Rachmaninov: Fragment from A. Musset, Op. 21 No. 6

“This recording should come with the warning "too hot to handle", such is the combustible combination of Dmitri Hvorostovsky's heroic baritone with the flaming passion of intensely romantic Russian poetry...the listener is left quite drained but also lost in wonder at the beauty of the melodic line.” The Observer, 5th February 2012

“Though Dmitri Hvorostovsky revisits repertoire he recorded in his 1991 'Russian Romantics'...he has little to fear from comparisons with his more svelte-voiced younger self...his long-admired breath control is, if anything, more impressive...his baritone has a far richer palette of vocal resources to call upon...This is as fine as any currently available single-disc collection of Rachmaninov songs.” Gramophone Magazine, April 2012

“for all his famously silky tones and deep-brown vocal shading Hvorostovsky does shape the lines meaningfully, and his delivery suits these songs admirably...Not everyone needs to respond to the 'Russian soul', of course; but for those who do, this is a fascinating recital - even if it's best not listened to all in one go.” BBC Music Magazine, April 2012 *****

“This is still a full-throated, virile baritone of great beauty, capable of dramatic declaration. It verges on the over-heated, but it's impossible to approach this 'heart-on-the-sleeve' repertoire without anything less than total commitment...Ivari Ilja tackles Rachmaninov's elaborate piano accompaniments with equal commitment.” International Record Review, March 2012

“Two figures in particular haunt this second volume of Chandos's survey of Rachmaninov's songs – Feodor Chaliapin and Rachmaninov himself. They had become friends in the years when they worked together in an opera company and when Rachmaninov was concentrating on developing his piano virtuosity. As a result the Op 21 songs are dominated by an almost operatic declamatory manner coupled with formidably difficult accompaniments. Leiferkus rises splendidly to the occasion, above all in 'Fate' (Op 21 No 1), and so throughout the songs does Howard Shelley. He's unbowed by the technical problems and he understands the novel proportions of songs in which the piano's participation has an unprecedented role. He also enjoys himself in the roisterous exchanges with Leiferkus in what's really Rachmaninov's only lighthearted song, Were you hiccoughing? The songs for the other voices are less powerful, in general more lyrical and intimate.
Alexandre Naoumenko only has five songs, and they aren't, on the whole, among the more striking examples, but he responds elegantly to 'The fountain' (Op 26 No 11). Maria Popescu gives a beautiful account of one of the most deservedly popular of them all, 'To the children' (Op 26 No 7), and of the remarkable Merezhkovsky setting, 'Christ is risen' (Op 26 No 6). Joan Rodgers is enchanting in 'The Lilacs' (Op 21 No 5) and moving in the song acknowledging that love is slipping away, 'Again I am alone' (Op 26 No 9). She has complete mastery of the style, and nothing here is finer than her arching phrase ending 'How peaceful' (Op 21 No 7) – 'da ty, mechta moya' (and you, my dream) – with Shelley gently articulating Rachmaninov's reflective piano postlude from the world of Schumann.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“The songs push Mattila to her expressive limits as cries of rapture curdle into shrieks of pain and spasms of rage intrude on erotic memories. Its impact on the audience can be gauged from the near hysteria that erupts at the end…Her accompanist, Martin Katz, deals superbly with some of the most fearsomely difficult piano writing in the entire song repertoire.” The Guardian

“Best of all is the highly expressive Quatre Instants by Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, dedicated to Mattila and showing how the singer is prepared to extend her range into new music to quite stunning effect.” Financial Times

“Following the Saariaho, passion is torn to tatters in the Rachmaninov group, with perhaps the strongest advocacy of the two Pushkin settings (Oh, do not sing tome and The Muse) since Söderström. Then, instead of making this the final item, Mattila ops for the gentler, even light-hearted, envoi of the Dvorák songs - superbly done, with a real wit and character. Nothing but praise then for the soprano, with generous, untiring and subtly detailed concentration over a longish time span in heavy repertoire, or for her accompanist (Katz is a real listener to what his singer does).” Gramophone Magazine, August 2007

“A frame of applause and ecstatic ovations greet what is one of Karita Mattila's most exciting discs yet… The repertoire takes Mattila's voice into thrilling new regions; and Martin Katz's piano is the voice's equal at every turn.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2007 *****