Composer: Artur Schnabel
Performer: Sara Couden, Jenny Lin
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Steinway & Sons
Catalogue: STNS30208
Release: 2022
Size: 1.18 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
5 Songs for Voice & Piano
01. No. 1, Sphärengesang
02. No. 2, Frühlingsgruss
03. No. 3, Morgengruss
04. No. 4, Das Mädchen mit den hellen Augen
05. No. 5, Abfindung
10 Early Songs for Voice & Piano, Op. 11
06. No. 1, Wunder
07. No. 2, Dann
08. No. 3, Ein ferner Frauengesang
09. No. 4, Marienlied
10. No. 5, Dieses ist ein rechter Morgen
11. No. 6, Manche Nacht
12. No. 7, Sieh mein Kind ich gehe
13. No. 8, Waldnacht
14. No. 9, Das Veilchen an den spanischen Flieder
15. No. 10, Tanzlied
7 Early Songs for Voice & Piano, Op. 14
16. No. 1, Frühling
17. No. 2, Octoberlied
18. No. 3, Abendständchen
19. No. 4, Abendlandschaft
20. No. 5, Hyazinthen
21. No. 6, Heisst es viel dich bitten?
22. No. 7, Die Sperlinge
23. Notturno for Voice & Piano, Op. 16
This Steinway & Sons release is the debut album of contralto Sara Couden. The album wasn’t her idea, and indeed she was, like most people, unfamiliar with the fact that the great pianist Artur Schnabel was a song composer (and also wrote three symphonies). However, her rich, slightly smoky voice was an ideal choice for this material. Schnabel wrote these songs for his wife, Irene Behr. Charmingly, the two met when Schnabel, at a mountain resort, commented to a friend on the size of some boots in the corridor, only to be accosted by Behr the next morning, saying, “I heard you talking about my big feet.” The songs are thus highly idiomatic for the alto voice, but they are more than that. Most of them date from between 1900 and 1910, from early in Schnabel’s career, and they show a composer alert to the ideas in contemporary German poetry and seeking fresh ways to express them. The best is saved for last, with Notturno for voice and piano, Op. 16, set to a long poem by Richard Dehmel. Dehmel was the muse of Schoenberg (in Verklärte Nacht) and other members of the Second Viennese School, and Schnabel was obviously aware of this; although he is not in Schoenberg territory, he pushes the tonality quite a bit. Strauss also set this rather dark text. Couden’s reading is direct and affecting, with good control over the lengthy song. Any of these pieces could be programmed with Schoenberg or Berg, and it is a shame that they aren’t better known. This beautifully recorded album, made at the Samurai Hotel Recording Studio in Queens, may change that situation.