It seems to be an almost impossible task to choose from Ives’s
two hundred, or so, songs in order to make a satisfactory and
satisfying recital on disk. Do you choose the early, easier textured,
songs, which are interesting but leave you wanting less, or do
you go for the later, big philosophical songs, which, after two
or three, leave you drained? Most singers choose a selection of
both, hoping that when the programme order is decided it will
make a good recital. This is a very good collection of songs,
taken from the whole of Ives’ career, ranging from delicate and
intimate settings – Two Little Flowers – to the great thoughts
of Life, Love, Liberty and the American Way – The Things our
Fathers Loved (and the greatest of these was Liberty).
Over
the years I’ve collected many anthology LPs and CDs of Ives’
songs. Although most are by male singers a few female voices
have presented this music – most notably Jan DeGaetani, Evelyn Lear and the incomparable
Marni Nixon – all with varying degrees of success. That Susan
Narucki doesn’t quite succeed in every song isn’t a criticism
of her, for she is an admirable interpreter of this music. It’s
just that a lot of Ives’ songs are so obviously written from
a man’s point of view, and are obviously men’s songs. The lighter
female voice simply cannot carry the music. Thus, a song such
as the astonishing General William Booth enters into Heaven
loses a lot of its power, and insanity when sung in the treble
clef! And, make no mistake, hysteria and insanity seem to pervade
this music which, surely, Ives wrote with his tongue very firmly
in his cheek whereas Vachel Lindsay wrote his poem with a very
straight face. However, here Narucki gives a really well focused
performance of the less manic sections. I especially loved her
way with the word shriek! That said, the wilder portions
are too tame, and I am afraid that her pianist seems less happy
here than elsewhere. The best recording of this song I’ve ever
heard, and, I suspect, the one nearest to Ives’ idea of the
piece is by the great Donald Gramm,
in a 2 LP set of American songs (Desto 6411/6412). There he
uses every vocal device known to singers - from Sprechstimme
to shouting, screaming and even singing. His accompanist fully
enters into the spirit of the interpretation. His is a phenomenal
account.
Narucki
starts well with the gentlest, most moving, account of Songs
my Mother Taught Me. It’s followed by a superb Tom Sails
Away. She sings The Greatest Man as it should be,
with a childlike wonder – because the greatest man is her dad!
Down East is a song where the words are trying to catch
a memory. Here Narucki is in her element, thoughtful and discreet,
with a subtle accompaniment from Berman. Ann Street is
a short song about a short street (width of same, Ten feet)
yet it contains some of Ives’s most unusual things! Swimmers
is a vast seascape and an exhausting sing despite its brevity.
It receives a fabulously unbuttoned performance.
The
main point about this disk is that there are many good things
in it. Even though there are some failures that’s also true
of some of the single discs of Ives songs by Fischer–Dieskau
and many others. The burning question is: ‘Is this disk worth
having?’ I have to say ‘yes’ because Narucki is a very musical
singer who does have original ideas as to how this music should
be performed.
The
accompanying booklet contains a very interesting, long, essay
on the composer by the performers and there are full texts and
translations. The recorded sound is clear and shows a good relation
between the two performers. This is certainly a satisfying addition
to any collection of the recorded Ives.
Bob
Briggs
