Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Romances (Christianne Stotijn; Julius Drake)

Information

Composer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

• 20 Romances

Christianne Stotijn, mezzo-soprano
Julius Drake, piano

Date: 2008
Label: Onyx Classics
http://www.onyxclassics.com/cddetail.php?CatalogueNumber=ONYX4034

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Review

If Tchaikovsky’s songs are not well enough known, Stotijn could change all that

As the penultimate track on this very beautiful recital, Christianne Stotijn and Julius Drake perform “Can it be day?”, the song that was once known as “Pour toi”. This was recorded long ago by Grace Moore with a sumptuous Hollywood orchestration, and its surge of ecstatic, not to say erotic, melody comes as a welcome reminder that the Tchaikovsky of Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake could occasionally make himself felt in his songs. For the most part these are angst-ridden stories of death and lost love. The two best-known songs open proceedings: “At the Ball”, with its reminiscence of unrequited passion to the lilt of a sad waltz, and then “None but the lonely heart”. Everyone conceivable from Rosa Ponselle to Frank Sinatra has recorded this, but Stotijn loses nothing in comparison with ghosts from the past. Her voice is a full-blooded mezzo but steady and true, without a hint of that vibrato that can often disturb the line in Slavonic singers (Stotijn is from the Netherlands).

The emotional climax of the selection comes with “The Bride’s Lament”. This outpouring of grief (sometimes called “Was I not a blade of grass”) can seem over melodramatic but Stotijn and Drake find exactly the right mood. The piano parts are superbly done: in every sense these songs are duets. There are a couple of other light moments – “Cuckoo”, one of 16 children’s songs composed in the 1880s (this used to be a favourite of Elisabeth Söderström), and a “Gypsy Song” from around the same time. Tchaikovsky’s songs are not nearly well enough known and this superb recital should encourage more interest in them. A second volume, please, and soon! Highly recommended.

-- Patrick O'Connor, Gramophone

More reviews:
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2009/March09/Tchaikovsky_Onyx4034.htm
http://www.classicalsource.com/db_control/db_cd_review.php?id=6721
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/recordings/cd-tchaik-stotijn-0209.shtml
https://www.amazon.com/Tchaikovsky-Romances-Christianne-Stotijn/dp/B001IYC514

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Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (25 April/7 May 1840 – 25 October/6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the romantic period who wrote some of the most popular music in the classical repertoire. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote many works that are popular with the classical music public, including his Romeo and Juliet, the 1812 Overture, three ballets, last three symphonies, the 1st Piano Concerto and the Violin Concerto. Despite his many popular successes, Tchaikovsky's life was punctuated by personal crises and depression.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyotr_Ilyich_Tchaikovsky

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Christianne Stotijn (born 1977 in Delft) is a Dutch mezzo-soprano. She started her music education as a violinist and studied violin and singing at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. In 2003 Stotijn completed her conservatory training in Metz with the highest distinction for recital singing and opera. The conductor Bernard Haitink has had a major influence on her musical career. Stotijn is the winner of the Dutch Music Prize 2008, the highest award of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science for a musician working in classical music. Stotijn recorded for the Onyx label and, since 2014, for Warner Classics.
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianne_Stotijn
http://www.christiannestotijn.com/

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