Spohr: Faust

Opera no 2

Spohr: Faust

Soloists

Bielefeld Opera chorus and orchestra

Geoffrey Moull

Spohr didn’t make much of an impression when I listened to one of his double quartets in my 365 project (https://andrew365newpieces.blogspot.com/search/label/Spohr) but this opera made a much more positive impression. It has quite a complex history. It was originally written in 1813 as a singspiel with spoken dialogue and went through various changes until 1851, when it was turned into a full-length opera. This means that it is stylistically quite varied. Some of it has classical routes but largely it belongs in the world of Mendelssohn and Schumann, though there are passages which could have been by Marschner. There are some very old-fashioned coloratura sections in a couple of the arias which do seem rather out of place. On the whole though the piece has a dynamic impetus and moves to a gripping climax. I was certainly pleased to have made its acquaintance