RCA Victor 61225
Orfeo C 224 031 A
I have been deeply engrossed latey in the lieder/songs of Robert Schumann. These mostly involve recordings made by bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff who recently announced his retirement from the concert stage (aged 52) because of illness. Among his outstanding recordings on the German RCA label is the Dichterliebe cycle and the Liederkreis cycle (Op. 39 after texts by Eichendorff). Other songs on this disc [61225], released in 1993 and now out-of-print, are the five Romances and Ballades III, Op. 53, three of which are called Der arme Peter, I, II, and III, all of which are ingenious. But then there is the brief, single-opused work called Belsatzar. Here's what one reviewer has to say about this piece, one you rarely hear in concert:
The piece, composed in a single day, so pleased its composer that he submitted it to his publisher as an independent opus (numbered 57). The song sets Heine's retelling of the story of Belshazzar's feast, beginning near midnight in the quiet streets of Babylon, then moving to the rowdy chambers where the king is found making merry with his court. The dancing of the lords and clashes of the goblets find musical representation in Schumann's busy, boisterous figuration. Finally, the king utters outright blasphemies against Jehovah, creating an uncomfortable stillness in the room. It becomes apparent that Schumann's setting has been rendering the sonic environment of the room, for as the hush falls over the court, the music becomes unnervingly sparse. As the divine hand appears and scrawls cryptic and holy pronouncements against the king, the bass line moves through a creepy chromatic descent. Finally Schumann's silences become his most effective pictorial device, foretelling Belshazzar's imminent death. ~ Jeremy Grimshaw, Rovi
Quasthoff and his piano partner, Roberto Szidon, give us a most memorable and mentally poignant and impressionable account of Heinrich Heine's text in Belsatzar. If you go searching, you will find that a number of recordings have been made of this particular lied, but I haven't found any more thrilling than that rendered by Herr Quasthoff. (Yes, those by the venerable Fischer-Dieskau are also outstanding.) While tenors and sopranos have committed the song to disc, it seems to me it is best suited for a bass or baritone for the greatest effect.
Funny, I've been listening to Schumann's lieder for ages and for some reason, the Quasthoff just put the piece on a new, higher plane for me.
Interestingly, in collecting some of the more rare recordings of German tenor Peter Seiffert, whom I mention on another thread dedicated solely to his name, I recently heard the Orfeo [224 031] recording of Schumann duets and lieder sung by him and his wife, soprano Petra-Maria Schnitzer with the excellent pianist, Charles Spencer, issued in 2003. Schumann's Four Duets for Soprano and Tenor, Op. 34, are also unknown examples of Schumann's lied talent. The four songs are based on poetry by Robert Reinick (1), Robert Burns (2,3), and Anastasius Grün (4). It is particularly the two Burns songs that make one immediately take note of this group given the quality of voice over piano combination allowing both to contribute totally to the expression/meaning of each song. More and more, people seem to be realizing or are made aware that the piano plays a major part in supporting the vocal line ... it's exactly half the performance with the vocal divas not taking 100% credit for the reading. (Gerald Moore was always right about this!)
If you haven't heard Belsatzr (Belshazzar) or these four vocal duets, spice up your life somewhat, musically, and enjoy these magnificent musical inventions/treasures!
