SEEN AND HEARD INTERNATIONAL

SEEN AND HEARD RECITAL  REVIEW
 

Oxford Lieder Festival  (2):  Anna  Leese (soprano),   Sholto Kynoch (piano) and  Wolfgang Holtzmair (baritone) Julius Drake  (piano),  Holywell Music Room, Oxford 19.10.2007 (LD)

When I arrived at the Holywell Music Room and was greeted with the news that Olaf Bär had fallen ill and cancelled, I certainly was not alone in my dismay. His performance of Dichterliebe was to be one of the highlights of the festival. Upon learning he would replaced by a shared programme from Wolfgang Holzmair and the young soprano Anna Leese, I stayed out of curiosity.

Anna Leese and pianist Sholto Kynoch opened with a wisely chosen array of standard lieder repertoire; popular selections from Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, Schumann and Strauss. The pair must be commended for how they handled what was clearly a last minute engagement.

It was in Brahms’ Meine Liebe ist grün that Leese’s voice first seemed to settle comfortably into the performance. This is an operatic voice that sounded more at home singing the longer phrases and thicker textures of Brahms and Strauss than the lighter lyricism of Mozart. Her bright tone could have been more fully supported by Kynoch’s rather light touch,  the dynamics between the two were not always balanced and the effect of this was what felt like a soloist performing with an accompanist rather than an equal duo.  However, they did achieve an exquisite partnership in some of the lighter songs, including Schumann’s Der Nußbaum as well as Strauss’s Ständchen and Morgen. Although Leese sang with dynamic contrast and expressive facial gestures, the text was not sufficiently coloured for the genre and her diction was not always concise. Overall though, this was an entertaining performance, much enjoyed by an appreciative audience.

Schumann’s Dichterliebe (A Poet’s Love) is a setting of sixteen of Heinrich Heine’s poems about unrequited love. Much of Heine’s poetry was inspired by his love for his cousin Amalie, who coldly rejected his passionate declarations. The theme of unrequited love that runs through much of Heine’s work is also a metaphor for the poet’s rejection from society and his fear of isolation.

From the first phrase, Im wunderschönen Monat Mai, I was transfixed by the combination of Wolfgang Holzmair’s artistic baritone and Julius Drake’s exquisite touch. Holzmair is a master of communication :  unlike many successful lieder performers, he has not been blessed with an instrument of natural beauty, yet transcends this to use his voice as a highly expressive vehicle of characterisation and emotion. Every phrase was dictated by the text and each word was coloured to convey all the subtleties of the poet’s emotional condition. Holzmair fearlessly explored the full range of dynamics and emotive text, from the intimate sadness of Aus meinen Tränen to the dramatic desperation of Ich grolle nicht.

In turn, every word and musical phrase was expertly coloured by Drake. Drake’s solo interludes provided a seamless continuation of Holzmair’s vocal line, and the interweaving of the two performers resulted in a flawless musical unity. Julius Drake is a pianist of the highest calibre; an exceptionally engaging performer and respected interpreter of song. Although theirs is not a regular partnership this performance had the spontaneity and truth of a text being brought to life by music as though for the first time. It was exciting, exuberant, touching and wholly engaging.

Lyndall Dawson