Earlier today I was blown away when I listened to Soprano Barbara Hendrix sing the music of Felix Mendelssohn. What struck me was what amazing skills she displayed in sustaining musical phrases.
Personally, I find that so many singers seem to run out of breath at the end of an important musical statement, because they need air. Not so for Ms. Hendrix! What I heard was an amazing ability to bring so much meaning to both the poet’s words and the music, because the phrase remained out there, extended as it were for me to fully experience it.
While I was unsuccessful in locating a video of ‘On Wings of Song’, which she sang for me this morning, I DID find her wonderful interpretation of Schubert’s ‘Du bist die Ruh’ (You are the Rest). Listen to Ms. Hendrix now and allow yourself to indulge in her sounds:
