Customer Reviews

Mozart: Lieder & Concert Arias ~ Schwarzkopf

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This album is certainly worth adding to one's personal collection. Schwarzkopf's voice is simply gorgeous. My personal favorites were Ridente la calma,Abendempfindung an Laura, and Im Frühlingsanfang ("Erwacht zum neuen Leben", Vado, ma dove? It is worth listening to again and again.

Schwarzkopf has got one of the most beautiful voice of the century. Almost all great musicians of her time flocked to accompany her either on the piano or with an orchestra. They included not only Geiseking here, but also Edwin Fischer and Furtwanglar just to name a few, and Glenn Gould admired her voice most amongst all classical singers.

Mozart is the biggest genius in the history of music; and Mozart's greatest achievement are his operas with all those beautiful and melodious bitter-sweet arias. Here with this CD with Schwarzkopf in her best, you will be introduced to one of the most beautiful peaks of the art of singing in human history.

Schubert's lieders are deservingly popular. But the more you listen to Mozart's lieders and arias like those on this CD, the more you will incline to think that the main reason why Schubert become more popular is, Mozart's arias, albeit more pleasing to the ears and soothing to our souls, are technically much more demanding, structurally or otherwise so that few singers could render them as perfect as Schwarzkopf.

The recorded sound of this CD is almost as perfect as any modern recording. For the piano accompaniment, however, all except one were by Geiseking, one of the few greatest German pianists who also excelled in Debussy. He enjoyed in his life time and thereafter such a big name (so much that even Martha Argerich desired and actually took lessons with him )! Yet unless you're really attracted to his playing, his role as an accompanist is really no more intriguing than Gerald Moore or even Parons. Needless to say, Brendel by then still under the wings of Edwin Fischer was in comparison to Geiseking, no more than a new boy. He was nevertheless shining here. It is also noteworthy that most of the arias here were recorded by Schwarzkopf in her very prime. In a nutshell, one can't expect more of this CD.

In her prime, which ran roughly from 1952 to 1967, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was the most acclaimed lieder singer in the world, only surpassed perhaps by Fischer-Dieskau. This historical reissue combines one of her most famous recordings, 16 Mozart songs accompanied by the great Walter Gieseking. The recording hasn't been out of EMI's catalog since the early Fifties, and here it reappears in an excellent remastering of the original mono sound that is lifelike and only a bit boxy.

The second half of the recital comes from 1967, a set of Mozart concert arias that ES made with George Szell as a follow-up to their bestselling Strauss Four Last Songs; there would also be a recording of Mahler's Des Knaben Wunderhorn songs with Fischer-Dieskau that I am not so fond of. In any event, Schwarzkopf didn't retain quite enough voice to throw herself into these arias, but her innate musicality and the fact that Mozart lay perfectly on her voice makes up for any flaws here--just don't expect the young Kiri Te Kanawa. The obbligato piano part in K. 505 is played by Alfred Brendel, who remains a bit cautious, as does Szell, no doubt in deference to Schwarzkopf.

In all, the incomparable Mozart songs should be considered the main attraction, while the concert arias are a souvenir bonus for those of us who cherished Schwarzkopf as an indispensable artist.

This is a great recording to have. Mozart lieder and arias are always beautiful and her singing -so clear and beautiful- makes them even more delightful. A must have!

Schwarzkopf never really learned to sing. She applies what always sounds like an untrained voice to music that she simply doesn't have the ability to sing in any complete manner. This remains true on this series of recordings in several languages which might as well all be German. She scoops, she employs straight tone, she approaches high notes as if she is trying to jump through a hoop held a little too high. When she allows her vibrato to appear on a held note her pitch sags. When she tries straight tone instead, her pitch swings sharp.

Schwarzkopf always sounds like the best singer in a local choral group who has learned enough vocal tricks to convince amateurs that she is a real diva. Her entire career is a testament to the gullibility of the general public. There are plenty of Mozart aria and lieder collections available . Listen to "Ridente la calma" by Lucia Popp or Barbara Bonney (clips available on this website) and then listen to Schwarzkopf again and you can readily hear what I am saying.