The fifth Björling
volume covers a period between the last months before the Second
War and the tenor’s early LP disc LM 1771. There are eight 78
sides – four discs from 1939-40 – and the remainder of this
recital derives from that April 1952 LP. The long-ish gap did
see some inevitable deterioration in the freshness and immediacy
of vocal production and the later discs saw him revisiting a
few earlier sides so there is repertoire duplication. But what
may have been slightly lost with age in terms of beauty of sound
was compensated for in a deepening of emotive response. In interpretative
terms I tend to prefer the post-War sides whilst acknowledging
that in terms simply of sound Björling’s earlier self remains
non-pareil.
The
repertoire divides fairly evenly into Schubert, Strauss and
Scandinavian – with single examples of his Beethoven, Brahms,
Rachmaninov, Liszt and Wolf. The songs are essentially canonic
though his responses are never prosaic or intimidated. He’s
full of light, lyric ease in Strauss’s Morgen whilst
the voice deepens and darkens appropriately in Cäcilie -
though the admixture of pleading manliness is ever-present.
It made for a very apposite disc, the one side full of grace,
the reverse side needy and more urgent. We hear with his Adelaide those qualities of mezza voce,
floated with distinction, and intimacy that are so powerful
a component of the Björling vocal armoury. There is no doubting
the technique, nor the exquisite delicacy employed – though
as an interpretation one needs to note that it remains rather
neutral.
The
same is true of his Schubert; the singing is touching, warm,
yielding, and full of differing shades and colours – but it’s
arguable if Björling here ever quite gets to the interpretative
heart of the matter in these, of all, songs. The 1940 recording
of Sibelius strongly highlights the sibilants, sometimes to
distracting effect, but the performances are powerfully projected
and mature, especially Svarta rosor and the desolation
of the last bars of Säv, säv, susa. His
Grieg and Sibelius are of course high water marks of this, or
any, set but in the 1952 recordings we can hear a slight lack
of athleticism in Strauss’ Ständchen and in the re-make
of Morgen a rather heavier, less fresh tone. But he can
certainly fine down that tone, as he does in his classic reading
of Sjörberg’s Tonerna and there’s still plenty of steel
left for Schubert’s Die Allmacht in this stentorian reading.
There’s a hint of constriction in the voice in the Liszt and
the sound here is certainly not as freely produced as was the
case thirteen or so years earlier but as an example of a greater
harvest of emotive depth in the face of encroaching limitations
one can do no better than turn to Schubert’s Ständchen. The
losses in terms of tonal luminescence are richly compensated
for in respect of a greater depth of engagement, a more powerful
alignment with the truth and textual illumination of the lieder
singer’s art.
The
notes are fine and helpful. The transfers retain a degree of
surface noise and in the earlier 78s at least a trace of that
metallic quality that could afflict some vocal recordings if
not properly tamed. The LP transfer is good and in the main
you won’t be disappointed.
Jonathan
Woolf
see
also Review
by Göran Forsling
