Wolfgang Heinz, Peter Schreier, Peter Rosel - Brahms: Die schone Magelone (1999)

Johannes Brahms' 15-song cycle "Die Schone Magelone", though overlooked by the public, holds the power to evoke a set of excellent and committed performances by well-known singers. This omnibus review covers four such performances, all of them worthwhile. I have given only one of the discs less than 5 stars, and that Brigit Fassbaender grade of 4 stars only missed the grade narrowly.

The cycle dates from the 1860s, written over a number of years by Brahms and only later performed as a cycle. It is based on a series of intentionally archaic poems by Ludwig Tieck re-telling a medieval romance taking place in Italy, the north of Africa and Provence. I find it interesting that Brahms, a very historically-conscious composer from his Op. 1 onwards, chose not to make any references to ancient music in the cycle, which is written in a typical Brahmsian idiom.

Peter Schreier (1983/Berlin Classics) (5 stars): My recommendation for the single outstanding Magelone cycle is a 1983 recording by tenor Peter Schreier, helped by an outstanding accompanying job done from Peter Rosel. This recording was released on a 2-cd set with German narration in between songs. The spoken tracks make it unsuitable as background music, but the quality of the performance supersedes such a concern, at least if you are a lieder fan. An example of Schreier's superb skill can be found in the 3rd song, "Are they sorrows?" ("Sind Ed Schmerzen"), a languid, almost luxuriant love song done with heartrending expression and emotion by the singer. Schreier's dark tenor, almost in the baritone class, is a beautiful instrument and he sings with great musicality and expressiveness throughout. Rosel is not a pianist I had ever heard before but he is in my mind the best of the pianists in the four recordings being compared here, high praise given the justified esteem in which Gerald Moore and Elisabeth Leonskaja are held. The melancholy 8th song, "We must part" ("Wir mussen uns trennen") is given an especially memorable performance by Schreier and Rosel.

Brigitte Fassbaender (1994/Teldec) (4 stars): Fassbaender is a somewhat controversial singer. I find her to have problems with dynamic control - - she has problems keeping her voice soft -- and sometimes pitch. She also tends to add a melancholic tinge to all her performances, the equivalent of adding a thick sauce to all ones entrees, regardless of all else. At the same time, she is capable of great musicality and dramatic depth. These flaws and virtues are seen side by side in an erratic, uncontrolled performance of "Despair" ("Verzweiflung") song 10. Yet the very next song, "How quickly vanish light..." ("Wie Schnell..."), is beautifully done, Fassbaender's dark-hued voice matching well the underlying melancholy. Fassbaender, who also handles the German narration, is helped out by a very good accompanist in Russian emigre Elisabeth Leonskaya, doing excellent work throughout.

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (1963) (5 stars): Done with Gerald Moore accompanying, this live performance from Salzburg in 1963 is one of what is by my count half-a-dozen recordings of "Magelone" made by the recently-deceased baritone over the span of several decades. I will leave another, more dedicated review than me to assess the differences between the Fischer-Dieskau performances, but the 1963 version covered here is a very good one. It is a classic early career Fischer-Dieskau performance, not particularly "dramatic" (his detractors would say "mannered"), but melodic and in very good voice. An example of Fischer-Dieskau not oversinging is the 4th song, "Love came from distant lands" ("Liebe Kam Aus fernen Landen"), a folk-like song given a pure and sincere rendition by DF-D, with a serene outer section perfectly flowing into and from a more emotive middle section. This is the only one of the performances among the four reviewed here which does not have narration in between the cycle's 15 songs. Virtually no audience noise is head. Despite the recording date, the sound quality is excellent. Overall, a very strong recording.

Christoph Pregardien (2000/ Teldec) (5 stars): An A&R person at Teldec must have been a "Magelone" fan because the label released not just the Fassbaender recording but also one from tenor Christoph Pregardien. This release is distinguished from the others by the English narration between songs, provided by famed British actress Vanessa Redgrave. It is also uses a pianoforte from the 1840s, a distinguishing feature that is also a weakness as the instrument cannot suitably handle the melodies or solo bridges that are ably presented by the modern piano accompanists in the other sets. The pianist Andreas Staeir tries but the clunky pianoforte is just too limited. The recording's strength is Pregardien's outstanding voice. Although he is classed as a tenor, just like Schreier, the two vocalists are very different, with Pregardien possessing a high voice of great purity. So Pregardien is at the opposite vocal pole from the super expressive Fassbender. It's a testament to the flexibility of Brahms' songwriting that "Magelone" can accommodate both approaches well. Pregardien's ability is nicely showcased in the penultimate song, "How glad" ("Wie froh"), an effusive song alternating between a dramatic main section and a more lyrical, thoughtful contrasting section both sung beautifully by Pregardien. He uses less vibrato than the other singers, perhaps in line with the historically-informed use of the pianoforte, and can also channel exceptional expressivity, as shown in the beautiful concluding song, "True Love" ("Treue Liebe"). Although I am critical of the piano here, it is impossible for me to give less than 5 stars to a performance with singing of this purity and quality.