Gratuitous Friday – Jonas Kaufmann sings Wesendonck

So here is this song cycle for female voice and piano, sung by a tenor with full orchestra. Wagner composed this cycle while he was working on Tristan und Isolde, and referred to the third song, Im Treibhaus (In the Hothouse), as a study for the opera. This song has musical material that was later developed into the Prelude to Act 3 of Tristan.

There are more than a few acclaimed recordings by mezzos and dramatic sopranos (Christa Ludwig and Jessye Norman, to name two.) Though the poetry is by a woman, the texts are not gender-specific. A few tenors have performed individual songs but rarely has any tenor performed the full cycle. 

Herr Kaufmann is surely the best tenor to make a case for this combination. His artistry, word coloring, tenderness, strength, and vocal shading are all well-known, so I will not rhapsodize, but rather urge you to listen right away.

This album also contains Wagner’s original version of Im fernen Land. It's such a gift to hear this full aria so beautifully sung. The extra verse is beautiful and works in more narrative, and musical themes from Act 1: Elsa's dream, Lohengrin's arrival, his "don't ask, don't tell" theme, etc. 

But one can see why Wagner cut it, as it's a bit anticlimactic after he sings "I'm Lohengrin!" and it definitely would slow down the drama. That’s why we are so fortunate to get to hear this “in concert” where the drama is still dramatic, but we haven’t been sitting for five hours already!

This is a wonderful preview of Jonas Kaufmann's new Wagner album. Go buy it now!