Vocal and Choral

Wagner - Die Walküre  
Anja Kampe; Jonas Kaufmann, René Pape; Nina Stemme; Mariinsky Orchestra; Valery Gergiev
Mariinsky MAR0527

This year marks Wagner’s 200th birthday and the festivities and celebrations are well under way. During the last decade with many opera houses generating innovative new concepts for Der Ring des Nibelungen the cycle has come to new life and become justly or unjustly Wagner’s most popular work. With a wealth of video releases available today, it is refreshing to concentrate on what’s most important, the music performed by a great conductor trying his hands on it for the first time.

Although I presume Gergiev has performed the entire cycle in St. Petersburg, I am only aware of this CD set of Die Walküre, the second drama or the First Day of the Ring, as having been recorded. No matter, because it is the most engaging, most immediately appealing, most melodic and heartbreaking drama of the four. Act I is almost a complete opera in itself. Starting with a raging storm and emerging from utter darkness, the very depth of human misery with desperate cries for help, it turns very gradually into faint glimmerings of hope, then a ray of light followed by the burst into spring, and by this time Gergiev whips his orchestra into waves and waves of such ecstasy that one is reminded of the miracles Furtwängler used to produce. Act II is the turning point of the Ring saga. Although it is very long and could get tedious with its lengthy dialogues and monologues Gergiev never lets the tension sag. The ominous, frightening minutes prior to the crucial fight is so ridden with anxiety that an electric charge can be felt in the air. What follows in Act III is a rousing Ride of the Walkyries in sonic splendour and a most heartrending Wotan’s Farewell sung by probably today’s greatest, most intelligent and powerful Wotan, René Pape.

Further glories of this set are Swedish soprano, Nina Stemme’s wonderful Brunnhilde, Jonas Kaufmann’s strong yet vulnerable and tender Siegmund and his sister/bride Sieglinde, beautifully portrayed and sung by the accomplished Wagnerian soprano Anja Kampe. The superlative cast includes the awesome basso profundo, Mikhail Petrenko, who creates vociferous terror as Hunding.

Schubert – Erlkönig
Matthias Goerne; Andreas Haefliger
Harmonia Mundi HMC 902141

Six hundred and thirty-four is the total number of solo lieder written by Franz Schubert, and Matthias Goerne has the ambition to record them all! This is the seventh disc in the series (each with a different piano accompanist) and Goerne is into some wonderful territory. Erlkönig is of course the setting of a poem by Goethe and Schubert’s first song masterpiece. The composer himself designated it as his Opus No.1. What remains a mystery is the studious indifference that Goethe seems to have shown to this brilliant song. When initially sent the setting by one of the young Schubert’s patrons, he returned it some months later — without a word of a comment. Later on, Schubert himself sent to the author beautifully bound scores for this and other Goethe poems, but never received a reply. Finally, after Schubert’s death, Erlkönig was performed for Goethe publically — and the only comment from the venerated poet was: “It reminds me of something I have heard before.”

No matter what Goethe thought, the song is a masterpiece — on this recording accompanied by other works, such as Die Forelle and Im Abendrot. Goerne has a beautiful baritone, perfectly suited to the lieder repertoire and of course a perfect command of the language. Many international singers, despite language coaching, get tripped up by the dense texture of Schubert’s settings. The thoughtful interpretation, combined with some truly inspired accompaniment, in this instance by Andreas Haefliger, make this Schubert edition an exciting endeavour. At least this reviewer will be looking up volumes one through six in record stores.

Schumann – Liederkreis
Gerald Finley; Julius Drake
Hyperion CDA67944

Canadian singer Gerald Finley is living proof that being a baritone is not some form of divine punishment. Finley demonstrates his advantage with a rich, resonant ease in a range that basses and tenors can rarely match.

His choice of the Schumann Op.24 and Op.39 song cycles offers him the opportunity to move through a wide range of poetic texts by Eichendorff and Heine. Whether nostalgic, frustrated or purely romantic, Finley captures the spirit of each iteration with a conviction as honest as Schumann’s own must have been. The writing is imbued with the passion and frustration of his romance with Clara Wieck whose father found Schumann an unsuitable match for his daughter and resisted the ever-deepening relationship that would inevitably result in their marriage.

These songs reflect a structural freedom that is neither fully through-composed nor fully strophic. Yet Schumann seems entirely comfortable with his decision to live in an evolving world between accepted forms. His writing offers singers a freedom to exploit the emotional and dramatic potential of each poem, and Finley does this exceptionally well, especially in the more gentle songs.

Finley brings an engaging tenderness to the opening tracks of Op.39, especially “Mondnacht.” Where many singers glide through the text on the merit of Schumann’s melody, Finley uses strategic pauses to heighten the sense of nocturnal mystery. The Op.24 “Berg’ und Burgen” also shows Finley’s superb artistic sensibility. Altogether a very fine performance.

Whither must I wander?
David John Pike; Isabelle Trüb
Signum Records SIGCD314
davidjohnpike.com

With a daunting range of emotional expression and poetic moods, Vaughan Williams’ Songs of Travel challenge every singer who performs them. Singers performing these songs must have a convincingly profound understanding of the composer’s affinity for the poet’s (Robert Louis Stevenson) own spiritual wanderlust. Canadian-British baritone David John Pike travels well in Vaughan Williams’ universe. He understands the evolutionary push these works gave to English parlour song, moving the art form into the 20th century and unimagined new realms of form and tonality. Vaughan Williams writes with the feel of open-ended free form that nevertheless rests on solid compositional craft. Pike seems naturally at home with this, flowing easily from the lighter-hearted “Blackmore by the Stour” to the mystical and sacred “The Call.”

Pike’s dark roast baritone voice is wonderfully robust yet clear and his articulate pleasure at singing art song in English is a joy to hear. His repertoire choice makes for a superb program on a disc that includes works by two of Vaughan Williams’ friends and colleagues: Gerald Finzi and Roger Quilter. Finzi’s language is more restrained and introspective, qualities that Pike senses and portrays beautifully. But the real surprise on the disc is Quilter’s Three Shakespeare Songs that Pike delivers with imagination and elegance. Here is an unassailable argument for hearing more of Quilter’s work performed and recorded.

Finally, accompanist Isabelle Trüb is stunningly virtuosic without stealing the limelight ... incredible.

Wagner – Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Gerald Finley; Marco Jentzsch;
Johannes Martin Kränzle; Anna Gabler; London Philharmonic Orchestra; Glyndebourne Chorus; Vladimir Jurowski
Opus Arte OA 1085 D

To sit through Wagner’s over five-hour long comic masterpiece in the opera house is a daunting task but on DVD in the comfort of home it becomes joyful and rewarding. From Glyndebourne’s new Opera House the piece springs to fresh new life under David McVicar’s innovative direction. Fully aware of how this opera has been bound to “sacred” Germanic traditions he has made a few striking departures to make it relevant to today’s audiences not with directorial “tricks” but by adding a new thoroughly human dimension.

Canadian baritone Gerald Finley is an inspired choice for Hans Sachs, the hero of the opera, traditionally portrayed as an old man. Many of Wagner’s operas are somewhat autobiographical and seeing himself as Sachs, a still handsome, virile and wise middle-aged artist surely would have pleased Wagner. Finley proves to be wonderful in this complex and difficult role.

Wagner also saw himself as the rebellious young lover, Walther von Stolzing, sung by Marco Jentzsch, not the traditional beefcake heldentenor but a handsome youth with a voice of gentle tenderness embedded in the Wagnerian power. Just like the composer, Walther is also intent on breaking into the “Establishment” with his new music, but encounters strong resistance in Beckmesser (alias Hanslick, Wagner’s arch critic) who in this new setting is no bungling fool, but a man of some stature, portrayed superbly by J.M. Kränzle.

The distinguished cast is well chosen, look the part, act and sing gloriously. Add to all this the London Philharmonic in the orchestra pit and a young conductor, Vladimir Jurowsky, who controls Wagner’s multi-layered polyphonic, contrapuntal score like a Karajan reborn.

Die Thomaner - A Year in the Life of the St. Thomas Boys Choir, Leipzig
Paul Smaczny; Gunter Atteln
Accentus Music ACC 20212

Bach - Matthaus Passion
Thomanerchor; Gewandhausorchester; Georg Christoph Biller
Accentus Music ACC 20256

The Leipzig Thomanerchor was founded in 1212 and the Thomasschule, of which the choir became part, followed soon after. The DVDs under review were issued on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of the choir. Johann Sebastian Bach was the Cantor there from 1723 until his death in 1750. It was for Leipzig that he wrote most of his cantatas as well as the two great Passions: St. John and St. Matthew.

Although now the choir is the jewel in the crown for both the school and the city of Leipzig, that was hardly true in Bach’s time. Bach was responsible for the music not in just one church but in five. He was to complain that pupils were generally admitted on academic, not musical grounds. At one point he calculated that among the pupils 17 were “usable,” 20 might become “usable” at some point and 17 were unmusical. Bach also had to find orchestral musicians. They had to be paid but the city administration refused to fund more than eight. Many of the schoolboys played instruments but, if they were used as instrumentalists, that further reduced the number of singers available. We should also remember that in Bach’s time a boy’s voice did not change until much later than is the case now. He would not become a tenor or bass until 17 or 18. The advantage of this would have been that trebles would be more mature and experienced than they are now, but it would produce difficulties with the lower voices.

The documentary presents a year in the life of the school; it also shows the trajectory from the initial auditions for five-year-olds to the tearful farewells of those who at 18 have to leave the choir after having spent much of their young lives there. We see the choir in rehearsal, in performance and on a tour to South America; we also see them playing soccer and having pillow fights.

Two recent recordings of the St. Matthew Passion perform the work one voice to a part; the Evangelist and the Christus are also the tenor and the bass of the first choir. By contrast, this performance could be called old-fashioned: it uses six adult soloists, a large (divided) boys choir, a (divided) modern orchestra, modern pitch and no viola da gamba. But if one judges it on its own terms, as one should, it is very successful; I found watching and listening to it a very moving experience. The soloists are all good but the finest is the Christus, the bass Klaus Mertens, who sings with wonderful sonority, impeccable diction and true involvement. At the end there is no applause. Quite right: who would want to applaud the Crucifixion?

James Whitbourn - Annelies (from The Diary of Anne Frank)
Arianna Zukerman; Westminster Williamson Voices; Lincoln Trio; James Jordan
Naxos 8.57307

The passages librettist Melanie Challenger has chosen from the writings of the highly intelligent, insightful and inspiring Anne Frank with added biblical passages have been set to a tender yet powerful score by composer James Whitbourn. He offers two versions: both for soloist and chorus, one with full orchestra, the other for piano trio plus clarinet. This recording is of the latter, which offers such a poignant, personal characterization that one is immediately drawn into an almost unbearable intimacy with the tragic events. Rather than straight accompaniment, it seems each instrument has several roles to play in the drama, for example, the clarinet as the voice of Jewish tradition, the violin and cello deep emotion and the passage of time with piano as chiming clock. Of course, the voices have many changes to portray: soprano Arianna Zukerman sings with a supremely controlled tone that never strays from pure beauty, but sublimely imparts the contrast of isolation vs. devotion and buoyant hopefulness.

The choir, Westminster Williamson Voices led by James Jordon, is superb and they are flawless in the delivery of passages that range from terror and alarm to prayerful and even a chorale on Anne’s Ich danke dir für all das Gute und Liebe und Schöne (Thank you God, for all that is good and dear and beautiful) that appears more delightfully Mozartian in character than one harmonized by Bach. This first choral setting of The Diary of Anne Frank certainly proves worthy.