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Recital
January 17, 2005
Opera House Zurich
Simon Keenlyside, Baritone
Graham Johnson, Piano
Schubert
An die Leier (To the Lyre)
Stimme der Liebe (Voice of Love)
Fischerweise (Fisherman’s Song)
Geheimes (Secret)
Vom Mitleiden Mariä (Mary’s Compassion)
Prometheus
Im Walde (In the Forest)
Brahms
Feldeinsamkeit (In Solitary Fields)
Nachtwandler (Sleep Walker)
Es schauen die Blumen (All the Flowers Gaze)
Ständchen (Serenade)
Mahler
Ich atmet’ einen linden Duft (I Breathed a Gentle Fragrance)
Des Antonius von Padua Fischpredigt (St Anthony of Padua’s Sermon to the Fishes)
Ich ging mit Lust durch einen grünen Wald (I Walked with Joy Through a Green Wood)
Blicke mir nicht in die Lieder (Look Not Into My Songs!)
Liebst du um Schönheit (If you Love for Beauty)
Frühlingsmorgen (Spring Morning)
Scheiden und Meiden (Parting and Farewell)
Ravel
Histoires naturelles:
Le paon (The Peacock)
Le grillon (The Grasshopper)
Le cygnet (The Swan)
Le martin-pêcheur (The Kingfisher)
La pintade (The Guinea Hen)
This programme was also performed at Alice Tully Hall, New York, 5 December 2004 (see previous performance)
What the critics say
Der Zürcher Oberländer / Anzeiger von Uster (Tobias Gerosa)
Translated by Ursula Turecek
Drama and subtle humor
Simon Keenlyside enchants the audience at the Opernhaus
The English baritone Simon Keenlyside has not yet reached the status of a star although he is singing his showpiece-roles from Mozart to Debussy with the most important conductors and at the best houses. His first Zurich appearance at the Operahouse on Monday confirmed him as an extraordinary, intelligently interpreting singer with an infatuating voice and subtle nuances.
However, the director of the Zurich Opera House, Alexander Pereira nearly stole the show. The audience feared bad things when he first appeared on stage– at least an indisposition of the singer. This would have been absolutely possible as the latter entered the stage limping and with a cane. But the major-domo planned something more amazing and upset the Opera House’s price categories for this evening: Everybody who wanted could get down from the dress and upper circles and sit down in the stalls. These gave the impression of it being quite crowded afterwards – certainly a more enjoyable frame for singer and pianist for their recital.
Keenlyside began his programme weightily with Schubert’s “An die Leier”. But quickly he decreased pressure and volume again to find his way to an intimate line and lyric simplicity. It was impressive how much Keenlyside is able to let the musical lines coloured with subtle nuances flow simply and naturally and with nearly perfect comprehensibility of the text, especially with Schubert and Mahler, the concert’s second block. There never was any question of outward effects. That his voice – with the exception of a few forced top notes later with Mahler – blends the registers seamlessly and remains melodious in mezza voce too is the condition on the basis of which text and music can be interpreted.
This may sound almost naive (“Fischerweise“) or choral-like as in the harmonically fascinating song “Vom Mitleiden Mariae”, it may be sublime without any false pathos or a scene savouring the painting with sound like in “Prometheus” or “Im Walde”, the two great Schubert-songs that turned highlights of the entire programme.
After the interval Gustav Mahler. Where Keenlyside can narrate with his singing in the Wunderhorn-songs, dramatically or with subtle humour he is in his element. But the programme’s three so inimitably wistful Rückert-songs came across as a little aloof: Here one wished for a hint of more perfume and sound.
But on the other hand Keenlyside’s unpretentious singing lead to a stunning result full of subtle wit and colours again in Ravel’s spirited “Histoires naturelles” in impeccable French.
To this pianist Graham Johnson contributed too – a congenial accompanist, alert and with subtle nuances, in every moment more an equal partner than a mere accompanist. By the way, rumour has it that the recital was not Keenlyside’s last appearance in Zurich. As was to be heard on the quiet he is said to sing a great Mozart-role here next season.
From "Der neue Merker" Magazine (G. Ottinger).
Translated by Ursula Turecek
It seems that the recitals at the Opera House generally do not go down well with the
Zurich audience otherwise the theatre would not have been visited so scantily on this traditionally opera-free Monday. However, those who were there were amply rewarded, for between his Mozart performances as Papageno and Conte di Almaviva in Vienna the British baritone offered a very interesting programme (Schubert, Brahms, Mahler – inter alia 3 “Rückert-songs” for the first time in public [sic] – and Ravel) proving to be a master of lieder singing. Thus, Keenlyside is one of those rare artists who are convincing in opera and lieder singing in equal measure.
Everything was perfect, on the one hand with the noble voice that was capable of expressing a variety of emotions in subtle shadings and that had every register from dark depth to the roundly sounding heights unrestrictedly at its disposal, as well as on the other hand with the expressive interpretation. The artist, accompanied masterly at the Steinway by Graham Johnson, added after Ravel’s “Histoires naturelles” that ended the official programme pieces by Debussy and Faure in 3 encores.
The audience’s cheers reached dimensions as if the opera house had been full.