Im wünderschönen Monat Mai, als alle Knospen
sprangen…………. well, actually, all the buds sprang into life here
in London in March, but May certainly was a wonderful month for singing;
in these 31 days I have had the privilege of hearing Juan Diego Florez,
Thomas Quasthoff, Matthias Goerne (twice) John Mark Ainsley (twice)
Ian Bostridge and Mark Padmore, and as the month drew to a close, this
lovely recital by a baritone whose art is the equal of most of the above,
and an accompanist who is second to none.
Almost from the outset, it was clear that we were not
hearing a singer in the absolute best of health, and whether this was
due to his recent accident or other indisposition, it would be unfair
to judge Keenlyside by his renditions of some of the songs here, since
I am sure that, to take one very obvious example, he is normally more
than capable of singing ‘An Silvia’ far more comfortably than he did
on this occasion. Nevertheless, this recital gave us the opportunity
to experience some of the most beautiful singing and playing you could
hope to hear, in a thoughtfully structured programme in which the well
– loved predominated over the less familiar, with a neat balance kept
between levity and intensity.
The first half was all Schubert, offering such well
– known gems as ‘Der Tod und das Mädchen’ and ‘Ständchen’
(from ‘Schwanengesang’) as well as ‘An Silvia,’ although the finest
performances came in those songs which might best be described as tempestuous
in character. Keenlyside’s phrasing is extremely individual: his legato
is not especially fluid, nor is his tone particularly beguiling, but
he phrases the lines so that they appear to be delivered as if to the
individual listener rather than some general audience body, and his
love for this music is so transparently obvious that one cannot help
but find his singing deeply engaging. This was especially true of ‘Gruppe
aus dem Tartarus’ where both he and Martineau evoked both the grandeur
and mythical quality of the music with real mastery, and ‘Dem Undendlichen’
where Keenlyside’s superb diction was an absolute joy, particularly
in ‘Allein du rufst mich aus meiner Nacht, der im Elend, der im Tode
hilft’ – I can’t recall another singer since Fischer-Dieskau with such
crispness of enunciation in such lines, and his forte at ‘kein Jubel
genung besingt!’ was enough to knock you off your feet.
Martineau played the exquisite little ‘Himmelsfunken’
with such delicacy and tenderness that he almost eclipsed the singing,
but this would have been difficult; Keenlyside managed that ecstatic
B flat modulation at ‘trunkne Herz vergeht’ with throat-catching sweetness,
and fined the voice down to a shimmering thread at the close. ‘Ständchen’
competed the first half, in a lovely, ardent performance of real tenderness,
with none of the hectoring quality into which many singers can lapse,
and with just the right sense of pleading at ‘Komm, beglücke mich.’
No shortage of takers, I’m sure.
The second half began with another serenade from a
hesitant lover, this time Brahms, and this, too, was finely sing, but
it was with ‘Die Mainacht’ that one really heard the skill of a great
Lieder singer as well as that of a matchless pianist. This sublime song
is, to me, one of the greatest in the repertoire, and I love it so much
that I must have every known recording of it – not that that means a
great deal, since there are many fine currently active singers who should
record it but have not yet done so. Keenlyside and Martineau gave a
superb rendition of it, the playing ideally balanced between poetic
grace and strength, and the singing masterly in its tenderly lyrical
‘Wann, o lächelndes Bild’ and impressively powerful at the great
forte of ‘Und die einsame Träne.’ This was the best thing in the
recital, and indeed the best singing of Brahms that I’ve heard in a
long while.
A group of Hugo Wolf songs formed the remainder of
the recital, mostly chosen from the composer’s most well – known and
loved pieces. My goodness, Keenlyside has been listening intently to
his Fischer – Dieskau sets of Wolf recordings! It always amuses me to
hear singers say that of course, they have ‘heard’ DFD but they are
not at all influenced by him – it’s a bit like a poet of a certain school
and age saying that they could not possibly have been remotely influenced
by Yeats – so it’s refreshing to hear a singer who obviously just could
not care less if people say that he’s copying the great German baritone,
and why should he? Keenlyside does not lose his own individuality by
learning from such a master, any more than Goerne has.
Keenlyside’s Wolf offers a totally different experience
to that of the latter singer, yet no less valid in its own way. A good
example to illustrate the differences would be ‘An die Geliebte’ which
Goerne sings with rapt, mesmerizing stillness and wide – eyed wonder,
and he delivers the final line, ‘Ich kniee, ihrem Lichtgesang zu lauschen’
in one unbroken curve of perfect legato. Keenlyside’s interpretation
shows much more willingness to highlight certain words at the expense
of the line, and he sings that last line in three separate phrases,
divided by two distinct breaths. To my ears, this way is neither as
impressive nor as moving as Goerne’s, but I can still understand how
one could be engaged by it.
‘Peregrina I’ was beautifully sung but lacked that
burnished glow, that warmth which Fischer – Dieskau brought to it, and
‘Auf einer Wanderung’ showed singer and pianist at their best, with
Martineau’s finely articulated playing touching real heights in the
rippling accompaniment to ‘Ach hier, wie liegt die Welt so licht!’ and
Keenlyside’s lovely, forthright tone achieving just the right sense
of release at ‘O Muse.’ The last three songs were in a much lighter
vein, with ‘Abschied’ being given a wryly amusing performance – Martineau
played those hilarious evocations of the ‘critic’ tumbling down the
stairs with tremendous panache, and at one point I could have sworn
that Keenlyside’s piercing gaze was being directed straight at the place
where the Wigmore always seats these estimable personages. An enthusiastic
audience were rewarded with two encores, Schubert’s adorable ‘L’incanto
degli occhi’ and Wolf’s ‘Fussreise,’ both sung and played with the same
loving skill which characterized this recital.
Melanie Eskenazi
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