Another Winning French Recital from Susan Graham
Terry Serres | Minneapolis, MN United States | 10/28/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Here's another winning French recital from the lovely Susan Graham. The selection is most varied and attractive, and arranged so that poetic themes and musical styles weave ingeniously through the program. However, it does seem to borrow heavily from an Elly Ameling recital recorded in 1987, _Soirée Française_. Half the eighteen songs from the earlier album are included in the twenty-five that make up Ms. Graham's new program. Whether or not the echo is intentional doesn't matter, because the music is so rare in performance, and these two fine singers have distinct voices and personalities.
There is not a song in this enchanting collection that is not infused with Graham's beautiful phrasing, expert dynamic control, judicious use of rubato, and verbal subtlety ... sustained by Martineau's miraculously limpid pianism. On her Chausson and Debussy disc with orchestra (_Poème d'amour_), I found Graham somewhat lacking in personality. I have no such complaint here, and Graham's ease with the French language make her interpretations unfailingly lively and insightful, even witty. Her tone shows only the slightest wear but her range is secure.
The songs are all gems, and not a lackluster specimen in the lot. The two rarest, by Paladilhe and Bachelet, carry the aroma of the salon. They would fail without a beautiful voice able to shape the song with elegant phrasing and refined expressiveness. Humor comes from Satie in a whimsical ditty about the Mad Hatter and from Rosenthal in a characterful comic tale. Heartbreak comes from Duparc and Roussel. Mystery comes from Franck, Debussy, and Hahn. Graham is masterful in the challenging modern pieces: In Messaien's "La Fiancée perdue" she effectively links the ecstatic ascent and mystical descent of this haunting song's two parts. In the Honneger miniatures from a marionette version of The Little Mermaid she does a superb job of creating an immediate atmosphere. The finale is the scena "La Dame de Monte Carlo," Poulenc's second dramatic setting of Cocteau (after _La Voix humaine_) and his last vocal work. It is delivered by Graham with vivid if wry lyricism.
The program and the performances are so rich that I could carry on for several more paragraphs. I will only repeat that the blending of gorgeous tone with verbal sophistication are a consistent marvel, and leave you discover the various delights on your own.
There are scattered but not fatal errors in the French texts, stanza divisions, and translations. In fact, it is Graham's flawless French that points up some of these minor misspellings! This disc is so solid that I recommend it enthusiastically for anyone interested in classical song. Buy it and feel the _frisson_ for yourself."
An Americaine in Paris
Clifford S. Gabb | 08/28/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I was privileged to see and hear Susan Graham and Malcolm Martineau give a recital of these songs at a recent lunchtime chamber promenade concert at the Cadogan Hall in London.
Her longtime passion for French song is well known and certainly comes across in these recordings. Her interpretation of each of the songs, which are all different, goes quite some way to meet the emotional intent of the lyrics. Malcolm Martineau's accompaniment is always supportive, creative and not without humour when required.
I would recommend this album as I would her previous one, 'La Belle Epoque', The Songs of Reynaldo Hahn."
Track Listings (24) - Disc #1
