Schubert:
- Winterreise D 911 (Winter’s Journey).
Performed by Jonas Kaufmann (tenor), and Helmut Deutsch (piano)
Along with Franz Schubert’s earlier song cycle “Die Schöne Müllerin”, the composer’s “Winterreise” is generally considered his greatest contribution to the Lied repertoire.
The Winterreise song cycle (Winter Journey) is set to 24 poems by the poet Wilhelm Müller and was completed by Schubert a year before his death in 1827.
After over 20 years of working together and countless performances of Winterreise, Jonas Kaufmann and his piano-partner Helmut Deutsch have now committed this music to disc.
Let me start with my Spotify file of this music, although it is performed by another singer:
In addition to singing at the world’s leading opera houses (the Met, La Scala, Vienna State Opera, Opéra de Paris, Royal Opera House London etc.), Jonas Kaufmann also performs at the Salzburg Festival each year, and he reaches an audience of millions with broadcasts of opera in cinemas and on television.
Austrian – born pianist Helmut Deutsch taught at the Musikhochschule Wien between 1967 and 1979, before holding the position of Professor of Lied Song at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München between 1986 and 2011. He regularly is invited to guest professor at various Universities. He is one of the leading authorities on Lied, and has won many prizes for his numerous recordings accompanying the world’s top singers.
The Financial Times, 22nd February 2014, wrote:
“Kaufmann has come to this music at the right time…Each of these 24 songs is stamped with integrity and seriousness of purpose…The most striking qualities are its artless simplicity, its vocal poise and sheer musicality, drawing maximum purchase on the dark beauty of Kaufmann’s timbre.”
Here is the Schubert song “Gute Nacht” (Good Night), from Winterreise, sung by Jonas Kaufmann:
http://youtu.be/3-OczZ7pRGA
And next, here is Jonas Kaufmann in the complete “Die schöne Müllerin”, by Schubert:
http://youtu.be/8iEV6oX83WU
Tags: Jonas Kaufmann, tenor, Helmut Deutsch, Schubert, Winterreise
