Customer Reviews

Roger Quilter - Complete Folk-Song Arrangements (Complete Part-Songs for Women's Voices)

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As a voice teacher and baritone who enjoys singing this repertory quite a bit, I was fairly shocked at the negative review given by the other reviewer. While I agree that some of the pieces would also fit comfortably into the mezzo range, I would hardly call this a vanity project for Ms. Pitt. Nor, would I call her vocal work her anything less than appropriate for these pieces. Comparing her to a young voice student is neither fair, accurate, nor called for. She has a clean, clear style and seems quite at home in these pieces without being too dramatic; she also manages to avoid the staid and bland renditions that so often plague english art song recordings and recitals. Perhaps some listeners prefer this repertory as sung by Felicity Lott and other less operatic and open voices, but the readings here never fail to delight. This recording features quite few pieces that (to my knowledge) have never appeared before on recordings before, and appear here with style, charm, and consistently high quality of vocal prowess. Of particular loveliness is the duet "Love calls through the summer night" as well as David Owen Norris' rendition of "The Rose of Tralee". I will also add that the accompaniment is first rate and never out of balance or character with these pieces. For Quilter fans, this is absolutely a must have album!

After reading the hatchet job done on Amanda Pitt, I revisited this album just see what it was that I was missing. I count four selections (Over the Mountains, Little Moth, Charle is My Darling, and Ca' the yowes to the knowes) where I would have preferred to hear another singer handling the duties. She does strike me as being a bit arch and not in control on these selections. I say this not as a trained singer but as a musician. Otherwise, I found the duets to be quite wonderful, and I thought Pitt's solo on "If Love Should Pass Me By" to be one of the better selections on this CD. The other performers are very good --- I especially enjoyed David Wilson-Johnson's work on The Arnold Songs.

Was this recording of Quilter songs (Complete Folk-Song Arrangements and Complete Part-Songs for Women's Voices) a vanity project for soprano Amanda Pitt? It is hard to explain in any other terms, for her voice is not pleasant to hear. It is a pinched, badly produced, squally sound - the sort of standard one would expect in a not very gifted singing student. Why Naxos permitted this travesty of a recording under their label is a mystery.

The majority of the songs on this CD are sung by the aforesaid Amanda Pitt (soprano). The other singers in this project are of a better standard - in the case of Philip Langridge, beautiful to listen to. This recording is not worthy of his excellent career and lovely tenor voice. The other two singers - mezzo Joanne Thomas and baritone David Wilson-Johnson - are not bad, either, although the mezzo doesn't get a single solo. The lack of a solo for Ms Thomas is glaringly evident when compared to the ten (10) solos which Ms Pitt sings. (10 out of 21 solos - definitely an unfair ratio. Of these ten solos, several could have been given to the mezzo to sing - they were certainly not beyond the average mezzo range.)

The rest of the album consists of duets - thirteen of them. Eleven of the thirteen duets are soprano/mezzo, and in spite of the mezzo's voice (from what one is permitted to hear of it) isn't bad, the duet performances are frankly awful, chiefly because of Ms Pitt. Even the superior quality of Philip Langridge's singing cannot save the two duets he sings with Amanda Pitt.

It's artistically an insulting and atrociously unbalanced distribution of material.

Look for the John Mark Ainsley/Lisa Milne recording of Quilter songs & arias. Admittedly, it doesn't include most of the duets on this CD, but oh, the sheer pleasure of hearing well-trained and lovely voices give Quilter a worthy treatment!