Hyperion has just launched
their planned complete edition of the
songs of Richard Strauss with a magisterial
recital by Christine Brewer (CDA67488).
However excellent that new disc may
be I do hope that neither it nor the
mouth-watering prospect of an intégrale
of Strauss lieder will divert
attention from the welcome return to
the lists of this earlier recital. Unaccountably,
I missed this CD first time round but
I’m delighted to have made amends now.
Miss McLaughlin does
not have the refulgent voice that Miss
Brewer possesses, nor does she have
a similar vocal heft. However, her singing
gives pleasure throughout this anthology
and the programme has been well chosen
to play to her own not inconsiderable
vocal strengths.
Her selection includes
some of Strauss’s earliest songs. Eight
of them were composed in or before 1878.
These juvenilia have a certain charm
but, quite frankly, they are slight
pieces beside some of the better-known
songs. The placing of a song such as
Abend- und Morgenrot between
Allerseelen and the darkly glowing
Ruhe, meine Seele just emphasises
the point. I must also say that I regret
that the wonderful Wiegenlied
Op. 41, No. 1 is not included for I’m
sure it would have suited Miss McLaughlin’s
voice. The 1878 song bearing the same
title, but setting a completely different
poem, is a poor substitute.
However, the juvenilia
are all very well performed and there
are many other delights to savour. I’ve
already mentioned Allerseelen
and Ruhe, meine Seele. In the
former Miss McLaughlin spins a lovely,
sustained line and she brings the song
to an ecstatic climax. The latter is
splendidly poised and controlled. She
gives us a gently rapt reading of Leises
Lied and she conveys the joyfulness
of Wie sollten wir geheim sie halten
very effectively.
In goldener Fülle
is another extrovert song and here both
singer and pianist combine to give an
energetic and buoyant performance. It’s
about time I mentioned Graham Johnson
for, as ever, he is
Marie McLaughlin (soprano); Graham Johnson
(piano)