Benjamin Britten - Songs & Proverbs of William Blake (Gerald Finley; Julius Drake)

Information

Composer: Benjamin Britten

• (01) Lemady
• (02) She's like the swallow
• (03) I wonder as I wander
• (04) Tom Bowling
• (05) Songs & Proverbs of William Blake, Op. 74
• (19) Tit for Tat
• (24) Um Mitternacht
• (25) A Poison Tree
• (26) This way to the tomb
• (29) David of the White Rock
• (30) Greensleeves
• (31) The Crocodile
• (32) The Deaf Woman's Courtship
• (33) Bird Scarer's Song

Gerald Finley, baritone
Julius Drake, piano

Date: 2010
Label: Hyperion
https://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA67778

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Review

Britten’s dramatically powerful Blake cycle is a tall order for Finley and Drake

Sternly, even fiercely standing its ground, the Blake cycle is one of Britten’s most unaccommodating works. Closest in its own genre is perhaps the Donne cycle but there the confrontational force is eased from time to time: with Blake there is no counterpart to “Since she whom I loved”. Nor, if we think of Hardy and Winter Words, is there a place for smiles, even with an ironical twist, or, musically, a place where lyricism blossoms as in “A time there was”. Possibly, in their contrasting ways, tiger and fly combine in the overall form to constitute a scherzo but there is no relaxation of the taut, concentrated expression. The defining character and linkage throughout, moreover, are provided by the proverbs, darkly luminous and fearsome in their didactic conviction.

Of course they challenge the listener, but how much more actively the singer and pianist. They were written for Fischer-Dieskau, more out of respect (it would seem) than affection, and their focus is uncompromisingly serious. There is also implicit recognition of his dramatic power, akin to Aribert Reimann’s when he wrote his opera Lear with the great baritone at its centre. It is this which I would say Gerald Finley does not (yet maybe) command. The point is reinforced by comparison with Benjamin Luxon and David Willison. Luxon catches the Old Testament prophet’s voice which is Blake’s in these subversive utterances. His tiger has more danger in its spring, his poison tree bears stranger, more potent, fruit. Finley as ever acquits himself as a fine singer, a conscientious artist and a thoroughly reliable musician. But the mantle of Elijah is not upon him.

In all else he is excellent: the De la Mare mini-cycle Tit for Tat, the tall story of the wonderful crocodile, the hauntingly dissatisfied “Greensleeves”, the comedy pieces for deaf woman and bird-scarer. In all (including the Blake) Julius Drake is the superb pianist – and perhaps that should be transferred from last sentence to first.

-- John Steane, Gramophone

More reviews:
ClassicsToday  ARTISTIC QUALITY: 10 / SOUND QUALITY: 10
https://www.ft.com/content/fdc3f8d6-7784-11df-802a-00144feabdc0
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jun/03/britten-william-blake-finley-drake
https://www.allmusic.com/album/britten-songs-proverbs-of-william-blake-mw0002002324
https://www.amazon.com/Britten-Songs-Proverbs-William-Blake/dp/B003IEAMEO

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Benjamin Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British classical music, with a range of works including opera, other vocal music, orchestral and chamber pieces. Over the next 28 years, he wrote 14 more operas, establishing himself as one of the leading 20th-century composers in the genre. Britten's other works range from orchestral to choral, solo vocal, chamber and instrumental as well as film music. Britten was also a celebrated pianist and conductor, performing many of his own works in concert and on record.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Britten

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Gerald Finley (born January 30, 1960 in Montreal) is a Canadian baritone opera singer. He received his musical education in St. Matthew's Anglican Church, Ottawa, the University of Ottawa, King's College, Cambridge and the Royal College of Music in London, England. Finley is particularly renowned for his interpretations of Mozart roles such as Guglielmo, Papageno, Figaro, the Count and Don Giovanni. He has been critically praised both in opera and in concert, being praised by audience and critics alike. Finley has appeared on a number of recordings, including several solo albums on the Hyperion label.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Finley
http://www.geraldfinley.com/

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Julius Drake (born 5 April 1959 in London) is an English pianist who works as a song recital accompanist and chamber musician. Drake was educated at the Purcell School and the Royal College of Music; he made his professional debut at the Purcell Room in 1981 and developed a special affinity for the music of Robert Schumann. Drake is now a professor at the Royal Academy of Music and a visiting professor at the Royal Northern College of Music. His numerous recordings include playing on screen in David Alden's 1997 film of Schubert's Winterreise for Channel 4 with Ian Bostridge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Drake
http://www.juliusdrake.com/

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