Schubert: Heimliches Lieben D922 (Klenke)

“…Watt's youthful, radiant delivery, with no flaws in technique that I can hear, fits many of the Lieder like a glove.” BBC Music Magazine, January 2009 ****

“A voice in its first, radiant freshness is always to be cherished in Schubert. Watts is a thoughtful interpreter, too, alive to mood and atmosphere… Crucially, she also brings a measure of innocence and simplicity - not quite the same thing as artlessness - to many of these songs, allied to a technical mastery that allows her to spin a rapt, unblemished line in "Nacht und Träume".” Gramophone Magazine, February 2009

“Hailed as a singer to watch after winning the 2006 Kathleen Ferrier Award and the 2007 Cardiff Song Prize, Elizabeth Watts makes her CD debut with this refreshingly unhackneyed Schubert programme. Perennial soprano favourites – DieForelle, Nacht und Träume, Frühlingsglaube, Suleika – are not shunned. But Watts has alighted on some rarely aired gems. How often in recital do we hear the agitated scena-in-miniature AusDiego Manzanares; or the playfully charming paean to spring Die Blumensprache; or the Novalis setting Marie, where sacred and profane blur in a song of exquisite, rarefied grace? A voice in its first, radiant freshness is always to be cherished in Schubert. Watts is a thoughtful interpreter, too, alive to mood and atmosphere, colouring her tone in response to a darkening of the harmony in, say, Sei mir gegrüsst. Crucially, she also brings a measure of innocence and simplicity – not quite the same thing as artlessness – to many of these songs, allied to a technical mastery that allows her to spin a rapt, unblemished line in Nacht und Träume. Encouraged by Vignoles's buoyant accompaniment, she makes an engaging story-teller in Die Forelle, with an unexaggerated touch of indignation at the angler's treachery; and she sings the mildly salacious refrain song Die Männer sind méchant with just the right wide-eyed mock-pathos.
Quibbles? Well, in one or two songs, including the opening An den Mond, Watts struck me as overly languid. She treats Nähe des Geliebten as an elegiac litany, where, say, Janet Baker, choosing a more mobile tempo and finding greater variety from verse to verse, sings it as a passionate avowal of love. Watts also emphasises melancholy over excited anticipation in Frühlingsglaube and Suleika. Here and elsewhere, Watts under-exploits the expressive potential of German consonants. That said, highlights are lovely performances of Nachtviolen – the high tessitura effortlessly negotiated – or the Mozartian barcarolle Liane: just two songs among many where the vernal purity of Watts's tone and the grace of her phrasing are priceless assets.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

'Superb...Wonderfully fluent, confident singing from Finley, soft-grained intimacy from Banse...a delight' (Gramophone)

“carefully remastered and sounding remarkably real and vivid...her range of expression runs the whole gamut...A performance that should be in every collection.” Penguin Guide, 2010 edition ***

“Frauenliebe Baker's 'heroine' is knowing, so that the early rapture seems tainted by hindsight. But the voice is sovereign; awesome in its control, majestic in its command.” BBC Music Magazine, January 2006 ****

“Above all, Tilling is versatile and protean...Her soprano sounds peachier than ever, her diction is clear and her musical instincts are immaculate. This lovely singing is underpinned by Paul Rivinius’s outstanding playing of the equally important piano parts. A must for Schubertians.” Sunday Times, 8th April 2012

“Tilling is a Swedish singer whose enchanting soprano voice and acute musical intelligence are both admirably deployed in this well-chosen selection...The opening song of the recital is the lively, exhilarating 'Bei dir allein!'...Tilling negotiates it without strain and sings it with delightful spontaneity...This is a lovely disc, a treat for all lovers of Schubert's songs.” International Record Review, May 2012

“The al fresco exuberance of 'Bei dir allein' gets this recital off to a delectable start: Camilla Tilling's vernal tone is fresh and smiling, her phrasing both shapely and feurig, as Schubert demands, her response to mood and harmony vivid...Tilling's tonal radiance and free-soaring top notes are priceless assets...a Schubert recital of rare pedigree.” Gramophone Magazine, July 2012

Soprano Georgine Resick's latest BRIDGE CD presents a fascinating recital of songs by male composers, based on poetry by women. The disc begins with the premiere recording of John Harbison's "Mirabai Songs" in their voice and piano version, and presents other rarely heard songs sung in French, German and English (translations enclosed). Of special interest is Korngold's voluptuous and rarely performed song cycle, "Unvergänglichkeit". Georgine Resick is an internationally recognized soprano in both the operatic and concert fields. Renowned for her Mozart and Strauss interpretations, she has sung a wide variety of leading roles with the Vienna State Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Paris Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and numerous others. Warren Jones has been the distinguished accompanist for Marilyn Horne, Luciano Pavarotti, Kiri Te Kanawa, Kathleen Battle and many other great vocalists of our time.