Rued LANGGAARD (1893-1952)
Eight Songs – Emil Rittershaus (1908-13) [33:43]
Fünf Lieder (Five Songs) (1914) [09:57]
Fem erotiske digt (Five Erotic Poems) – Vilhem Krag (1915) [14:00]
Jens Krogsgaard (tenor); Jan Ole Christiansen (piano)
rec. H Herning Kongrescenter, Denmark, February 2016
DANACORD DACOCD771 [57:50]
Born in Copenhagen the son of Siegfried,
himself a composer and music teacher, Rued Langgaard does not conform to the
usual model of the twentieth century Nordic composer. Not for him the influence
of his fellow countrymen and national folklore. His main influences came from
central Europe and especially Germany. This influence can be clearly heard
in the eighteen songs presented on this disc, in which a leaning towards Richard
Strauss and Richard Wagner can be identified.
Langgaard composed 143 songs although only 65 were ever performed before his
death in 1952. Of the songs performed here the Eight Rittershaus
Songs are musically the most interesting. They have the more
complex vocal line and grander piano accompaniment. The booklet notes on these
songs do not seem to point to them being a cycle, rather just a collection
of songs by the one poet. This is in contrast to the other two sets which
are certainly designed to be performed as cycles. The Fünf Lieder
on texts by J. v. Eichendorff and H. Heine, are musically simple and concise
when compared to the Rittershaus Songs, and have a piano line that
suits the poems well. In the Fem erotiske digte
to texts by the Norwegian poet Vilhelm Krag, Langgaard varies his musical
style between the simple and the more complex in order to express the different
aspects of love and obsession. There are some interesting effects in these
songs with many being quite attractive.
For me the problem comes with the singer. I find Jens Krogsgaard to be at
the edge of his range. There are times when he almost sounds like a stretched
high baritone rather than a tenor. This is especially evident in the Eight
Rittershaus Songs where he employs too much vibrato with the effects
being unpleasing. He performs the tenor role in the Dacapo recording of Langgaard’s
Sinfonia interna (8.224136)
where his voice is much better, and I am glad to say that in the Fünf
Lieder and the Fem erotiske digte his voice is more secure and
at times suits the music well. Jan Ole Christiansen proves himself an excellent
pianist and a thoughtful accompanist.
Stuart Sillitoe
Previous review: John
France
Track Listing
[1] Für Dich [2:58]
[2] Sie Schläft [4:07]
[3] Die Sonne meines Lebens [2:44]
[4] Das Auge [3:53]
[5] Sterben [6:12]
[6] Frühlingsnacht [8:45]
[7] Halte still [2:36]
[8] Mit Hellen Augen [2:38]
Fünf Lieder
[9] Frühlingsgruss (J. v. Eichendorff) [0:59]
[10] Morgendämmerung (J. v. Eichendorff) [2:45]
[11] Was ist mir denn so wehe? (J. v. Eichendorff) [2:16]
[12] Ich weiss einen grossen Garten (J. v. Eichendorff) [1:05]
[13] Ein Fichtenbaum (H. Heine) [2:52]
Fem erotiske digte (5 Erotic Poems) - Vilhelm Krag
[14] Og atter ser jeg (Once again, I see) [2:05]
[15] Naar du kommer (When you arrive) [2:12]
[16] Lys nat (Bright night) [2:50]
[17] Serenade (Serenade) [3:20]
[18] I de forunderlige, blonde nætter (In the wondrous, blond nights) [3:33]
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