Champs Hill Records reviews
The Children's Hour
Gareth Brynmor John (baritone), William Vann (piano) (Champs Hill)
Ilker Arcayürek and Simon Lepper perform songs by Schubert
This recital is called ‘The lonely one’ and Richard Stokes, in his thorough notes to the disc, states ‘Loneliness is the theme that links all the songs on this CD’; but it seems to me that you would have to look hard to find loneliness, as opposed, say, to longing or simply love as the central ingredient in many of them.
Fanny Mendelssohn's Complete Songs, Vol. 3, with Susana Gaspar and Kitty Whately
It’s time to stop pigeonholing Fanny Hensel (née Mendelssohn) as a female composer. Felix Mendelssohn’s older sister, who died tragically aged 42, was never demurely feminine, nor predictable – she was simply a genius. Singers, pianists, teachers – get hold of the scores you can find! Too much of her music is sitting unpublished in libraries, and I hope this recording helps change that.