Customer Reviews

Schubert: Schwanengesang, d. 957 / Last Songs (1828), d. 866/2,867,878,879,945

5 star:		(4)
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Sony seems to have abandoned the Danish baritone Boje Skovhus, who was positioned as their hot young lieder singer ten years ago (this CD is from 1994). He made an excellent CD of Wolf Morkie Lieder, a Schone Mullerin to tank with the best, and this unusual recital. It's unusual because Skovhus has taken Schubert's last song colleciton, Schwanengesang, and reassembled it with other, even later songs from 1828.

It's often pointed out that Schubert's publisher came up with the cognomen "Swan Song" after the composer died suddenly, implying a song cycle where none existed. In fact, Schubert had grouped thirteen songs together in manuscript. Seven are set to poems by Relstaub, six by Heine, and to them the publisher added a final song by Seidl. In that sequence every other Schwanengesang that I know of is performed.

Skovhus has had the novel and very successful idea of giving us more settings from Seidl (two of them composed after Schwanengesang), which as a group begin the recital. These are the simplest and most cheerful selections, which are then followed by the darkest, the Heine group, ending up with the Relstaub, which birng us back into the sunlight. Thus the very last song is a frewell ("Abschied") symbolically delivered by the composer to his audience.

Skovhus deserved his early renown. He sings these songs expertly, with even, warm, lyrical tone (no barking a la Fischer-Dieskau) and heartfelt emotion. The balance between vocal control and outgoing personality is quite admirable.

Overall, despite the fact that Skovhus can't quite reach deep enough for the harrowing tragedy of Heine, I prefer him over Mathias Goerne and Ian Bostridge, to name two lieder singers of greater reputation than Skovhus, who primarily makes his career on the European opera stage. Helmut Deutsch is the excellent accompanist, one of the best of the current crop. Five stars even though you will have to find this out-of-print CD on the used market.

This is an excellent disc. Bo skovhus has a beautiful and warm voice, and his "almost" perfect pronounciation makes it warmer.
He is justly considered one of the best young lider interpretators. The association with Helmut Deutsch is perfect. On the one hand, he really paces in Fischer-Diskatu footsteps, but on the other hand, he is much warmer and more human in his approach. Those who appreciate his musical work can be but happy to have this beautiful disc in their collection. When listening to his "Standchen" one could only hope that he seranades for him. I admit, that I await expectantly that he records the "Winterreise" as well.

This performance of some of the most beautiful and difficult lieder ever written is truly wonderful. Skovhus and Deutsch work together with a totally integrated, insouciant mastery. Their interpretation of Heine's poem "Am Meer" is worth the price of the CD, by itself - it will tear out your heart. One of the great lieder recordings of all time.

I saw this used at Amoeba in L.A. for $3, passed on it, and saw Santa Fe Listener's rave review the next day. A few days later, fortunately, it was still there so I grabbed it. What a beautiful CD! It's a shame that the artists and the label get nothing from my enjoyment, but I can't change how the world works and in this case it works in favor of the consumer.
Skovhus has lovely timbre, his mind remains dramatically engaged, and the recorded sound is terrific.
The arrangement of the lieder is a bit unusual and it works: First, 5 late songs including Taubenpost, which now has a different opus number than the rest of the "cycle." Next, the "later" songs by Heine. Last is the larger segment with songs by Rellstab, so the CD ends with Abschied rather than the more dramatic Doppelganger.
Skovhus is just a bit more relaxed and natural than F-D, which I also enjoy.
FWIW, Amadeus Press has a book about Schubert Lieder by Mark Ringer, who makes a case for treating this as a proper cycle. I'm not sure I buy his argument that this is the finest cycle, but he communicates his love for it and the book is well worth while.