SEEN AND HEARD INTERNATIONAL

Delius, Liszt, Rachmaninov and Strauss: Vocal Recital from Sarah-Jane Brandon (soprano) with Simon Lepper (piano), Barber Institute, Birmingham University, 8.10. 2010. (GR)

There have been many worthy winners of the Kathleen Ferrier Competition who have gone on to achieve great things: Bryn Terfel from the eighties, Emma Bell the nineties and Kate Royal the noughties, to name but three. The victor in 2009 was South African soprano Sarah-Jane Brandon and this young lady took another step on the road to fame and success when she opened the Barber Institute’s 2010 series of free lunchtime concerts. Her partner in a varied programme of songs was another Ferrier prizewinner Simon Lepper, awarded the MBF Accompanist’s Prize in 2002.

Brandon had selected numbers from four countries across Europe, an extreme test of her linguistic capabilities. Delius represented England (albeit with a Scandinavian flavour where he was known as Fritz) as she warmed up with three of his Seven Songs from the Norwegian. It was an assured and confident start: the lament Twilight Fancies, the gay ditty of Young Venevil and a wistful setting of Ibsen’s Cradle Song.

The second group of three came from across the channel, featuring the French pairing of Victor Hugo and Franz Liszt; each piece had its own characteristic, but all were delightful. There was fluidity from Lepper’s accompaniment to Comment, disaient-ils, emphasising the watery setting; Brandon was equal to the coloratura of the score and skilfully negotiated the slippery tempo of the text. In contrast her Oh! Quand je dors was expressive of the romantic verse, effecting an exquisite result with seemingly effortless breath control. With its tale of angels and demons, Brandon displayed both sensitive and melodramatic moments during Enfant, si j’étais roi.

Chère Nuit continued the French connection with Alfred Bachelet’s setting of Eugene Adèni-Colombeau’s heartfelt tale of a lover seeking refuge in the night. It was particularly memorable for Lepper’s extended introduction, tenderly played. A trio of Rachmaninov’s songs followed; Russian songs are not a great favourite of mine, particularly with the language difficulty. However Brandon and Lepper made me want to hear more. Their teamwork in Son (A Dream) showed they had done their homework.

Germany and Richard Strauss completed the balanced programme, the four songs that comprised his Op. 27. Sombre and pedestrian minor chords introduced No 1:Ruhe, meine Seele. Brandon conveyed an intense feeling to Henckell’s words – the dichotomy of tranquillity and turbulence generated an emotive sensation and gripped the audience. There was some typical Straussian drama in No 2:Cäcilie. It demonstrated the full force of Brandon’s dramatic soprano, powerful and vibrant. Here is a singer who will surely reverberate around every corner of the Birmingham Symphony Hall next month in a CBSO performance of Mozart’s Requiem. The passion continued with No 3:Heimliche Aufforderung. Her considerable stamina was also evident as she completed her non-stop 45 min programme with No 4:Morgen.

The programme portrayed the versatility of this budding star, certainly one to watch. An even tone over her whole range, Brandon appeared to have a fearless approach, cutting a commanding figure on the platform. She gave each of the composers represented a distinctive colour. But it was the Strauss that thrilled me most and whatever roles are offered, I could on this evidence imagine her as a future Electra. To echo a line from her first Delius song, it will be without doubt many years before ‘the sun goes down’ on this artist.

Geoff Read