SCHUBERTIADE: Clara Osowski
Clara Osowski, mezzo soprano and Associate Artistic Director of Source Song Festival, shares her vision for an evening of lied as a part of our Schubertiade feature.
I’ve tried to survey some of my favorite performers of Schubert’s Lieder, with a few focuses on pianists and a few equitable choices of singer and voice types. What is so incredible about Lieder is the individuality each performer has to muster, develop, and then expose. It can be a scary thing to do so without costume. And at the beginning of a recital, it’s daunting to think about your soliloquy for the next hour, publicly, tastefully, and accurately. Luckily, Schubert doesn’t leave us singers alone and provides us with such beautiful accompaniments, hidden with so many treasures and instincts. Putting together my dream Schubert recital was a challenge, and I hope you enjoy some favorites of mine.
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Sviatoslav Richter — Die Sterne, D. 939
The masters at work: this is how I approach a recital, an audience, a room of friends. The ease and collegiality of this song poses so many questions to the sky as the listener overhears the gentle soul of the singer — and Dietrich, truly, lived life through Schubert. We’re in their living room; outdoors will have to wait. It’s time to look at the sky through their eyes.
Janet Baker and Murray Perahia — Die junge Nonne, D. 828
Janet Baker is my favorite interpreter of song. She has such economical motion of gesture, a presence that is fixed but flexible, and the ability to radiate emotion with such clarity. The drama of this song is a competition between the storm in the piano and the storm in the singer, and when done right, all we hear and experience is the innig struggle. The vulnerability that Janet Baker possesses in even the quietest of her pianos is so embodied in her tone. She is one complete gift to our souls, lost or found.
Marian Anderson and Franz Rupp - Der Tod und das Mädchen, D. 531
Marian Anderson spoiled this song for me, and I now refuse to accept it sung without the final note being the lowest. There is such an intention in her singing. The characters she creates between the young girl and death are so complex, and she does this with the outer edges of color in her voice. It’s an incredible instrument with such unmistakable attention to mindfulness in the phrase.
Felicity Lott and Graham Johnson — Im Frühling, D. 882
The natural talent that these two possess for delivering honesty and humbleness in their music is unmatched. Their simplicity and devotion to Schubert’s ideologies is otherworldly. It always seems to me that Felicity Lott can sing anything written by any composer, but specifically, I always assume that Franz Schubert knew he was writing for Graham Johnson.
Ian Bostridge and Julius Drake — Auf der Brücke, D. 853
I love listening to these two, and I remember seeing Julius Drake play Die schöne Müllerin at Source Song Festival in 2016 and thinking to myself that he truly has the energy of, and uses that energy like, a rock star: he demands that intensity out of every note in the piano. The instrument is truly played and charged with this electricity, so that the singer has no choice but to accept the capacity of sound before him and just sing. It’s an athletic kind of playing in this selection, and it gives me so much energy.
Irmgard Seefried and Gerald Moore — Auf dem Wasser zu singen, D. 774
I almost chose the Felicity Lott/Graham Johnson recording of this, and then I heard this recording of Irmgard Seefried and Gerald Moore. It’s awfully adventurous, and the clarity in the voice and piano is so well matched. It’s a marvel that we have access to this on vinyl, and immediately transports me to the salon rooms of Schubert’s time.
Thomas Quasthoff and Justus Zeyen — Schwanengesang, D. 957: 4. Ständchen
I just had to include this for the pure sounds of beauty. Quasthoff’s voice is golden in this recording, completely in control of every color shift, nuanced phrase… it’s just stunning every time I listen to it, and it makes me understand how powerful beauty is.
Christa Ludwig and Irwin Gage — Die Rose, D. 745
This duo is incredibly one-minded. It’s the simplicity of the collaboration that shines through. Each word is so delicately spoken in the piano, and they are truly a duo of the ages. Ludwig’s voice is so full, yet nimble and nuances all the consonants with such care.
Mark Padmore and Kristian Bezuidenhout — Winterreise, D. 911: 23. Der Lindenbaum
You can marvel at the sounds and incredibly specific dynamics of the fortepiano that Kristian plays, and understand the subtleties of the time and tradition: each note is impeccably played with a pressure that is so distinct. As a singer, we can learn so much about the temperament of the key, the intonation, and focus of the vowels. To hear this type of piano writing, and specifically the way Kristian plays this instrument, is to time travel.
Christian Gerhaher and Gerold Huber — Nachtgesang, D. 314
Christian Gerhaher is one of my favorites for his accuracy and attention to detail. The diction is incredibly clear, and I think he is the best at economy of sound and voice. It’s very difficult to find a singer that can find so much beauty in the simplest of sounds, and Gerhaher does it without fail, especially in this exquisite gem.
Anne Sofie von Otter and Bengt Forsberg — Im Abendrot, D. 799
This was the recording that made me fall in love with Schubert and realize how human he was. At 34 years old, I’m beginning to understand some of his questions, musings, humor, and above all uncertainty in life ahead. I heard this track on an evening before church choir rehearsal, and I have never found a spirituality more inherent. How could we complain? With Schubert to sing, how could we lose faith in ourselves?
Please play the video below to listen to Clara’s dream recital as a playlist.
November 13, 2020
