Reading the Fine Print – Miah Persson Singing Mahler

A few years back I was caught up in a Mahler craze (right before the opera craze took hold) and I listened to quite a few different recordings of each of the symphonies. I decided to check out a few today, and as I was scrolling through my iTunes library, I saw a Mahler 4^th and wondered, "hmmm, who might the soloist be?" Squinting, I read the name I love to see of the soprano I love to hear: Miah Persson!

I am always intrigued to hear what kind of soprano a conductor chooses for this movement. Maybe it’s whoever he/she can get, but I always hope that they choose a soloist for this song based on the sound of the voice and the soprano’s approach to the text.

Some sopranos sound a bit too grown up and worldly-wise for this text. I mean it’s a pretty ironic text, but I think the singer should sound a little child-like (maybe child-like with an edge) without actually sounding childish.

I think Miah Persson nailed it on this one. Listen and see (hear) if you agree.

For a contrasting  (more ominous) interpretation from another beloved (by me) soprano, check out this version with Dorothea Röschmann.

Monday Mahler with Christian Gerhaher (and a Little Mozart, too)

Too good to be true? Yes. Yes it is. The Berliner Philharmoniker never gives anything away, and so they fade out before the end of the song! But it's still worth posting and watching/listening. Plus it was time to turn the spotlight away from Matthias Goerne—briefly—to remind us how amazing Herr Gerhaher is.

I had to give up my annual Digital Concert Hall subscription, but there are programs that are worth paying a few bucks to see, one-at-a-time. (Including the Schumann Faust concert!) Or pay for a month, then stay home and watch non-stop to get the most for your Euro.

Meanwhile, today’s post was going to be my debrief of Saturday’s La Clemenza di Tito from Munich, but I am still mulling it over. I've had two good conversations with My Dad about it, and I am working on conclusions. 

In Memoriam Claudio Abaddo – Mahler Symphony #4

Mahler was just one of the composers whose music was touched by Claudio Abaddo's magic. This entire performance is wonderful! If you don't have time to listen to the whole symphony right now, jump to 47:33, where Magdalena Kožená joins in for the fourth movement. 

Mahler Symphony No 4 in G major

Claudio Abbado, the Lucerne Festival Orchesta

1.Bedächtig, nicht eilen (Moderately, not rushed)

2.In gemächlicher Bewegung, ohne Hast (Leisurely moving, without haste) 16:34

3.Ruhevoll, poco adagio (Peacefully, somewhat slowly) 26:07

4.Sehr behaglich (Very comfortably) 47:33

Watching the Radio – Gösta Winberg (and others) on Ö1 Radio

Apropos Musik on Ö1 Radio remembers Swedish tenor Gösta Winbergh just a week before what would have been his seventieth birthday, in a program called: Not just a Mozart Tenor – Gösta Winbergh.  This may come as a bit of a surprise for those of us who do think of this Swedish tenor primarily as a Mozart singer who dabbled in Wagner (notably Lohengrin). In between, he sang music of Donizetti, Bizet, and Puccini (!), to name a few others. Sadly, he died of a heart attack at the early age of 58, right after a Vienna performance of Fidelio. See! Singing Beethoven is hazardous to your health.

In this hour-long program, we get to hear him in arias from Fidelio, Carmen, Tosca, and of course, Die Zauberflöte. The program also includes duets from Die Entfürhung aus dem Serail* with Edita Gruberova, L'elisir d'amore with Barbara Bonney (BB’s Adina is another pleasant surprise!), and The Pearl Fishers.

Gratuitous Gerhaher Friday - Die Zwei Blaue Augen

Gerhaher Hair*

After posting the ASvO recording of this song from Mahler's Songs of a Wayfarer the other day, I thought about how Christian Gerhaher moves me to tears in this song. Of course, he's recorded it in three different versions: piano, Mahler's orchestral version, and Schoenberg's chamber ensemble version.

So I've been listening to all three, back to back to back. It's wonderful and wonderfully depressing. I decided that, for now, the chamber version is my favorite, both at the "Ade, Ade" (farewell) section (so mournful) and the Lindenbaum bit. And then the song trails off into silence. Ach, Mahler. Not a cheerful man, but his music can be so moving!

*Not to be confused with Haim Hair (it's similar, but not quite the same thing!)

More Mahler, Otterphile Style - Die zwei blauen Augen von meinem Schatz

ASvO sings Die zwei blauen Augen von meinem Schatz, the fourth song from Mahler's Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen. An outstanding and sensitive performance from 1997-ish, with surprisingly (to me) John Eliot Gardiner at the helm! (Sadly, audio-only)

Jonas Kaufmann's Drinking Song (Mahler)

I lost my U-toob account for posting this same performance! 

Just sayin'...

...at the same time, I am not sorry it's back! 

Gratuitous Friday – Christian Gerhaher Sings Mahler

Christian Gerhaher has recorded Mahler's Songs of a Wayfarer at least twice commercially: once in the original piano version with long-time accompanist Gerold Huber, and once in the Schoenberg transcription with the Hyperion Ensemble. He also has performed the song cycle numerous times with piano or orchestra. Here is a live performance with the Mahler Youth Orchestra.

Now, Herr Gerhaher has an album due out (I guess it is out in some parts of the world) with Kent Nagano and more of Mahler's orchestral songs, including of course, Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen. 

Even more exciting is his upcoming performance of the cycle this Sunday with the Berliner Philharmoniker at the Digital Concert Hall site. Herr Gerhaher will also participate in a performance of Janacek's Mass. It should be an exciting program.

Sunday Brunch – Dorothea Röschmann sings Mahler at the Salzburg Festival

So I just “discovered” Austria’s Ö1 webradio. They broadcast a good bit (if not all) of the Salzburg Summer Festival. I found this out while searching for a broadcast of Cosi fan tutte. Not only do they broadcast live, but they hold recordings in archive for a short period of time. 

This is how I got to hear DR singing the last movement of Mahler's 4th Symphony – exquisitely as always – from the Salzburg Festival. And now you can hear it, too. 

I don’t always think of a timbre like hers for this particular song. Often we hear a lighter, more child-like voice. (And sometimes, even an actual child, though that does not usually work as well.) However, she evokes both the innocence and the odd Mahlerian darkness of this little piece. Yet another example of Dorothea Röschmann’s exemplary vocal artistry. Enjoy!

You can hear Verdi's Giovanna d'Arco at Ö1, too. 

Gratuitous Gerhaher Post – Mahler's Songs of a Wayfarer

I have to admit that Christian Gerhaher does angry, stressed, and serious better than he projects carefree, cheerful, and happy. His happy comes across more as ironic. Maybe it's just these songs. Be that as it may, Herr Gerhaher is a thoughtful interpreter with a smooth voice. We are used to hearing him only with piano, but he does do a lot of orchestral concertizing. Coming up soon will be a review of his (somewhat cranky) Papageno in the M22 Zauberflöte with Diana Damrau, Rene Pape, and Genia Kühmeier. 

Oh, and the Mahler Youth Orchestra is a-ma-zing!

Part two is below.

Sunday Brunch – Christian Gerhaher Sings Mahler's Urlicht

Urlicht is the fourth movement of Gustav Mahler's Symphony no 2. It is a setting of a poem from Des Knaben Wunderhorn; the title means Primal Light or Primordial Light. 

It’s not often heard apart from the symphony, and almost never (this is my first time, anyway) sung by a baritone.

Christian Gerhaher gives us a reason to reconsider this practice.  It’s been said that Herr Gerhaher’s voice is unremarkable, but that his interpretations compare favorably with those of the great Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. I'm not sure I'd call it unremarkable—I find Gerhaher’s singing spellbinding.

Sunday Brunch – Kaufmann Sings Mahler

Enjoy this wonderful excerpt from Das Lied von der Erde on YT while you can. The BPO tends to have these posts pulled down quickly.

JK is so expressive (I know that is not news to RnR readers!) Maestro Abbado likes the performance, too. Check out the smile he gives JK at the end of the song.

A Heaping Helping of Thomas Hampson (With a Side of Mahler)

One of the more awesome things about the Internet is the opportunity to see and hear many great (and not so great) singers in performance. So many events that in the past were only available to a few people are now available to pretty much anyone who's interested enough to check it out.

Someone is Watching Me Watch Arleen Auger

Now don't feel paranoid...but we are being watched. It seems coincidental, but we know it's not. This video website knows I looked at some clips of Arleen Auger, and then checked out some Mahler Knaben Wunderhorn clips. Therefore, they suggested I watch this clip of Arleen Auger singing—you guessed it—Mahler. And what a fine suggestion it is.

It's a fun, wonderful, characterful performance. And it makes one a bit sad knowing that only a few short years later she died as a result of a brain tumor. Ms. Auger was only 53—still in her vocal prime. So here is a bit of Mahler, followed by Mozart, from the same recital. There are more clips over there from this same program. Ms. Auger's death was a big loss to the vocal world. We are fortunate to have so many recordings with which to remember her.

Sunday Brunch – Ruby Hughes Sings Richard Strauss (and Mahler)

Listen to this broadcast on the BBC 3 iPlayer as soon as you can (before they take it down!) British soprano Ruby Hughes and the BBC Philharmonic, conducted by Gianandrea Noseda present four songs by Richard Strauss: Freundliche Vision, Waldseligkeit, Befreit and Zueignung, which Strauss himself orchestrated. (Not the Four Last Songs as I first thought I read. I really need to learn to stop skimming!) 

Gratuitous Friday – Gerald Finley sings Mahler

Gerald Finley and Julius Drake from their recent Wigmore program.  

A Mahler gem from Des Knaben Wunderhorn.

Text and Translation below.

If player is not working, click here to listen.

More Digital Concert Hall – Mahler from von Otter, Kaufmann, and Abbado

I've extolled the Berliner Philharmoniker's Digital Concert Hall in other posts. It's a pay site; I'd rather be able to get these concerts on DVDs, but this service is so worth it! And this concert is one reason why:

Here is something to be thankful for: Anne Sofie von Otter and Jonas Kaufmann on stage with Claudio Abbado at the helm. What more could a fanboy ask for? This is a near-perfect performance of Das Lied von der Erde. We already know that ASvO loves singing Mahler, and JK has the perfect voice for it too. They are both consummate singer/actors, slash actor/singers. And Maestro Abbado achieves so much with relatively few podium dramatics. I love the visual feedback Maestro Abbado gives his singers. He clearly loves the human voice. Watch especially for the look he gives JK after the fifth song.

BPO Digital Concert Hall – Part 2: The One that's not about Opera or Regie

I talked about the Berliner Philharmoniker's Digital Concert Hall (DCH) in the last post, and I want to share two more gems that I found recently on the site. DCH is a subscription service of the Berliner Philharmoniker that provides access to live broadcasts in addition to an abundance of archived concerts.

You have to pay to see the concerts, but a lot of specials, interviews, and extras are free. I came across the site through Anne Sofie von Otter's (ASvO) Facebook page.