Customer Reviews

Schumann: Liederkreis, Op. 24 / Dichterliebe, Op. 48 / (7) Lieder ~ Ian Bostridge

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3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
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I think it is very interesting to read all of the conflicting reviews of this recording. It just goes to show that change is a difficult process (I think it speaks volumes for Bostridge that his recording could stir up so much controversy). For those who want lieder to always sound like the masters of the 20th century than this is probably a bit much. Personally I think Bostridge's instrument is absolutely perfect for this repertoire. He is expressive, poetic and extremely musical. I dont understand the hype with Wunderlich, i have his recording of the Dichterliebe and find it difficult to listen to. Bostridge on the other hand is masterful in his approach. For those that call it flat or boring I think we should remember that this is German chamber music not Italian opera. And while there is a profound expression of love, pain, loneliness, beauty, it is an internal expression. Its not Verdi. So to those that criticize the stylistic choices of Bostridge I have to strongly disagree. As a tenor myself, I cant think of anyone else I would rather sound like. His voice is astounding, and his interpretation is moving and original. Dont get me wrong, Diskau was a master, but so is Bostridge. Its just a different approach. Forget your preconceived notions of what this music is "supposed" to sound like and let the beauty in. He really is a phenomenal tenor. Not to mention that these are some of the very finest lieder ever written, Schumann surely was the greatest master of this form. Buy this recording!

The winds of fashion are always changing, and they've definitely been blowing in the direction of Ian Bostridge, whose voice is not one I love or even tolerate for more than a few songs. He uses it intensely and artistically, but its native quality is a typcial "white" English tenor, light in tone, mostly projected form the head, and of an irritatingly nasal timbre--one is constantly reminded of an adolescent whose voice has just changed. People do seem to love it, especiallly the English, and Bostridge's fussy way with texts is also admired.

For anyone who isn't thrilled by him, there is an overlapping recital of Schumann's Heine songs--oddly enough, also on EMI--by Thomas Hampson at his very best with Wolfgang Sawallisch as accompanist. For a tenor version sung by someone with a much fuller voice and less mannered approach to the texts, there is Christoph Pregardien on RCA/BMG. Having owned all three, I was happy to toss out this CD.

To me, Fischer-Dieskau's much more intense and passionate recording of the Dichterliebe with Brendel remains the standard, but this Bostridge recording of the cycle certainly has its moments. I think the previous reviewer was overemphasizing the puzzlingly unsuccessful performance of "Iche grolle nicht" which is easily the weakest track on the CD. But the recording of song 10 from the cycle "When I hear the sound of song" is soft and tranquil and stunning (and polyphonically conscious) and is the best version of this song I've heard. Overall, I do prefer Bostridge's performance to Wunderlich's famous (and overrated) one.

But we're skirting around the edges of the issue when talking about Dichterliebe - I believe the main impetus for the recording was Bostridge's passion for the Op. 24 Heine Liederkries cycle, a wonderful group of songs that Bostridge interprets with excellence. This cycle has been a discovery for me. From the moment of Bell Jar-like madness of song 3 (I wandered among the trees) to the beautiful melody of 5 (the "Farewell to home" song) to the serene relief of the final song, 9 (Mit Myrten), it is a rich and very attractive set of songs.

A few other notes: if you haven't heard Bostridge's voice, you must. It's simply an amazing instrument. Also, this CD would be worth it for track 11 "Abends am Strand" alone, Schumann's 1960s pop neo-baroque concoction (I'm only half-kidding). And this CD is just plain useful because it contains all 4 songs which Schumann excised from the original version of the "Dichterliebe" and which were published posthumously.

Finally, Julius Drake accompanies marvellously and sensitively.

Highly recommended.

I am sitting in a class on Lieder by Schubert and Schumann. Ian Bostridge's voice is introduced by our instructor and has made a great impression to us listeners. We are not intended to judge how is his recording going to match our analysis, but the clarity of his voice, diction, control of dynamic are no doubt the best one to us. For example, his Erlkönig(by Schubert) makes the musical painting more vivid than just the sonic presentation of the song. I would take his interpretation into serious account. And I am so touched by the fourth song "Wenn ich in deine Augen seh'" of Dichterlibe in this album--listening to his singing "Ich Liebe Dich" makes me in heaven.

I also have Fischer Dieskau's recordings. To me, Ian Bostridge's version doesn't have the laziness as in Dieskau's albums. In terms of the accuracy of pitch, I definitely vote Ian's too. In addition, the register of Ian' voice follows the score (Dover edition) while Dieskau's is mostly major second lower. His beautiful voice occasionally tires me only if he tries to narrate the voice with a pale expression, such as the twelfth song "Am leuchtenden Sommermorgen" (indeed, his role in this song is a pale man).

To me, his voice fits into my contemporary well. The recording aesthetics is neat and sharp with every articulated nuance. It is a kind of an outcome of studio recording. I feel like I am very close to his microphone which creates a kind of feeling of loneliness and intimacy if I were the only one listening to it. I like his music making and this album.

If you're looking at this, you probably already know who Ian Bostridge is. He's the newest, best and brightest of the lyric tenors in the world today. In addition to his beautiful voice and the accomplished singing technique, Bostridge, only 33, has earned a doctorate in history and philosophy, written two books, and won two major Gramophone prizes, including the best 1998 solo vocal for the recording you're looking at. For idiosyncratic reasons, I still prefer Mark Padmore, but Bostridge's singing is so undeniably beautiful that even someone with the deepest biases is bound to be swayed.

This is a wonderful release; while it might perhaps not replace all other interpretations of this music, one has to marvel at the new insights, fresh takes and convincing responses to the texts and music Bostridge brings to the music. One thing is his technical ability, and his ability to color and shade the music - as important is the feeling of spontaneity he brings to it. You are almost completely convinced, throughout, that Bostridge is expressing something deeply felt and personal. This is a way of saying that Bostridge dispenses with pathos and exaggerated drama in favor of a more reflectively lyrical approach, and some listeners might conceivably find this performance even a little reticent - I found them refreshing.

Liederkreis is superbly varied and subtly done, moving from tender beauty to profound intensity. Still, it is Dichterliebe which brings the greatest rewards, from an almost perfect take on the magical evocations of stardust and remote splendor in `Im Rhein', to the quietude and frustration of the darker songs, such as the superbly rendered `Ich hab' im Traum geweinet'. Between the two song cycles we are offered a selection of mostly familiar songs from 1840, including a vibrant Belsatzar and a marvelous take on `Die beiden Grenadieren', and `Mein Wagen rollet langsam' (surely one of Schumann's most wonderful songs, even though it tends to let the piano part overshadow the vocal line). Throughout the whole programme Julius Drake is a sensitive partner (perhaps most notably in Dichterliebe). Combined with excellent, well-balanced sound this is really a disc to treasure; very strongly recommended.

Listen to `Dichterliebe' first. The other tracks are very good, but `Dichterliebe' is a masterpiece. The music itself is sublime, but Bostridge's interpretation is as important. Of all my lieder albums, including `Winterreise' and `Die schöne Müllerin', it is `Dichterliebe' to which I return most often. For me, `Die schöne Müllerin' expresses the shades of the first love, `Winterreise' those of the last, and `Dichterliebe' the hues of all the loves in-between. And it sounds very contemporary. Perhaps it is the fragmented quality of the songs. Perhaps it is the infinite shades of frustration and alienation in them. There is hardly a note that expresses only one emotion. Everything is contradictory, everything is unclear, nothing is ever resolved. Like life itself. Bostridge has put a great deal of thought into these songs, and the result is stunning: always intelligent but never intellectualized. You will find yourself listening to it over and over to marvel at the inflections of the voice and the multiple layers of emotion packed into them. This is an album to which to contemplate the winding pathways of love.

I can't tell you how pleased I am with Mr. Bostridge's recording of Schumann: Liederkreis Op. 24, Dichterliebe
Op. 48 & 7 Lieder, I recently bought. It's such a delight listening to; the lightness, the precision
(and still there is a wonderful and continuous legato), the very selective use of vibrato (and thus
non-vibrato) as a means of expression, the treatment of the text, the perfect bel canto technique... Also my compliments to the excellent pianist, Julius
Drake; again, wonderfully played. Mr. Julias Drake and Mr. Ian Bostridge are a wonderful ensemble. When Mr. Bostridge stops, the singing is seemlessly continued by Mr. Drake.
I did not know Mr. Bostridge as a singer until I started looking for singers who had recorded `Dichterliebe'
and `Liederkreis' (Op. 39 BTW). Listening to a
few samples there conviced me to buy it. I can only say I am very grateful Mr Bostridge made this
recording. It means a great deal to me.

A final note: I firmly disagree with 'not my cup of tea'. I cannot agree with the assertion that
"The interpretation is flat, and does not have the depth that many German singers give to these songs." I own Dichterliebe sung by Quasthoff, Fischer-Dieskau, Fritz Wunderlich and Ian Bostridge (this recording).
By far I like Ian Bostridge's best. The interpretation is very delicate and the opposite of flat I would say. Flat is the interpretation of Quasthoff (although I highly respect him as a singer, but not particularly for his recording of Dichterliebe). The recording of Fischer-Diskau is quite interesting, musically speaking. Technically on the other hand I much prefer Ian Bostridge. Finally, the recordings of F. Wunderlich: I own both his final concert and a studio recording. Although the final concert recording is very bad, musically this one is by far surpassing the studio recording and is worth owning. What goes for the technique of Ian Bostridge goes for Mr. Wunderlich's; just wonderful.

Bostridge's voice is attractive, but quite small. Nothing to rave about. Many of the songs on this album are beyond his dynamic range and he doesn't quite capture the nature of the lyrics. Poor placement of the microphones also leaves much to be desired, which might have helped him in the end, had it been done well. Another typical recording of lieder. I was on the fence about buying this one, but ended up getting it at the recommendation of a friend...I would leave this one on the shelves.

Robert Schumann was a leader on many fronts of the Romantic movement in music. Not only a composer of genius, he was also a powerful writer and an insightful critic. Born in 1810, he began his music studies at age 8. He was a skilled pianist and began writing music for that instrument along the way. In 1840 he was given an honorary doctorate, wrote the Liederkreis (song cycle) op 24 on poems of Heine, and then married Clara Wieck. Schumann had a work style of focusing on a single form at a time. In 1840 he wrote a flood of songs, more than 150 of them, including the large song cycles included on this disk.

Heinrich Heine, a great German poet who remains highly regarded today, was an inspiration for many Romantic composers. Schubert only set a few of his poems simply because he did not become aware of Heine's work until he was already ill and dying. While Heine was thirteen years older than Schumann, they died the same year. In fact, Heine was born the same year as Schubert, although Schubert was born in January of 1797 and Heine in December.

The songs of opus 24 are about separation and longing. Nothing is ever a straightforward love song. This aching love is what attracted the Romantics. The poems are full of strong, but conflicted emotions and are written in a way that lends them well to musical settings. They tend to be short verses with a declamation that supports a singer's dramatic efforts and allows dramatic additions by the piano.

"Dichterliebe" (Poet's Love) opus 48 is one of the great song cycles ever written, probably after Schubert's masterwork's "Die Schöne Müllerin" and "Winterreise". While Schumann masterfully varies the songs so that it does not have the unremitting chill of Schubert's "Winterreise", it is a song cycle of lost love and ends with a desire for a coffin large enough to contain his love and sorrow.

There are other Schubert songs of Heine poems on this disk other than the two song cycles and they vary about topic, but are all full of drama and story telling of one kind or another. "Belsazar" opus 57 tells a story of the Babylonian king and the writing on the wall. "The Two Grenadiers" tells the story of two French soldiers captured by the Russians, one of whom dreams of fighting for his Emperor from the grave. There are several others.

I am a huge fan of Ian Bostridge. His voice is pure rather than light or colorless. (Colour, I suppose, since he is British.) His singing style is intelligent, very dramatic, and he varies its color depending on his interpretive purposes. He and Mr. Drake put on a wonderful recital of Schubert lieder here in Ann Arbor awhile back. They perform so wonderfully well together and I was surprised at the power, range, and control Mr. Bostridge has with his voice. It was one of the great afternoons of music I have ever experienced.

This is a wonderful CD and I recommend it strongly.