Tuesday, 31 March 2009, Lunchtime concert (1pm)
Song recital at City Music Society,
Bishopsgate Institute, 230 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 4QH
Concerto Cristofori
Thomas Guthrie baritone
Sharona Joshua 1853 Pleyel piano
Schubert’s Die Schöne Müllerin
Op.25, D.795
“Schubert’s Die Schöne Müllerin (The Fair Maid of the Mill) is usually thought of as a song cycle but what we experienced today was more akin to a miniature opera. The rapport between the performers was palpable as they gave us a Schubert to see as well as hear; it was a privilege to be there.
Victor Hallett – Festival Web Diary (LLandudno Festival)
For further information please go to the City Music Society website
dear sharona – glad to see you are so busy. how did you get on with the cds i sent?
hope to hear schoene m.; but is it on 24 or 31 march? some ambiguity over date.
best wishes, as always, rbt…
It was good to catch up with Sharona Joshua again, this time to hear her accompanying Thomas Guthrie on her Pleyel fortepiano, of 1853, in Die schöne Müllerin at the Bishopsgate Institute Great Hall.
Schubert’s gift for translating lyric poetry into song remains unmatched, but modern performance does him few favours. When written, song cycles like Die schöne Müllerin, were intimately sung, accompanied by a wooden framed fortepiano, which was well suited to chamber recitals. Performance in large halls may suit modern forte pianos, but not lieder recitals; their use is probably best confined to recording studios with voice and instrument carefully balanced – the voice unforced, and the piano commentary picturesque. What of period performance then? When given in a public auditorium, volume of sound is so important, that without amplification, the nuances by which Schubert magically re-creates poetry in music are usually unheard. Stepping up the volume by using a later, iron framed, fortepiano was highly imaginative, although still representing a considerable compromise in this auditorium.
Sharona Joshua, a master of early piano, and Thomas Guthrie, no less so in lieder, gave a spellbinding and natural performance of this glorious music. We hope and pray for a CD recording in which her fortepiano and his voice are timelessly matched.