Portrait of Susan Graham

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Composer), George Frederick Handel (Composer), Ned Rorem (Composer), Hector Berlioz (Composer), Jake Heggie (Composer), Johannes Brahms (Composer), Alban Berg (Composer), Claude Debussy (Composer), Charles Ives (Composer), Reynaldo Hahn (Composer), Moises Simons (Composer), Harry Bicket (Conductor), William Christie (Conductor), Kent Nagano (Conductor), John Nelson (Conductor), Patrick Summers (Conductor), Yan Pascal Tortelier (Conductor), Yves Abel (Conductor), Susan Graham (Performer), Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Susan Graham
• Orchestra: Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
• Conductor: Harry Bicket, William Christie, Kent Nagano, John Nelson, Patrick Summers, et al.
• Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, George Frederick Handel, Ned Rorem, Hector Berlioz, Jake Heggie, et al.
• Audio CD (October 16, 2007)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Erato
• ASIN: B000SLI6Y8
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,998 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #24 in Music > Classical > Historical Periods > Modern, 20th, & 21st Century > Composers > Ives, Charles
  • #59 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Languages > English

Track Listings

1. Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), opera, K. 492: Voi che sapete

2. Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), opera, K. 492: Non so piů cosa son, cosa faccio

3. Alcina, opera, HWV 34: Di te mi rido

4. Alcina, opera, HWV 34: Mi lusinga il dolce affetto

5. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, for voice & piano

6. Early in the Morning, for voice & piano

7. O you whom I often and silently come, for voice & piano (from 'Poems of Walt Whitman')

8. La Damnation de Faust, for mezzo-soprano, tenor, baritone, bass, chorus and orchestra, ('légende dramatique') H. 111 (Op. 24): Autref

9. Béatrice et Bénédict, opera, H. 138: Dieu! Que viens-je d'entendre?

10. Dead Man Walking, opera: This journey. This journey to Christ

11. Dead Man Walking, opera: Who will walk with me?

12. Dead Man Walking, opera: He will gather us around

13. Zigeunerlieder (8), for voice & piano (arranged from Op. 103): 7. Kommt dir manchmal in den Sinn

14. Zigeunerlieder (8), for voice & piano (arranged from Op. 103): 8. Rote Abendwolken ziehn am Firmament

15. Early Songs (7), for voice & piano (or orchestra): 3. Die Nachtigall

16. Early Songs (7), for voice & piano (or orchestra): 4. Traumgekrönt

17. Early Songs (7), for voice & piano (or orchestra): 5. Im Zimmer

18. Počmes (5) de Baudelaire, song collection for voice & piano, L. 64: 2. Harmonie du soir

19. Počmes (5) de Baudelaire, song collection for voice & piano, L. 64: 3. Le Jet d'eau

20. The Circus Band, song for voice & piano, S. 229 (K. 6B20)

See all 23 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

GRAHAM SUSAN PORTRAIT

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fine mezzo soprano, February 4, 2008

By 

Steven A. Peterson (Hershey, PA (Born in Kewanee, IL)) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Portrait of Susan Graham (Audio CD)

Susan Graham is yet another in a cohort of strong mezzo sopranos at this point in time. Her CD, "Portrait," demonstrates that she deserves to be considered with other excellent mezzos. She is backed by the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, conducted by Harry Bicket.

The range of works on this CD is quite wide--from Handel to Mozart to Rorem to Debussy to Ives. In between, we see works by Berlioz, Heggie, Brahms, Berg, Hahn, and Simons. Quite a broad repertoire!

Some exemplary cuts--

From Mozart, we have two pieces from "Le Nozze di Figaro," "Voi che sapete" and "Non so piu cosa son, cosa faccio." The former first. . . . Graham displays a wonderfully rich voice. This is taken at a leisurely pace, but Graham's voice is seamless, moving smoothly from note to note. A nice version!

The latter aria is much more quickly paced than "Voi che sapete." Her spirited singing fits this aria well. She shows some vocal agility here, as a result of the quicker tempo. This is a solid effort, featuring a nice close to the piece.

From Handel's "Alcina," "Di te mi rido": She shows good sensibilities with Handel's music. She demonstrates good vocal agility and shows some coloratura technique. If I understand correctly, she does well producing appoggiaturas. Well sung indeed! She closes out the aria nicely.

Rorem's "O you whom I often and silently come": This is a 30 second plus work, featuring the words of Walt Whitman. A piano accompanies Graham. This is sweetly sung.

From Ives, "The circus band": Another song with piano accompaniment. This is a quick paced work and Graham handles that well. This is a nice "off the beaten path" work. It's nice to see her varied repertoire on this CD, with this being one more example of that.

In sum, Susan Graham shows a good mezzo soprano voice and nice technique. Well worth listening to if you are interested in the mezzo soprano repertoire.

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, December 14, 2011

By 

The Harmonious Blacksmith - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Portrait of Susan Graham (Audio CD)

SG is a good mezzo and these are high quality recordings. My three stars is really just a reflection of my taste in classical music. I'm not a fan of contemporary and a lot of the romantic-era material so I when I listen to tracks off this album, it's generally just for the Mozart/Handel selections. If you enjoy a wider variety of classical music than I do, it's a good purchase.