Customer Reviews

The Trees They Grow So High

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Sometimes when you read reviews about Sarah's albums you hear about them being "Over Produced". This album is an example of simple production, and is different than any other album Sarah has done. I would have to say the simplistic production of this album truly captures the beauty and power of Sarah's voice.

The reason I do not recommend this album to everyone, is because it does not contain the "Pop/Techno" feel of Sarah's other albums. This album features classic European folk songs, sung just by Sarah, and accompanied by a piano.

This is a great relaxation CD to help you unwind from the stresses of the day; simple and calm.

I read many reviews before I bought this album. Many of them do not encourage you to buy it, but I totally disagree. This is the only CD so far that shows who Sarah Brightman " the soprano " is.
Her voice is perfect, tuned and filled with melody. I own all of her CD's and this one is as special as the rest of them. Her voice is not "young", she was already 26 at the time; it sounds young because of the high notes. I would definitely recommend this CD to those fans of Sarah Brightman and/or anyone who likes Classical Music.

This album has gotten some strange reviews. To the person who said a piano sounds absurd if it is the only instrument in the studio, I hope you've never attempted to listen to any of Schubert's 600 + songs. In the realm of composed music, the very definition of a song is a short work for voice and piano alone.

Although Britten occasionally makes reference to folk material (he evokes a stringed instrument in the piano accompaniment for "The foggy foggy dew") he makes no attempt to re-create a historically accurate folk-style accompaniment. These "arrangements" are not in a parlor style, and do not try to make the harmonies conform to a classical idea. On the contrary, Britten expands the implied harmonic vocabulary while keeping true to the original melodies in order to create a new piece of art that is uniquely his own.

As for the singing, those who are normally offended by Sarah Brightman's vocalism might find this music more appropriate for her voice. Whereas an opera singer might sound out of place singing these simple melodies (see the complete edition of Britten's folksongs), Ms. Brightman has the sound of an amateur with a pleasing voice, giving fairly tasteful renditions (compared, for instance, to her "O mio babbino caro") of a repertoire that is usually only heard from young, untrained singers just entering the voice studio.

Even if this is not his most inspired performance, Geoffrey Parsons is simply one of the greatest song pianists on record.

As I listen to this CD, I grow more amazed each time that Sarah Brightman had such a wonderfully trained voice at such a young age. Her beautifully pure voice, coupled with Benjamin Britten's accompaniment, makes this a CD for any Brightman, or simply good music, fan. Sarah truly brings her country's folk songs to life--she sings each one with great feeling. I highly recommend this CD.

I believe I own all of the CDs Sarah Brightman has put out and yes, this one is quite different from all the others she's done.

In this CD she sings (in a strictly classical style) some of the many British folksongs collected and arranged by Benjamin Britten; she is accompanied here by only a piano. Thus if you like classical singing and traditional Brit folksongs, then this is the CD for you. If you're wanting something more pop, hip, musical-theatrical, or celtic--look elsewhere.

Sarah has developed her voice over time and this CD is a good example of how all those singing lessons have paid off as she has a beautiful classical voice (amply evident on this CD) as well as the big, full belt style she delivers in musical theatre production numbers (on other CDs).

This is a great CD for these reasons, but not one for the masses.

Part of the reason people don't respect Sarah Brightman is because her fans tend to think of her as absolutely infallible. Therefore, when a new album is released, it is always accompanied by "It's brilliant!" even if the rest of the world thinks it's garbage. When she "crossed-over" into pseudo-classical singing, her fans declared her to be the Queen of Opera, nobody could sing classically better than her. Interestingly enough, the fans usually don't mention this album, her most legitimate classical album, at all.

All of this is unfortunate because Brightman really does have a lovely, if small, voice, and it suits Britten's arrangements very well. The songs are marred slightly by occasional pop influences and strained high notes, but all in all this isn't bad.

There's a gallery of professional singing Sopranos today, and each has her own specific strengths, history of accomplishments, recognition and influence. The uniqueness that Sarah Brightman presents the listener and viewer is that of a totally dedicated artist who has expanded and refined her voice in an area that other Sopranos haven't - youthfulness, diction, control and width. Starting at an early age she succeeded and excelled in a variety of styles and genres. On this CD, with the simple piano accompaniment that enhances her distinctiveness, she's able to maintain the most melodious range, diction and duration. She enhances the meaning of the folklore (whether English or French) and the classics, as it has not been done before. The selection of music pieces offers and tests her voice skills exceptionally well. Any voice student and expert must not miss the opportunity to identify the voice features that Sarah Brightman's talent offers. Her voice uncovers Soprano skills that usually remain hidden.

While other people may think this collection of songs does not do Sarah's voice justice, I strongly disagree. Indeed, if anything her New Age-sounding albums (such as Luna or something or other) I find horrendous and I think they completely scatter the good qualities of her voice. Not so in this album. True, the songs here are not well-known nor are they decorated with operatic frills which Sarah has the well-known ability to perform, but there is a different beauty here, my friends. The legato, angelic quality of Sarah Brightman's voice can truly be heard in these simple melodies, light and free from the heavy chains of pulsed pop and mediocre attempts at an Enya-like portrayal. THESE songs she sings well, THIS is one of her better albums, and HERE is her beautiful sound which I missed in some of her other albums.

Even more due to my idolizing of composer Benjamin Britten, than for my acclaim of Brightman as a singer, I purchased this recording. I have heard a number of recordings featuring Britten's folk songs, and this is one of the better ones.

The songs are just what they are called, folk songs. Don't expect any virtuostic singing or composing in this recording. The becautiful old songs are brought to new life by the thoughtful and sensitive singing of Brightman and the accompanying of Parsons.

If you like big and modern sounds, this is certainly not the recording for you. However, if you appreciate the diversity of Brightman and her ability to sing everything from opera to Broadway to rock, this is a perfect addition to her works.

In addition, if you are a respector of Britten's work, this is an excellent addition to your Benjamin Britten collection. The songs included are some of the more beautiful and well known of his folk songs. The vast majority of songs included are from his english language collections, and some will be well known by you even if you are only now discovering this collection of works.

For accomplished and aspiring sopranos, this is an excellent reference collection, containing a wide range of tempos, ranges and styles as well as some linguistic variances. Sarah uses a nice straight tone for the majority of the songs, with only a touch of vibratto, which is what would be the standard with these folk songs. Keeping in mind that Britten was composing during the era of lots of vibratto, he was also sensitive to the appropriate voicing of the works that he composed and arranged. I would certinaly not sing these pieces with a strong vibrato.

In addition, the phrasing and the ease of diction is an excellent representation of an artist keeping in mind the stylistic theme of the folksongs. However, in the french pieces, I would have liked to hear a bit more refinement in the voice. A small complaint, and hardly deservice of the loss of a star.

Guys, if you don't know, what it is - besides the obvious - don't buy it. I almost regretted the purchase and started to enjoy it only after I overcame the shock. On this LP Sarah Brightman sings English songs that were popular in the XIX century and the musical tastes changed since then rather dramatically. So check out the samples first!