Customer Reviews

Schubert: Winterreise

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Although a reviewer below declares that Mark Padmore is the best contemporary tenor for lieder singing, his reputation stands far below his fellow Englishman's, Ian Bostridge. Both have that piping, heady timbre that is beloved in the British Isles, a grown-up version of the choir boy. I barely endure such a voice, to be frank, and therefore Padmore is barely on my radar. But recent exposure to him as the Evangelist in Bach's St. John Passion made me sit up, and curiosity attracted me to this new Winterreise.

What does Padmore have going for him? First, a rising star at the piano. Paul Lewis is already renowned in Britain; he's cut from the same classical cloth as his mentor, Alfred Brendel, himself a noted lieder accompanist. Right off, one notices that Lewis is listening to his singer and making small expressive adjustments in phrasing. That's a big plus -- too many celebrity accompanists forge ahead without a flexible regard for the vocal line. As for Padmore himself, he's sensitive and musical. Schubert wrote Winterreise for a light tenor, yet over the years the tragic import of the cycle has drawn heavier voices to it. One must admit that when he sings loud or tries to be forceful, Padmore's vocal lightness lets him down. Soft and poignant is his natural domain, as another previous reviewer notes. Lewis remains too reticent, no doubt to be in harmony with Padmore. Winterreise asks for a passionate cry from the heart, and it's not quite there.

The same reviewer says, and I agree, that this Winterreise doesn't build; Padmore's style remains essentially the same from beginning to end. Bostridge outdoes him in variety and intensity of expression. For real dramatic impact, one must turn to tenors on the order of Peter Pears and Peter Schreier, or if you want a voice as light as Padmore's, the excellent German, Werner Gura. This CD was greeted like the second coming in Britain, but I'm by no means convinced.

Although I very much admire Padmore in Baroque repertoire, his lieder rarely wholly involves me; I like the soft singing in this Winterreise, and Lewis's piano playing is wonderful, but I feel I am listening to fine songs sensitively, at times poignantly, performed, rather than compelled to participate in an increasingly bleak journey. Maybe I just prefer less art and more edge.

In addition to this recording I have two of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau's recordings; the first with Gerald Moore accompanying Schubert:Winterreise D.911 and the third with Jörg Demus on the piano Schubert: Die Winterreise / Fischer-Dieskau. I don't think it's fair to compare these two singer as Padmore is a tenor while Diskau is a baritone.

I've just listened to them side by side and I find this recording to be absolutely delicious. Not better than Dieskau's but not dramatically worse as some reviewers might have you think.

I would say if you're only going to own one of Shubert's Winterreise then the first Fischer-Dieskau, with Gerald Moore offers a powerful portrayal from the great baritone. However, Padmore is a tenor par excellence and there's a sweetness to his rendition of this lieder that's delightful.

Buy this or any of the other two with confidence. They are all delightful in their own right.

Oh God,Mark Padmore singing "Winterreise" ... what to do now?
One of my favorite classical singers recording a piece I always find difficult and gloomy - but critics had praised him to the skies so much that I got intrigued and searched for this with greatest interest. After all, even my Bible ("Gramophone") heralded this recording like second coming, no doubt pleased that their own british singer tackled german Lieder and survived without embarrassment.

So I went for it,bought it and was pleasantly surprised because Padmore has such nice voice that I could listen him singing anything,including my old Nemesis "Winterreise". Maybe its because I am already familiar with the piece (how much I tortured myself with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, I really suffered with that one) or because I personally find tenor voice in combination with piano irresistible, who knows? I actually dived into classical music through counter-tenors (Michael Chance was my first discovery) so probably I have this affinity for high male voice. Padmore's german is surprisingly good and he acts just the way it was supposed to be - "Winterreise" is a terribly depressing story with main character walking through the snow heartbroken, big drama, I could really slap him to his senses - and I have to mention very good piano playing by justly celebrated Paul Lewis whom I noticed through Beethoven recordings years ago,they are actually a duet more than anything else.

Than again,no matter how I look at this from left,right and bellow,its still "Winterreise" and therefore not something I put up to listen first thing in the morning. I get depressed just by thinking about it. And strange as it is, that old Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau actually sound somehow more real to me,I can't put my finger on it why is it so but maybe because I heard it first. However, Padmore and Lewis followed this with "Die Schöne Müllerin" and this time around critics were not so nice,in fact they got some strange reviews that really annoyed me (lots of nitpicking) saying that Padmore's voice aged - like its been a fifty years and not two between these recordings - and in the meantime I found wonderful singer by the name of James Gilchrist who also recorded "Die Schöne Müllerin" at the same time, his singing i enjoy so much that he will be my choice for that one.

What on earth will Alfred Brendel say when he hears this? Paul Lewis plays like a totally ignorant musically illiterate beginner. In "Wasserflut" he applies the infamous 'flexible dotting', turning the notes in the left hand into triplets (a nonsensical interpretion that has justly been derided by recent Schubert scholarship). In "Der Leiermann" he plays a completely different text than the one Schubert wrote: first he plays the grace note in the first two bars ON THE BEAT which is simply wrong, sounds just awful and is total nonsense here. And second (and I couldn't believe my ears first), he CONTINUES to play the dissonant note (the sharp fourth together with the fifth) on the first eighth note of the dotted half notes throughout the whole song (as if Schubert had written "segue" into the score and the whole song were an "ad libitum number"). Consequently the whole cycle now has to end with a dissonant chord instead of A minor. Schubert is rotating in his grave while the journalists praise this crap and consumers happily buy it!

Save your money and get a recording by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Mr. Padmore is simply better suited for repertoire from the Baroque.

"Mark Padmore and pianist Paul Lewis whose subtle beauties raise the bar in art song interpretation." - Jennifer Hambrick, WOSU radio

"A superb account from two highly-acclaimed musicians." - Steven Ritter, Audiophile Audition (October 9)

"In addition to Padmore's lovely singing, Lewis' piano is a joy to hear; not only is it beautifully recorded with vibrant, demonstration-quality naturalness, but Lewis seems to articulate the keyboard's significant role with particular sensitivity to the singer's nuances and inflections, using the Steinway's timbre to complement and contrast--and occasionally even imitate--the voice." - 10/10 - David Vernier, ClassicsToday (September)

Britten: Before life and after, Winter Words, Holy Sonnets of John Donne, Purcell realizations, Folksong arrangements