Britten: The Last Rose of Summer

American tenor Nicholas Phan makes his solo recording debut with a deeply personal approach to the songs of Britten.

‘Winter Words’ is the solo debut release by American tenor Nicholas Phan. The recording was made in the wake of a recital tour in 2010-11 which culminated in his Carnegie debut at Weill Hall. A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music and an alumnus of the Houston Grand Opera studio Nick has performed with the opera companies of Los Angeles and Seattle, symphony orchestras of Atlanta, St. Louis and San Francisco, and the Marlboro, Ravinia and Edinburgh Festivals, among others. He sang in Stravinsky’s Pulcinella with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Pierre Boulez which won a Grammy Award.

Nick presents a deeply personal perspective of Britten’s music, encompassing his own performing experiences to audience reaction. He says: “I’ve been a fan of Britten since playing his Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra with my youth orchestra in Detroit as a teenage violinist. But my great devotion to his music increased to an obsession when an excellent pianist and good friend asked if I’d perform with her at a small university in Missouri. She suggested Winter Words, saying, “I think these would sound really great in your voice, and I’ve wanted to play them for ages, so indulge me.” I researched and played through Britten’s settings of Hardy’s poems and before long, I was hooked.”

Approaching the performance in a small Midwestern town with some trepidation (“how would they react?”), Nick describes the audience’s overwhelmingly positive response: “my favourite piece on the program … the most lasting impression.” Such is the enduring quality of Britten’s sophisticated yet direct song writing, of which Nick is a leading torchbearer.

Iain Burnside and Ailish Tynan return to Signum with their second disc of Irish Songs and arrangements: this time from a range of different 20th Century composers.

Although all of the sung texts stem from Ireland's rich heritage of literature (including poems from W.B. Yeats, Thomas Moore and James Joyce), the composers featured have a more transatlantic feel, with works by John Cage and Samuel Barber programmed alongside others by Benjamin Britten and Herbert Hughes. This disc continues Burnside’s series of recital discs with Signum – in particular his 2007 disc with Ailish Tynan of Irish songs by Herbert Hughes.

One of Britain’s most acclaimed and best-loved sopranos, Felicity Lott, collaborates with award-winning harpist, Isabelle Moretti, to create ‘Cantare’ – a celebration of the relationship between the harp and the voice ranging over a very varied and sometimes surprising repertoire. Dame Felicity Lott, a long time friend of Isabelle, brings her experience, charm and charisma to the vocal works chosen by both herself and the harpist. First sung by Judy Garland in the musical film The Wizard of Oz (1939), “Over the Rainbow” has become a universally known tune. Isabelle Moretti calls it her ‘cult song’, and Felicity Lott admits to humming it in the shower. Here, the harp part is an arrangement by the harpist herself. Award-winning artist Isabelle Moretti is one of the most appealing figures in the world of the harp and on today’s musical scene. Her rich and varied discography has been much acclaimed, winning such awards as the Victoire de la Musique, Grand Prix de la Nouvelle Académie du Disque, Prix Charles Cros, Choc du Monde de la Musique, 10 de Répertoire, and fff de Télérama.

Australia’s foremost tenor Steve Davislim and conductor/pianist Simone Young are reunited with Melba Recordings to present a mesmerising collection of Benjamin Britten’s Folksong Arrangements.

This new CD follows Seduction (MR301108), their highly praised exploration of orchestral songs of Richard Strauss.