Search - Richard Strauss, Gundula Janowitz, Herbert von Karajan :: Strauss: Four Last Songs; Metamorphoses; Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra

Perfection

Charlotte Vale-Allen | CT USA | 04/05/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Elisabeth Schwarzkopf recording is supposed to be the definitive rendering of the Strauss "Four Last Songs" and while it is indisputably lovely, Gundula Janowitz truly makes the songs her own. With a sweetly piercing clarity that is emblematic of all her performances (she dazzles when performing Mozart) she manages to achieve a singular mood that unifies the pieces and makes them almost ethereal. Janowitz's voice becomes an instrument, a part of the orchestral ensemble--as Ella Fitzgerald did in her recordings; this is something very rarely achieved. And when it happens, the end result is something that prickles the listener's nerve-endings, making you listen intently and in awe. Schwarzkopf's voice is older, richer but it is definitely a solo performance with accompaniment--while Janowitz sails as a soprano instrument atop, yet very much a part of, the whole. If you can find a copy, grab it. It is a peerless recording, particularly well paired with the haunting Oboe Concerto.
My highest recommendation."