1.
Sret’ shumnava bala (At the ball) Op. 38 No. 3 [2:33]
2.
Net, tol’ka tot, kto znal (None but the lonely heart)
OP. 6 No. 6 [3:30]
3.
Kak nad garjacheju zaloj (Over burning ashes) Op.
25 No. 2 [1:47]
4.
Moj genij, moj angel, moj druk! (My genius, my angel,
my friend!) [1:55]
5.
Kolybel’naja pesnja (Lullaby) Op. 16 No. 1 [3:18]
6.
Primiren’je (Reconciliation) Op. 25 No. 1 [5:17]
7.
Zakatilas’ sontse (The sun has set) Op. 73 No. 4 [1:41]
8.
Strashnaja minuta (The fearful moment) Op. 28 No.
6 [3:35]
9.
Nam zvjozdy krotkije sijali (Mild stars looked down)
Op. 60 No. 12 [3:26]
10.
Kaby znala ja (Had I only known) Op. 49 No. 1 [4:00]
11.
Uzh gasli f komnatakh agni (The lights were being
dimmed) Op. 63 No. 5 [2:46]
12.
Ni slova, a druk moj (Not a word, my friend) Op.
6 No. 2 [3:06]
13.
Atchevo? (Why?) Op. 6 No. 5 [2:56]
14.
Ja li f pole da ne travushka byla (The bride’s lament)
Op. 47 No. 7 [5:47]
15.
Pesn’ Cyganki (The gypsy song) Op. 60 No. 7 [2:39]
16.
Ne ver’, moj druk (Do not believe, my friend) Op.
6 No. 1 [3:57]
17.
To byla ranneju vesnoj (It was in early spring) Op.
38 No. 2 [2:38]
18.
Kukushka (Cuckoo) Op. 54 No. 8 [2:31]
19.
Den’li tsarit (Can it be day?) Op. 47 No. 6 [3:19]
20.
Snova, kak prezhde, adin (Again, as before, alone)
Op. 73 No. 6 [2:15]
Last year reviewed the two latest instalments
in the Naxos series of the complete Tchaikovsky songs. I was
seriously disappointed. So it’s a great pleasure to receive
this disc as a corrective. And not just as a corrective, since
this is in fact the best disc with Tchaikovsky’s songs since
Elisabeth Söderström’s collaboration with Vladimir Ashkenazy
more than twenty-five years ago. They produced quite a number
of memorable recordings, including also a substantial helping
of Rachmaninov songs, which also have to be regarded as benchmark
versions. Tchaikovsky’s songs have seen one or two comparable
recordings, one of the most recommendable is a Hyperion disc
with Joan Rodgers. I gather that CD is being reissued in the
Helios series. Whatever the merits of that issue, of which
I have heard only a couple of excerpts, it would have to be
very good indeed to challenge the present disc with Christianne
Stotijn. Though her Russian seems impeccable to my non-Slavonic
ears she is Dutch. I have had reason to praise her on a couple
of previous occasions, most substantially her Mahler recital
that arrived a little over a year ago (review).
The largely melancholy world of Tchaikovsky
seems to suit Ms Stotijn to perfection. She radiates warmth
and has beautiful tone. Her quick vibrato, which is perfectly
controlled, adds personality. Moreover, and this is most important
for a singer of romances, her phrasing is unerringly musical
and sensitive. She opens the recital with two of the most
well-known Tchaikovsky songs. In At the ball all the
aforementioned characteristics are in clear evidence. None
but the lonely heart, sung and recorded by almost every
singer of some importance – and not only by artists in the
classical trade – is even better. Julius Drake’s superb introduction
is in itself almost worth the price of the disc. Stotijn is
wonderfully inward and concentrated. I can’t remember hearing
a finer reading ever.
The positive impressions of these two songs
remain throughout the programme and are even enhanced. Drake
is certainly one of today’s foremost accompanists, flexible
and sensitive. His playing in the dramatic and intense Over
burning ashes is magnificent. He is a pillar of strength
throughout the disc. Regarding Christianne Stotijn, her real
strength is that she neither sentimentalizes the songs nor
invests them with more dramatic gestures than they can hold.
After all these songs – at least most of them – are lyrical
miniatures and actually grow in stature when sung inwardly.
Some of the most ravishing examples of this aspect are the
intimate My genius, my angel, my friend and Lullaby.
Especially in the latter it is remarkable how skilfully Stotijn
lightens her rather voluminous voice and caresses the melody
with beautiful pianissimo singing. At the other end of the
spectrum is Had I only known: intense, emotionally
charged and still subtly nuanced. This is the song I will
return to most often in the future but I am sure I will be
tempted to play the rest of the recital as well, once I have
started listening. In a more light-hearted mood Cuckoo,
one of Elisabeth Söderström’s favourite songs, is another
real hit.
With this disc Christianne Stotijn takes a
big leap from ‘utterly promising’ to ‘near the top of the
trade’. I will be eagerly awaiting her future excursions in
the song literature – why not a sequel to this one? There
are enough gems among Tchaikovsky’s songs to fill a volume
two. In the meantime the present disc should be savoured by
all lovers of good song interpretation.
Göran Forsling
Christianne Stotijn
(mezzo); Julius Drake (piano) 
