Search - Richard [Classical] Wagner, Hugo [Composer] Wolf, Benjamin Britten :: Christine Brewer Sings Songs by Wagner, Wolf, Britten and John Carter

A mixed bag for Brewer, weak tea from the accompanist

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 09/16/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I never thought all that highly of the legendary Gerald Moore as an accompanist, but comparison with Roger Vignobles on this CD from Wigmore Hall gives pause. Vignobles stands at the top of current British accompanists, so I didn't expect him to be dull an ineffective in the opening Wessendonck lieder -- his playing is perfunctory and a bit rushed, which crushes the romatnic inwardness of Wagner's settings. In the four Mignon lieder set by Hugo Wolf to texts by Goethe, Vignobles picks up energy, as does the singer, but compare this "Kennst du das Land?" with Moore's for Schwarzkopf (particularly in his farewell recital on EMI where Victoria de los Angeles and Fischer-Dieskau join Schwarzkopf), and Vignobles sounds competent but uninvolved.



I mention him first because American soprano Christine Brewer needed stronger artistic support. Her plush dramatic soprano is widely admired, but her interpretive skills lag in German lieder. She sings the Wessendonck songs superficially, unable to delve into their deep emotion. Having heard Brewer in recital, I know she has a sense of humor, which she brings to bear in Britten's Cabaret Songs set to Auden texts (she even introduces a piercing cabbie whistle in the first song, Calypso, and gets a laugh). But mostly this isn't cabaret wit so much as facetiousness. Still, the Britten set works well overall, assuming you don't mind a sizable operatic voice trying to sound intimate (I kept thinking back to Eileen Farrell's attempt to morph from Brunnhilde to Sarah Vaughan).



Brewer concludes very comfortably with crossover songs in John Carter's "Cantata," a gussied-up setting of four gospel spirituals, including staples like "Ride on, King Jesus" and "Sometimes I feel like a motherless child." Brewer runs into direct competiiton with Jessye Norman, and the result, if slightly less sumptuous, is more natural and less pretentious. Brewer clearly loves this showpiece, which allows her to hit a high B flat and offer a long crescendo on a concluding A in the first spiritual. Her diction is, well, that of a white opera singer tyring to sound somewhat black. We get three encores, including anotehr gospel and a spectacular Struass lied called 'Ich liebe dich.'



Brewer is such a winning personality that I feel guilty carping -- in the end, this was an enjoyable rcital that I wish I had attended."

Brewer belts it out of Wigmore Hall

Lawrence D. Devoe | Augusta,GA,USA | 02/22/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Christine Brewer is truly one of our outstanding American singers with a surprisingly limited discography. Her voice could be classified legitimately as a force of nature. Since the retirement of Jessye Norman, the ranks of big-voiced sopranos have become quite sparse. Ms. Brewer has kept this tradition alive and well. This was a highly anticipated disc and it does not disappoint for the most part. Ms Brewer is in healthy and hearty voice throughout and makes the most of the material chosen. Starting off with the Wesendonck Lieder might not be a strategy most singers would have chosen but this artist, beginning in a subdued manner, brings the cycle to an appropriate crescendo. The gem of the Wolf set, "Kennst du das Land," leaves one wishing that more Wolf had been included instead of the relatively harmless and banal Britten cabaret songs (one or two would have been quite enough). The Carter cantata was a work with which I was unfamiliar. It is a reworking of traditional spirituals which are a strong suit for Ms Brewer. The encores are an odd lot but all are enjoyable. Roger Vignoles is a veteran accompanist who basically stays out of the way for most of the program; however, in the Strauss encore, you can hear him exercising his own musical chops.

As is the case for other recitals in the Wigmore series, there is a well-balanced perspective for the singer. Ms Brewer does move around a bit but not to a distracting degee. In summary, this is not a recital for the faint of heart and those desiring the last word in subtlety and nuance. That aside, this is a disc that I will be returning to hear for the sheer joy of potent music-making."