Christian Gerhaher is one of the foremost
Lieder
singers of his generation and with a number of successful Schubert recordings
has probably taken over Fischer-Dieskau’s mantle. In March 2013
I attended a performance in Munich of the Britten
War Requiem
with the Chor und Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks under
Mariss Jansons. Gerhaher was one of the three soloists and although
English is not his first language, unlike the other two singers, he
stood out clearly and gave a quite superb account of himself.
All of Mahler’s
Lieder are high quality and a number are
masterworks of the genre. For this RCA Red Seal release Gerhaher has
selected twenty from four collections. The deeply committed Gerhaher
is in his element. He certainly makes a strong emotional connection
to the text and it feels as if he is actually living the words. With
superb diction, his firm, attractive voice takes on a golden timbre.
At certain points as in my favourite, the gloriously moving
Ich bin
der Welt abhanden gekommen when he reaches into his high register,
his voice sounds as if it is floating on air. In the opening song
Rheinlegendchen
we encounter cheery sentimentality and in
Ging heut morgen über's
Feld the joy of nature is unmistakable. The depth of grief that
Gerhaher conveys in
Die zwei blauen Augen is memorable and in
the wonderful love song
Um Mitternacht he delivers a powerful
intensity especially with the words
Hab' ich die Macht In deine Hand
gegeben! The magnificent melody and affectionate text to
Liebst
du um Schönheit is quite beautifully sung as is the powerful
emotional content of the final
Urlicht. Throughout Gerhaher receives
highly sympathetic support from pianist Gerold Huber - they make a sterling
team.
Those looking for other recommendable recordings of Mahler
Lieder
with piano might wish to obtain the 2006 Stoke D’Abernon accounts
from Christianne Stotijn (mezzo-soprano) and Julius Drake (piano) on
Onyx 4014; it’s the one I reach for first. Also there is Fischer-Dieskau
in five of
Des Knaben Wunderhorn Lieder with accompanist Karl
Engel from 1959 Berlin on Deutsche Grammophon ‘The Originals’
477 9375. This is coupled with the orchestral song-cycles
Lieder
eines fahrenden Gesellen,
Kindertotenlieder and four
Rückert
Lieder. Another admired pairing involves Angelika Kirchschlager
(mezzo-soprano) and Helmut Deutsch (piano) who have released two recordings
of Mahler
Lieder. Their first is from Eisenstadt in 1996 on Sony
SK 68344 (c/w Korngold, Alma Mahler
Lieder) and the second an
all-Mahler release from Raiding in 2009 on Quinton Q-1001-2.
For RCA Red Seal these two artists have been splendidly recorded. There
is an interesting essay by Gerhaher in the booklet and full texts with
English translations are provided.
Be aware: this is sheer enjoyment from start to finish. This disc deserves
the highest possible praise.
Michael Cookson
Track Listing
1. Rheinlegendchen [3:27]
2. Ich ging mit Lust [4:44]
3. Frühlingsmorgen [2:07]
4. Ablösung im Sommer [1:48]
5. Wer hat dies Liedlein erdacht? [2:10]
Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen:
6. I. Wenn mein Schatz Hochzeit macht [4:04]
7. II. Ging heut morgen über's Feld [4:25]
8. III. Ich hab' ein glühend Messer [3:24]
9. IV. Die zwei blauen Augen [5:23]
10. Zu Straßburg auf der Schanz [4:28]
11. Das irdische Leben [2:54]
12. Nicht wiedersehen [3:56]
13. Phantasie [2:35]
14. Wo die schönen Trompeten blasen [7:08]
Fünf Lieder nach Texten von Friedrich Rückert:
15. I. Blicke mir nicht in die Lieder [1:23]
16. II. Ich atmet' einen linden Duft [2:17]
17. III. Um Mitternacht
[6:26]
18. IV. Liebst du um Schönheit [2:05]
19. V. Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen [5:53]
20. Urlicht [5:15] Masterwork Index:
Rückert
Lieder
