Search - Dietrich Henschel, Franz [Vienna] Schubert, Fritz Schwinghammer :: Schubert: Die schöne Müllerin

Is vanilla the right flavor for Schone Mullerin?

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 03/16/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Baritone Dietrich Henschel has been heralded in some circles as the natural successor to his teacher, Fischer-Dieskau. It's a prime lineage, and one sees the resemblances. Like F-D, Henschel possesses a light, flexible baritone and can move it around the words very well. He pays attention to detail, and on the less positive side, he's a bit impersonal. We are hearing art song here, not the personal expr3ession of a young miller and his disasters in love. F-D gained fame without ever being deeply personal, so there's no reason why Henschel shouldn't. In fact, this Debut album has recently been reissued with a more important cover, signifying that Denschel has arrived.



I can't gainsay how good he is, and the colorfully named Franz Schwinghammer offers good middling accompaniments. That's how Henschel strikes me as well. He has many virtues as a lieder singer, but I felt addressed from a platform rather than invited into a confidence. My four stars is mostly for Henschel's technical accomplishment. Anyone who wants to hear really personal singing might check out the Schone Mullerin recordings from Sanford Sylvan or Michael Schade, among recent arrivals."