BaL 16.11.24 - Berlioz: Les nuits d'été

[Barbirollians]

Didn’t Ferrier take them on near the end of her career when Barbirolli encouraged her to sing Chausson’s Poeme de l Amour et La Mer - and Bruno Walter noted. “ you’ve gone up ! “

[oliver sudden]

Like many mezzos ex-contraltos (Ferrier was a good example) Janet was afraid of high notes , until Ray Leppard encouraged her to do them in their Handel and Haydn discs, which are still worth hearing.

I still wish I hadn't said to Alfreda Hodgson when I saw her with a vocal score of Gurrelieder 'Are you ready for the top B flat?'.
She looked horrified and said 'there isn't one, is there?' I'm ashamed to say I had to struggle to make encouraging noises.

Needess to say, it was 'alright on the night'.

.

Baker’s floaty top was extraordinary, not least in Nuits d’été (at least the Barbirolli recording). Not just quiet and controlled but still with substance. Also her ‘Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen’, in F rather than the usual Eb. (She did both, I think the higher one is on its own and the lower one is in the full cycle.)

Was Hodgson singing Lied der Waldtaube? Not much excuse for not knowing about _that_ Bb…

[richardfinegold]

JEG also employed four different singers in his recording.

He must have been Slap Happy for choice

[smittims]

To be fair, oliver, Gurrelieder wasn't nearly so well-known at the time as it has become since.

[Wolfram]

He must have been Slap Happy for choice

Thankfully, if you want a version with different voices the Colin Davis will do nicely. As has already been mentioned John Shirley-Quirk is excellent, as is Josephine Veasey in Le spectre de la rose, and the tenor Frank Patterson gives a beautifully sung Au cimetiere which reminded me of Hylas’ song from the opening of Act 5 of Les Troyens.

I know ‘Slap Happy’ is intended as a reference to something beyond just the pugilistic JEG, but I am at a loss to know what. All I can find is a video game by that name. I think I’m missing something.

Anyway, JEG is really out in the cold now. A quick look at the Monterverdi Choir and Orchestras’ web site shows that they are very swiftly moving on with some very exciting young conducting talent. Good luck to them.

[Pulcinella]

Bumping this thread in anticipation of this afternoon's episode.
I might actually listen, as there a host of ironing to get through.

[Pulcinella]

Aargh!
Andrew in his most annoying top interruptive mode.

[teamsaint]

Aargh!
Andrew in his most annoying top interruptive mode.

Hectoring ?

[HighlandDougie]

Aargh!
Andrew in his most annoying top interruptive mode.

Verging on the 'mansplaining'. Were I being unkind. it's not as if what he had to say provided any kind of insight into either the music or the performance. As a Véronique Gens fan, I'd disagree with Flora Wilson's choice of Jessye Norman as the BaL recommendation in the "sing-off" between the two. Lovely singing from JN and exemplary accompaniment from Colin Davis and the LSO but, well, they're not French. Good, though, that Janet Baker was one of the illustrated and discussed recordings. I have to agree that Sir JB's vocal additions do become a bit tiresome such that I find myself anticipating them with an inward cringe. But, pace Barbirollians' fatwah against Ms Wilson, I was never tempted to switch it off.

[teamsaint]

Bumping this thread in anticipation of this afternoon's episode.
I might actually listen, as there a host of ironing to get through.

I never knew that was the collective term.
Who won, BTW ?

[Pulcinella]

I never knew that was the collective term.
Who won, BTW ?

Whole host? Heap? Actually, backlog.


Jessye won, but she wasn't for me.
No mention of Crespin? Inexcusable imho.

[Barbirollians]

Sounds like it was well worth missing. I have Jessye's recording - its beautiful singing but says little to me unlike Baker/Barbirolli . If she did not even mention Crespin that is indeed inexcusable.

[Darloboy]

A bit of an odd choice. A largely-forgotten 1980 recording which only received 2 stars from the Penguin Guide and has never been selected by the various BaL reviewers who've covered this piece since the winner was released. As others have said, nice singing but...

[Barbirollians]

A bit of an odd choice. A largely-forgotten 1980 recording which only received 2 stars from the Penguin Guide and has never been selected by the various BaL reviewers who've covered this piece since the winner was released. As others have said, nice singing but...

Flora Willson's choices are generally bizarre - that horribly mannered Jacobs Magic Flute, the dreary Albrecht Das Lied ...

[ostuni]

FWIW, I find Albrecht's Lied vd Erde anything but dreary, and Alice Coote's contributions amongst the very best. Back to topic, though, I much preferred what I heard of Veronique Gens' recording this morning to Jessye N (a gorgeous voice in much repertoire, but not for me here). Though again, FWIW, Balleys/Herreweghe remains my top choice - a favourite ever since I first bought it, nearly 30 years ago,