Customer Reviews

Schubert: Lieder, Vol. 1

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These are some of the best known songs by the greatest songwriter of all time, and Bostridge brings his usual beautiful tone and phrasing to each one of them. For a new listener to classical songs wanting an overview of Schubert's 500 or more "lieder" (famous romantic poems set to original music), Bostridge's warm phrasing, his soft but accurate German, and the fine playing of accompanist Julius Drake, will make this recital perfect.

At this level of artistry, it is almost silly to indulge in any nitpicking, but listeners who are already familiar with recitals by the German masters may find some of these tenor interpretations just too lyrical. Take the two grim Gothic fantasies as the clearest example: "Der Zwerg" depicts a beautiful young queen being slowly strangled and dumped into the sea by a twisted and deformed court jester who has been driven mad by jealousy for her affections. "Erlkonig" tells of a man racing through the forest on horseback unaware that the soul of the young son in his arms is being stolen away by the phantom Forest King. These are hideous images, and I am not completely convinced that Bostridge (for all his staggering talent and discipline) has yet developed the subtle dramatic judgement that they demand - the great Fischer-Dieskau has confirmed that in this regard the lied is infinitely more demanding than opera.

Thus in Der Zwerg, the sustained beauty of Bostridge's singing gives us few cues that we are listening to anything radically different from the ruminations on love, art nature and loss that make up the bulk of the album. And yet in Erlkonig (a specially demanding piece that requires the singer to represent a narrator and three different characters), he overshoots in the opposite direction - he gives a performance of chilling power and dramatic range, but only at the expense of the subtlety and the overarching unity of style and voice that should set even the most dramatic art-song apart from opera. (The singer of a narrative song is required to be a story-teller, not an actor).

These quibbles needed explaining, but they will be of minor importance to anyone but a Teutonic purist. Bostridge's glorious bel canto voice, already one of the brightest lights in Britain's music industry, may at present be less than perfectly matched to the classical German art-song. However, few exponents of the lied have reached musical maturity before middle age, and Bostridge (whose cover photo incidentally bears a striking resemblance to the great French baritone, Gerard Souzay) has many years in which to develop this highly specialised art. More to the point, this is a fine album in its own right, and one that will sound better to most British and American ears than the gruffer and more clipped renditions of the great German baritones.

I must be entirely honest and say that this was a disappointment to me. That comes, I promise, from probably the one person in the world most obsessed with Ian Bostridge's voice.
The reason is that I had heard so much of his subsequent work. The depth, color, agility, and timbre of his voice is simply spell-binding, but all of it is acquired, added to his natural melodic talent. So this, an earlier recording, holds less of that acquired beauty than later albums, particularly the Debussy, Faure, & Poulenc and Schubert Lieder, Vol II.
If you're looking for Schubert sung in a subtly emotional and petulent way, this is for you. I cannot say that his execution is particularly fulfilling, nor his German as good as it is now, nor his voice as rich -- he almost sounds tired in much of it -- but what you will hear is a promise of better things to come as he grows musically.
Personally, I think we should form a petition to get him to record another Lieder disc including a better version of Du Bist Die Ruh.

The elusive art of lieder is alive and well as Ian Bostridge assumes his place alongside the likes of Fisher-Dieskau, Schwarzkopf, Prey, and everyone else. The man is a miracle. From the most lyrical strains of "An Sylvia" to the murky depths of "Der Zwerg" and "Erlkonig", Bostridge meets every vocal and interpretive challenge like a champ. Only in his early thirties (!), it is staggering to imagine what he will accomplish in the years to come. True, his tenor is basically small, but it projects so well that it actually gives the illusion of great power, especially in those dramatic songs that call for it. Drake's piano work is vivid and remarkably intense, which gives the illusion of a duet for two outstanding musicians rather than merely that of singer and piano accompanyment. This CD is mandatory for anyone who values great music, and it is here presented in a way which one will not encounter soon again.

I love the thought of Ian singing lullabies to his little baby son. If Ian's voice were a color it would be a warm, mellow shade of honeyed gold. I was playing this CD in my car, track 14, when my friend said, "WHO is THAT?" I told him and he said, "His voice is so incredibly warm! I've never heard a voice like that before; the voice is so strange!"

As if anyone could, or should, Julius just knows how to play how water sounds. Auf dem wasser zu singen could easily have been included without the vocals, *although I am by no means complaining*. Julius and Ian read each other musically as if God made them from the same lot and stock.

Du Bist die Ruh makes me cry, I sing along with Heidenroslein, and the Litanei auf das Fest Allerseelen is as prayerful as is Dinu Lipatti's last concert at Besancon (hi Jim!). I think my favorite song is the last. The Erlkonig is incredibly sinister, evil to the core! And the boy, I just want to help him somehow. Ian is a master storyteller with a fine voice and great German. We are completely satisfied!

Ian Bostridge is lucky: he has found something that few of us can really claim - he knows why god put him on earth. I'm not joking. Ian Bostridge is on this earth to sing lieder. Bostridge has a perfect combination of three things: mellifluous voice, good singing technique, and intelligent, content-sensitive, articulate delivery. The result is an amazing grasp of the proper intonation and rhythm to suit the story told in each individual lied. When I got this CD, I started listening to it at random. Track 22 came up first. I speak not a word of German, and I wasn't following the lyrics, but I was immediately struck by the fact that the song appeared to be sung as if by three different persons. Amazed, I grabbed the booklet: yes, it was Goethe's famous Erlkonig story involving a dialog between a frightened child, his father and the evil forest king. And Bostridge's signing was so vivid that the three characters literally came alive in my imagination. From that moment on, I had to drop everything and just sit there, listening and following the lyrics. I can't praise this recording enough.

Ian Bostridge is a rarity in today's classical music world--a singer who is making his way mostly as an exponent of the intimate world of art song and the song recital.

The present volume contains many of Schubert's greatest and best-known songs. Bostridge's voice is a light tenor of extreme refinement--one suspects the voice in live performance is on the smallish side (I have not heard him live). On recording, however, without the urgency of filling a hall with sound, the artist can use his considerable skills to maximum interpretive effect. His liquid legato, clear diction and dynamic control give considerable pleasure--listen to the way he handles the taxing rising lines of "Du bist die Ruh," for example. Occasionally, as in the pianissimo conclusion of "Erlkonig," he goes for melodrama where a straightforward rendering would have been more effective. Pianist Julius Drake is a superb musical collaborator throughout. On balance, then, this is a beautifully performed and recorded disc.

Ian Bostridge is a marvelous lieder singer. His sensitivity, nuance, acting are perfectly calibrated. Each song inhabits a world of its own. His tenor voice is delicate and well suited to this literature. It is not surprising to learn that he has written a book on witchcraft. His Der Zwerg displays a feel for the macabre. And Erlkonig, that artistic touchstone, is utterly compelling, convincing, and yes, chilling!

Ian Bostridge is already a sensation, and this is the CD that probably started it. Like many others, I have multiple versions of these songs, notably by the great Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. But Bostridge's CD is so well done that I have bought multiple copies of it, to send to friends, family members, anyone who I think deserves to disover these songs. Bostridge's is a light and lyrical voice; he is already being compared to the late Peter Pears. He is ideal for many of these songs; he really puts meaning into every one--not like those singers who just sing the notes and display a beautiful voice. And his accompanist is equally fine--Drake's playing in "Auf dem Wasser zu Singen" is just marvelous in evoking the setting of this wonderful song. This is one of the best CDs of any kind in years. Don't miss it!

I'd like to mention that the reason I bought this CD was because the Erlkonig that is contained on it in sang and played in G minor. This is the original key for the piece. Most (I'd say at least 9 out of 10) recordings of the song (including Fischer-Deskau) are in F minor. A good amount are sung by women. However, it is a VERY rare find indeed to hear Erlkonig in G minor. Also, Liszt transcribed this work for piano solo, and that's in G minor. Of course, most people don't care about the right key of the piece, but for those who do, like myself, this CD is the one you want. It's also a very good recording, as his voice is less harsh than most male singers, and thus more enjoyable to those not already into classical vocal works.

Impeccable musicianship, pitch control, mastery of nuance, articulation. Accompanist brings a very dynamically expressive addition to the ensemble. How could it be any better?