British audiences have become most used to seeing Simon Keenlyside
as an operatic baritone, so it is good indeed to be reminded
of his consummate skill as a lieder interpreter. Keenlyside
is no stranger to Schumann, having contributed a magnificent Kernerlieder to
Hyperion’s Schumann edition. His Dichterliebe takes
us on as great an emotional journey as you would expect from
this singer. The opening song suggests hope without
ever quite getting to its realisation, while Die Rose, Die
Lilie throbs with the anticipation of youthful ardour,
Keenlyside shading down his voice to suggest youth and impetuosity
as well as excitement. This then gives way to proud nobility
in Wenn ich in deine Augen seh’ as he find fulfilment
in his love - or so he thinks. The grandeur of Cologne is evoked
strikingly in Im Rhein, im heiligen Strome, before the
loss which hits instantly in Ich grolle nicht. His skill
in this song is to hint at wells of sorrow lying just below
the surface while still putting on a superficially care-free
expression to the rest of the world in Und wüβten’s
die Blumen. Am leuchtenden Sommermorgen suggests
gentle resignation, while the escapism of Aus alten Märchen
winkt es is lovely. The end of the cycle is utterly bleak
from the baritone, but Malcolm Martineau’s ever-sensitive
accompaniment plays out the final bars suggesting the possibility
of some redemption, however faint.
It’s harder to divine much purpose to the Brahms selection.
The songs are chosen from all across Brahms’ output so
there is obviously no narrative link, and there doesn’t
seem to be much of an emotional journey in them either, with
thoughtful, cheerful and sorrowful songs all appearing without
much rhyme or method. Musically speaking it remains very satisfying,
however. Highlights include the wonderful sense of yearning
and loss in An eine Äolsharfe, while the dark emotional
world of Nicht mehr zu dir zu gehen is wonderfully evocative
of a young man, head over heels with passion, who has no idea
whether his feelings are reciprocated. There is a wonderful
sense of peace to the sleepwalker of Nachtwandler, but
it is clearly a fragile peace, a hair’s breadth away
from the sorrow of the real world from which the sleeper is
sheltering. The setting of “Genesen” (released)
at the end of Auf dem Kirchhofe is marvellously appropriate,
and this of all the songs showcases the emotional world that
can be encompassed within three minutes. Abenddämmerung provides
a satisfying conclusion to the sequence, its accompaniment
suggesting both peace and restlessness at the same time.
Keenlyside’s ever-skilful vocal acting enables him to
inhabit the characters of each song to the hilt, though he
is tested by the high tessitura of the opening Brahms song.
His chest voice is resonant and compelling, providing emotional
power while remaining thoughtful at all times. Martineau’s
accompaniment is always entirely appropriate, illuminating
the nuances - and often the duality - of each song with intelligence
and sensitivity and often lending real grandeur to each setting,
such as in Verzagen. My only doubt is over the acoustic
which is rather too reverberant; the piano in particular sounds
distant and muddied, something the engineers should surely
have picked up on. After a while you can zone this out, though,
and you will enjoy a fine Lieder recital which, while it may
not say much that is new about either sequence, will reward
repeated listening.
Simon Thompson
Review index for Schumann's Dichterliebe
Simon Keenlyside (baritone) 
