Insomnia - A Nocturnal Voyage in Song
see end of review for track listing
William Berger (baritone); Iain Burnside (piano)
rec. Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, 13-14 February 2012. DDD
Original texts and English translations included
DELPHIAN DCD34116 [55:42]
To the best of my recollection I’ve not previously heard the baritone
William Berger and this may be his solo debut disc. However, you’ll
find him as one of the soloists on Ludus Baroque’s 2010 recording of
Handel’s Alexander’s Feast (review).
This present disc preserves a recital programme that he devised for the 2011
Lucerne Festival. As Richard Stokes tells us in his excellent notes, the programme
describes “a sleepless night experienced by a man who reflects on his
love for an unnamed woman.” As Stokes comments, it’s never made
clear whether the woman in question is alive, dead - or only exists in the
man’s dreams. The programme, laced with good helpings of Fauré
and Wolf - and none the worse for that - is imaginatively and discerningly
put together. The songs are grouped round various times in the evening and
night, which I’ve deliberately included in the track-listing.
Berger impresses from the outset with a firm, well focused baritone. He sets
his stall out in Mozart’s Abendempfindung, which he delivers
with a lovely, easy legato. The voice is evenly produced throughout its compass;
diction is clear; the texts are put across with intelligence and understanding;
and the tone is warm and unforced. In a sense I could leave it there since
these prove to be the hallmarks of Berger’s singing throughout the programme.
To do so, however, would be unfair, not least to the singer, whose performances
I greatly enjoyed.
He proves to be very good in Fauré. His vocal timbre sounds authentically
Gallic in Claire de lune and I also enjoyed his performance
of Mandoline very much. He also impresses in English song. He is able
to produce, in Richard Stokes’ phrase, the necessary “peerless
legato” in Warlock’s atmospheric song and I was delighted to find
him selecting pieces by Vaughan Williams and Richard Rodney Bennett that aren’t
exactly common currency in the recital room. On this evidence I’d very
much like to hear him again in English song.
Hugo Wolf’s hypnotic Um Mitternacht is very well done. Berger
and Burnside convey the brooding ambience and this is one of many items in
which Berger’s legato and fine sense of line pay dividends. Oh! quand
je dors is a delight. Berger deploys a wonderful mezza voce at
times, such as the end of the second stanza and the last line of all, hushed
and intense, is most sensitively done. Morgen! seems to have been appropriated
by female singers but there’s absolutely no reason why a man shouldn’t
sing it. Berger excels here, giving a rapt performance; the wonderfully withdrawn
delivery of the last line is particularly admirable.
Iain Burnside is a fine accompanist, adept at switching from one style to
another and supporting his singer admirably yet not to the detriment of his
own musical personality. Only once did I have any doubts. His playing seems
rather forceful in Schubert’s Auf der Bruck. Of course, there
must be urgency but Burnside seems a bit forceful and the tone hardens as
a result. To find a quick comparison I took down the 1994 Schubert recital
disc by Bryn Terfel and Malcolm Martineau (DG). It seems to me that Martineau’s
playing, while urgent, is not as driven as Burnside’s - or maybe the
piano was recorded with a bit more distance by DG. In the interests of balance,
however, I should say that I preferred the pacing in this Berger/Burnside
recording: they are slightly more measured - though by no means slow - and
by comparison Terfel and Martineau sound a bit rushed.
This is a fine recital, which I enjoyed very much. Careful thought has gone
into the programme building and the execution of the programme is consistently
excellent. The recorded sound is up to Delphian’s usual high standards,
as is the documentation though I am disappointed that most of the English
translations are printed below the original texts: a side-by-side presentation
is much easier to follow. The playing time may seem on the short side but
on this occasion I think one can overlook this since the disc preserves the
integrity of the original recital programme. In any case, this is an instance
where quality is much more important than quality.
This is a distinguished and enjoyable recital. More please!
John Quinn
A distinguished and enjoyable recital.
see also review by Simon
Thompson
Track listing
Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1756-1791)
Abendempfindung [4:57]
Claude DEBUSSY (1862-1918)
Nuit d’étoiles [3:02]
Maurice RAVEL (1875-1937)
Le grillon [3:07]
Gabriel FAURÉ (1845-1924)
Claire de lune [3:11]
Peter WARLOCK (1894-1930)
The Night [2:00]
Ralph VAUGHAN WILLIAMS (1872-1958)
Tired [2:31]
Richard Rodney BENNETT (b. 1936)
Dream-Song [2:26]
Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828)
Auf der Bruck [3:39]
Hugo WOLF (1860-1903)
Um Mitternacht [4:18]
Schon streckt’ ich aus im Bett [1:51]
Gabriel FAURÉ
Mandoline [1:56]
Sérénade toscane [2:50]
Hugo WOLF
Nicht länger kann ich singen [1:22]
Raymond YIU (b. 1973)
Sonnet (2011) [3:35]
Franz LISZT (1811-1886)
Oh! quand je dors [4:48]
Hugo WOLF
Und steht Ihr früh am Morgen auf [2:55]
Richard STRAUSS (1864-1949)
Morgen! [3:58]
Encores
Clara SCHUMANN (1819-1896)
Der Mond kommt still gegangen [2:04]
Charles GOUNOD (1818-1893)
Viens! Les gazons sont verts! [1:12]