Review

It is a rare occurrence when the accompanist in a recording is more of a household name than the singer; at the same time, it is refreshing to see the older, accomplished musician supporting a younger generation of singers. Pianist Martin Katz, who is well known for his performances with Marilyn Horne, Frederica von Stade, José Carreras, Kiri Te Kanawa and Kathleen Battle, first performed Schubert’s poignant song cycle Winterreise with Jesse Blumberg at Chicago’s Collaborative Works Festival, an annual celebration of art song, showcasing up-and-coming singers. While the young baritone clearly possesses the ability to provide all the necessary dramatic aplomb, Katz underscores the performance with all the intelligent expressivity of a supremely knowledgeable and seasoned veteran. And, at the same time, both manage to present this mixture of pathos and bluster whilst never sacrificing the beauty of exquisite tone and lyricism. The richness of this baritone voice also has a lovely upper register realized in Die Nebensonnen near the end of the song cycle, finishing with the tender yet strangely detached observation of the Hurdy-Gurdy Man (Der Leiermann). A lovely and sensitive rendition of a most complex and challenging work.