The Swedish soprano Miah Persson, who
graduated from the University College
of Opera in Stockholm in 1999 has had
a busy international career the last
few years. This summer (2006) she made
her highly successful debut at the Glyndebourne
Festival, singing Fiordiligi in Così
fan tutte, a role which is also
represented on this disc. A couple of
years ago Hyperion released a disc with
Swedish songs, Soul and Landscape
(CDA67329 - see review)
which was greeted with enthusiasm by
the critics and is one of the freshest
collections of this repertoire ever
recorded.
Freshness is also the first noun that
pops up when hearing the first few notes
of the aria Schön lacht der holde
Frühling, intended for Mozart’s
sister-in-law, Josepha Hofer, who was
the first Queen of the Night. The voice
is bright, crystal clear, lithe and
she negotiates the coloratura effortlessly.
“Spring in its beauty is already smiling”
reads the opening line of the aria and
that’s exactly the impression conveyed
by Miah’s voice. And when she comes
to the slow middle section of this tripartite
aria, where she sits and weeps for the
shepherd Lindor, she colours the voice
accordingly. The long scena Ch’io
mi scordi di te?, written for Nancy
Storace, requires dramatic singing to
express all the contrasting emotions
and though the voice is light and slim
she also has enough power in store.
Here Yevgeny Sudbin plays the piano
obbligato with great elegance.
The aria from Mitridate, a long
farewell, written for a castrato, shows
her fine trill. This piece is in effect
a duet since the French horn, exquisitely
played by Bengt Olerås, is just as important
as the soprano. The two voices blend
well and are ideally balanced. Nehmt
meinen Dank, written for his other
sister-in-law-to-be, Aloysia Lange,
is a lovely aria, as is the short, dancing,
joyous aria for Susanna in Le nozze
di Figaro, composed for a Vienna
performance in 1789. Un moto di gioia
(A surge of joy) is also a fitting title
for this whole collection. The real
Susanna aria, Deh vieni non tardar,
performed here complete with the recitative
Giunse alfin il momento - although
the track-list doesn’t say so - suits
Miah Persson to perfection. She makes
a lovely Susanna, as visitors to Covent
Garden last season already know. A natural
Susanna, one wouldn’t believe her to
be “big” enough for Fiordiligi, but
actually she adopts a fuller rounder
voice for this taxing aria. She colours
it with broad brush strokes, having
enough power even in the lowest register.
She makes for a younger-sounding Fiordiligi
than we are used to, but that is not
in the least unbecoming.
Zaide, a kind of blueprint for
Die Entführung aus dem Serail,
was never finished but Ruhe sanft
has been frequently performed and recorded.
This most enchanting of Mozart arias
is here given an ethereal reading where
Persson swings herself effortlessly
up in the higher regions like a lark
ascending. The concluding Exultate,
jubilate, another castrato piece,
has been recorded possibly hundreds
of times. I still treasure a recording
from the 1950s with Mattiwilda Dobbs
but Miah Persson has nothing to fear
from comparisons even with this benchmark
version. She is suitably agile and jubilant
in the opening allegro and sings the
andante Tu virginum corona warmly
and simply. She then proceeds to toss
off the fast runs of the Alleluja
with great confidence.
With atmospheric surround sound, orchestral
playing in the first division, a model
booklet including the sung texts - please,
some other companies, take note! - the
singing of one of the best young lyric
sopranos of the day, this disc has all
the attributes to make it a valuable
addition to any vocal collection.
Göran Forsling
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Miah Persson
(soprano), 
[63:36] 
