The program for this album by the fine Dutch mezzo soprano Christianne Stotjin brings together works from the conservative, middling, and radical sides of the Austrian-German scene around the turn of the last century. The conservative is Hans Pfitzner, who was by his own testimony an anti-modernist. Yet the march of history was not something of much interest to composers at the time, and both of the other two composers, Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler, held Pfitzner in high regard. All of these composers drew on a common ...
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The program for this album by the fine Dutch mezzo soprano Christianne Stotjin brings together works from the conservative, middling, and radical sides of the Austrian-German scene around the turn of the last century. The conservative is Hans Pfitzner, who was by his own testimony an anti-modernist. Yet the march of history was not something of much interest to composers at the time, and both of the other two composers, Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler, held Pfitzner in high regard. All of these composers drew on a common fund of poetry in their vocal works, and the moody Stimme der Sehnsucht -- voices of longing -- here have much in common and rest comfortably together in Stotjin's excellent recital. Her voice, which would seem to be coming toward its peak, is the main attraction. It's a lighter, brighter version of German operatic style, never too heavy for the material, but extremely dramatic, flowing like spoken utterances at all times. Perhaps her most striking achievement comes in the...
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Add this copy of Stimme Der Sehnsucht: Lieder By Pfitzner, Strauss & to cart. $29.01, new condition, Sold by Revaluation Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Exeter, DEVON, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2012 by ONYX CLASSICS-INGH.