The Sixteen continues its exploration of Henry Purcell’s Welcome Songs for Charles II. As with Robert King’s pioneering Purcell series begun over thirty years ago for Hyperion, Harry Christophers is recording two Welcome Songs per disc.
In February this year, Albanian soprano Ermonela Jaho made a highly lauded debut recital at Wigmore Hall - a concert which both celebrated Opera Rara’s 50th anniversary and honoured the career of the Italian soprano Rosina Storchio (1872-1945), the star of verismo who created the title roles in Leoncavallo’s La bohème and Zazà, Mascagni’s Lodoletta and Puccini’s Madama Butterfly.
Collapsology. Or, perhaps we should use the French word ‘Collapsologie’ because this is a transdisciplinary idea pretty much advocated by a series of French theorists - and apparently, mostly French theorists. It in essence focuses on the imminent collapse of modern society and all its layers - a series of escalating crises on a global scale: environmental, economic, geopolitical, governmental; the list is extensive.
Amongst an avalanche of new Mahler recordings appearing at the moment (Das Lied von der Erde seems to be the most favoured, with three) this 1991 Mahler Second from the 2nd Kassel MahlerFest is one of the more interesting releases.
If there is one myth, it seems believed by some people today, that probably needs shattering it is that post-war recordings or performances of Wagner operas were always of exceptional quality. This 1949 Hamburg Tristan und Isolde is one of those recordings - though quite who is to blame for its many problems takes quite some unearthing.
The voices of six women composers are celebrated by baritone Jeremy Huw Williams and soprano Yunah Lee on this characteristically ambitious and valuable release by Lontano Records Ltd (Lorelt).
As Paul Spicer, conductor of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Chamber Choir, observes, the worship of the Blessed Virgin Mary is as ‘old as Christianity itself’, and programmes devoted to settings of texts which venerate the Virgin Mary are commonplace.
Ethel Smyth’s last large-scale work, written in 1930 by the then 72-year-old composer who was increasingly afflicted and depressed by her worsening deafness, was The Prison – a ‘symphony’ for soprano and bass-baritone soloists, chorus and orchestra.
‘Hamilton Harty is Irish to the core, but he is not a musical nationalist.’
‘After silence, that which comes closest to expressing the inexpressible is music.’ Aldous Huxley’s words have inspired VOCES8’s new disc, After Silence, a ‘double album in four chapters’ which marks the ensemble’s 15th anniversary.
A song-cycle is a narrative, a journey, not necessarily literal or linear, but one which carries performer and listener through time and across an emotional terrain. Through complement and contrast, poetry and music crystallise diverse sentiments and somehow cohere variability into an aesthetic unity.
One of the nicest things about being lucky enough to enjoy opera, music and theatre, week in week out, in London’s fringe theatres, music conservatoires, and international concert halls and opera houses, is the opportunity to encounter striking performances by young talented musicians and then watch with pleasure as they fulfil those sparks of promise.
“It’s forbidden, and where’s the art in that?”
Dublin-born John F. Larchet (1884-1967) might well be described as the father of post-Independence Irish music, given the immense influenced that he had upon Irish musical life during the first half of the 20th century - as a composer, musician, administrator and teacher.
The English Civil War is raging. The daughter of a Puritan aristocrat has fallen in love with the son of a Royalist supporter of the House of Stuart. Will love triumph over political expediency and religious dogma?
Beethoven Symphony no 9 (the Choral Symphony) in D minor, Op. 125, and the Choral Fantasy in C minor, Op. 80 with soloist Kristian Bezuidenhout, Pablo Heras-Casado conducting the Freiburger Barockorchester, new from Harmonia Mundi.
A Louise Brooks look-a-like, in bobbed black wig and floor-sweeping leather trench-coat, cheeks purple-rouged and eyes shadowed in black, Barbara Hannigan issues taut gestures which elicit fire-cracker punch from the Mahler Chamber Orchestra.
‘Signor Piatti in a fantasia on themes from Beatrice di Tenda had also his triumph. Difficulties, declared to be insuperable, were vanquished by him with consummate skill and precision. He certainly is amazing, his tone magnificent, and his style excellent. His resources appear to be inexhaustible; and altogether for variety, it is the greatest specimen of violoncello playing that has been heard in this country.’
Baritone Roderick Williams seems to have been a pretty constant ‘companion’, on my laptop screen and through my stereo speakers, during the past few ‘lock-down’ months.
Melodramas can be a difficult genre for composers. Before Richard Strauss’s Enoch Arden the concept of the melodrama was its compact size – Weber’s Wolf’s Glen scene in Der Freischütz, Georg Benda’s Ariadne auf Naxos and Medea or even Leonore’s grave scene in Beethoven’s Fidelio.
Once I was: Songs by Ricky Ian Gordon features an assortment of songs by Ricky Ian Gordon interpreted by soprano Stacey Tappan, a longtime friend of the composer since their work on his opera Morning Star at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Tappan discovered a love for Gordon’s emotionally raw compositions when they played through some of his songs between rehearsals of his new opera. The idea to record their collaboration and create Once I was emerged quickly thereafter. Unsurprisingly, as a new-music enthusiast and soprano I was attracted to the “deeply personal” songs written as “duets for piano and voice, in which the emotion of the piano speaks as clearly as the words of the singer, and both join in a dialogue to tell the story.” [*] Not only do the piano and voice directly interact in these songs, so does the voice and the clarinet, the lyrical wind instrument representing the singer’s love interest. Telling a story is exactly what this record successfully achieves by canvassing in broad strokes the basic human experience: maturing into adulthood, falling in love, heartbreak, and loss.
What makes this journey special, however, is that the songs communicate how music can help one through the most difficult of circumstances, a fact with which Gordon is extremely familiar. The death of his lover inspired many of his compositions, including Orpheus and Euridice (2005), Dream True (1998), and the song cycle Green Sneakers for Baritone, String Quartet, Empty Chair and Piano (2007). Also unique is the actual communication of this human story, where theater and music combine to create an elevated sense of intimacy and connection. The cycle, directed by Amy Hutchinson and staged with simple props and costume pieces, premiered at the Chicago Cultural Center in 2011 to critical acclaim by Roger Pines of the Lyric Opera of Chicago who praised the work as “technically masterful and exquisitely expressive.”
The emotional journey begins with a bang in the song I Am Cherry Alive. Tappan sings with refreshing clarity and pronounces each word with ease. Her crystal clear voice and crisp diction capture Schwartz’s youthful text in an unaffected manner. The collaboration between Gordon and Tappan is immediately apparent through their sensitivity and equaled excitement. The following three songs continue to depict a child’s uninhibited emotional state and are each beautifully sung by Tappan. Her clear and bright vocal quality coupled with her honest delivery brings out the youthfulness of the poetry. The character begins to mature in Wild Swans when she asks herself what she feels in her heart and again in Joy when she unabashedly announces that she found happiness in the arms of the butcher boy. Text painting is apparent in both, particularly in Wild Swans when the piano line conjures the image of sea waves. The vocal melismas in Joy seem to burst forth from the lithe soprano, as if she can no longer pronounce syllables or contain her excitement.
The singer’s journey becomes difficult in the song Run Away during which she feels the pangs of heartbreak. This is the first song in which we can admire Tappan’s rich lower register after enjoying her easy top in the previous songs. She navigates her chest voice easily and brings an emotional depth to her sound that is open and vulnerable. The following four songs, Threnody, The Satin Dress, The Red Dress, and Recuerdo mark a reflective time during the human experience. While the songs are each well-written and beautiful, Tappan’s innately youthful sound does not best suit the poems, causing a momentary lull on the album.
The extremely well writtenThrenody is a highlight of the album. However, Tappan’s consistently bright color does not communicate the anguish inherent within the poem. Instead, her effortless vocal delivery seems casual and minimizes the pathos within the words.
Song marks the inclusion of the clarinet that engages the voice in a duet, repeating and elaborating upon the melody. The clarinet not only comments on the vocal line, but also represents the singer’s love interest as manifest through their interwoven musical lines. The four songs that follow, Just an Ordinary Guy, Poem, The More Loving One, and Otherwise, focus on the routine in which we find ourselves after being in a relationship for an extended period of time. The extremities of range in Poem are particularly exciting as well as the text painting in Just an Ordinary Guy. These songs exist during a transitory stage of the singer’s journey on the album; they blend together and are not particularly memorable.
Gordon and Tappan save the best for last, however, in the final six songs of the album that represent loss and healing through music. We will always walk together is a gem of a piece that features a closeness between the clarinet, piano, and voice. The emotionally poignant text is communicated not just through Tappan’s dedication to text, but also through the duet between the clarinet and voice. Once I was marks another high point on the album and features a breathtaking clarinet prelude as well as brutally honest yet uplifting poetry by Gordon. The dynamic trio ends their recital with upbeat blues and poetry by Langston Hughes. This final song encourages optimism and dreaming, two traits that surely helped the musicians through their own obstacles.
The songs on the album are well organized and tell the story of the human journey, one that is never easy but that is greatly alleviated through music. Tappan’s wide vocal range and sensitivity to the words stand out as well as the collaboration between the three musicians. Tappan excels in capturing youthful excitement and while her vocal quality is consistent and exceptional, she does not discover a different enough vocal color and quality for the nostalgic and pained songs. The pieces become predictable during certain points due to a lack of variety and musical contrast. All of the songs feature major modality and the piano accompaniment can be repetitive. Because the songs demand a theatrical performance, it was essential for the artists to find musical variety in order to maintain momentum and to avoid repetition without the added excitement of staging. Tappan could have experimented more with dynamics and vocal color to demonstrate the age and maturity differences between the characters of the poems. Nonetheless, the songs are touching and successfully capture the poetry’s meaning.
Sara LeMesh