, particularly after taking part in the premiere of Britten's War Requiem in 1962 in Coventry Cathedral. They look at the manuscript of the War Requiem together with the composer Sir John Rutter, who sang as a boy chorister alongside Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau in the 1963 Decca recording of the work.
Contributors:
Christoph Eschenbach
Brigitte Fassbaender
Manuel Fischer-Dieskau
Jean-Christophe Gero
Christopher Hilton
John Rutter
Andreas Schmidt
Claar ter Horst
Karola Theill
Presenter: Benjamin Appl
Producer: Elizabeth Arno
Mix Engineer: Marvin Ware
