Schubert Lieder Year by Year

CHOICE FOR THE CURIOUS, Terrific. Amazing value. (Classic FM)

Here is a most unusual collection of Schubert Lieder. Eighteen songs are arranged in chronological order, with one representative song selected from each year, beginning with Schubert’s earliest known song, Der Vatermörder, D 10, written in 1811 when he was 14, and ending with his last composed song, Die Taubenpost, D 965a, written in 1828, shortly before his death. If you’re wondering why there are 18 songs instead of 17—the number of years between 1811 and 1828, it’s because Die Taubenpost, which really is Schubert’s last known song, was arbitrarily tacked on to the end of the Schwanengesang collection, D 957, by its first publisher, Tobias Haslinger, and there it remains today in most modern performances. So, just to cover all bases, the current CD also gives us one other, slightly earlier, song from 1828, Der Winterabend. The highly informative booklet note omits one crucial detail. It doesn’t tells us who came up with the idea for this program, whether it was pianist Sholto Kynoch’s brainstorm or the joint vision of the seven singers that share the honors of presenting the songs. Whoever was responsible should be congratulated, for the individual songs chosen, even if you ignore the chronological theme, make for an exceptionally satisfying recital.Obviously, I can’t conclude this review without mentioning the excellent keyboard support afforded all seven singers by pianist Sholto Kynoch. Not only has he had to learn the accompaniments to these 18 songs, but his task is made all the more challenging by having to adjust his tone and touch to complement the unique vocal timbres of each of the vocalists. Credit, too, goes to Stone, for a bright, but not glaring, detailed recording. Strongly recommended. (Fanfare)

Mary Bevan’s soprano brings warm scents and breezes of spring to “Lob der Tränen” (1818) and the vernal tenor of James Gilchrist gives sweet, if slow, performances of “Frühlingsglaube” (1820) and “Im Frühling” (1826). Best of all is the cultivated, supple and stable tenor of Benjamin Hulett in “Abendstern” (1824). (BBC Music)

An interesting disc, with many good things in it. (International Records Review)