A (Literally) Cool Concept – Winterreise Winterized

I just saw this written up over at the Barihunks^® blog. Baritone Christopher Herbert has come up with an interactive, wintry way to present Schubert’s mammoth song cycle. You can read more about Chris' project at Barihunks^®. 

Except for the part about standing about in the cold, I'd love to attend one of these performances. 

Meanwhile, Streaming on Concert.Arte.TV

Natalie Dessay sings Michel Legrand; quite nicely, if you like this sort of thing (I do.)



Matthias Goerne's Winterreise rides again (till the end of February).



And, of course, there's Tito, Sesto, Vitellia, and the whole crazy gang.

Die Winterreise im Sommer – Daniel Behle and the Oliver Schnyder Trio

In honor of this Daniel Behle Winterreise post hitting the top 10 this month (even though it was originally posted nearly a year ago), here is the video of the live performance associated with that rehearsal clip.

I noted last September that it must have been strange singing this chilly cycle in the heat of an Austrian summer. We notice that Herr Behle takes off his jacket early in the program. Will he take anything else off? (He doesn't, but it did make you stop and wonder for a second, didn't it?)

Staged Performance of Die Winterreise with Matthias Goerne

I just took a 90-minute break from my total-Orfeo-immersion week to watch Schubert's Die Winterreise live from the Aix-en-Provence Festival on medici.tv. The cycle is performed by Matthias Goerne and Markus Hinterhäuser, and directed for stage by William Kentridge. Herr Goerne is always worth hearing (and watching). He proves once again that he is a consummate vocal artist; and with the addition of the video animation backdrop and moody lighting, his performance is particularly moving. Some of the images struck me as a little naive, but overall I thought the production was quite effective.

As I type this, Medici is regrouping for the on-demand replays, which you can probably access in the next few hours. It’ll only be available in the U.S. until July 23; they say it’ll be back November 11, but I am guessing that it’ll be for pay-for-play at that point. If you’re in Europe, I think you can continue to watch it throughout the summer. Wherever you are, do take the time to give this performance a watch/listen. 

Kaufmann – Winterreise: The Recording & Werther: The Lost Audio

Those who were able to see the Live in HD broadcast of Massenet's Werther on Saturday witnessed the technical difficulty the Met experienced and missed the audio for a chunk of the finale. (Those of us listening to the radio broadcast at home heard the whole opera, but of course didn't get to see any of it.)

By way of apology, the Met posted the final scene from Saturday's broadcast. Thanks to Intermezzo for sharing this link. (This is why I keep up with other people's blogs.)

The BBC Radio 3 will be airing Saturday's radio broadcast on Monday afternoon (March 17) at 2 PM London time (6 PM U.S. Eastern time). 

Jonas Kaufmann was interviewed on the radio last week about his Met Werther, his brand new Winterreise recording, and live opera on video. (Sorry for the email chime in the middle of the Schubert song.)

Winterreise Preview – New Release from Jonas Kaufmann

I don't normally condone pirating music that one can actually purchase commercially, but in this case, it's not yet available in the U.S. So... here are some clips from JK's new recording of Die Winterreise. 

Save up your Deutschmarks, Francs, Pounds, or bucks, because the official U.S. release date is April 1!

Winter Release of Jonas Kaufmann's Winterreise

From the Blurb @ JK's official website:

After over 20 years of working together and countless performances of Winterreise, Jonas Kaufmann and his piano-partner Helmut Deutsch finally commit the Olympus of the Lied repertoire to disc. 

Jonas Kaufmann says about the work: “Against the background of all the horror stories that bombard us today, we are undoubtedly rather more hardened than Schubert’s contemporaries and yet even today’s listeners can still find this cycle affecting. Even as interpreters we always find ourselves sucked into the emotional undertow of these songs, although we know perfectly well what to expect. I think that Winterreise has the same sort of cathartic effect as a Greek drama: the emotional experience purges the soul. The work has an almost meditative effect on me, because Schubert expressed these emotional depths with a clarity and a simplicity that I ultimately find consoling and that allows me to regain my own inner balance.”

Die Winterreise will be released (in the US) on February 25 April 1, 2014.

Meanwhile, I also learned—courtesy of a lovely blog called Salazar's Opera Family Circle—about several upcoming DVD releases featuring JK (hooray!):

• Ariadne auf Naxos from the Wiener Staatsoper
• Don Carlo, also from the Wiener Staatsoper
• Parsifal aus Der Met 

There goes my February and March lunch money!

Another Vest-Pocket Concert – Kaufmann's Spring Winterreise

Jonas Kaufmann performed Schubert's Die Winterreise last spring in Vienna (Audio Only—in amazing audience surround sound—koff koff). But, we get to hear it, and that's what counts! Thank you, intrepid vest-pocket bootlegger vocal music fan!

Sunday Brunch – Daniel Behle and the Oliver Schnyder Trio

Here are two songs from Schubert's Die Winterreise, concluding the recording sessions by Daniel Behle (recently seen as Don Ottavio in that Paris Don Giovanni) and the Oliver Schnyder Trio on June 17, 2013: "Erstarrung" and "Rückblick" in Daniel Behle's own transcription for tenor and piano trio. They performed this live over the summer, and the recording is due out in November.