The excellent German soprano Anna Lucia Richter explores the heart-wrenching, timeless and universal feeling of “Heimweh” (German for homesickness) through a collection of extraordinary Schubert songs.
Richter approaches the notion of Heimweh from several perspectives: from that of queens, young girls and shepherds to that of soldiers, dwarfs and gravediggers. The repertoire consists of the original, German-language version of Ave Maria, three Mignon songs (Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt, Heiss micht nicht reden and So lasst mich scheinen), the sinister Der Zwerg, the expansive flower ballad Viola and many others.
Richter is accompanied by pianist Gerold Huber, with whom she has formed a congenial Lieder tandem in the last years. They are joined by clarinettist Matthias Schorn on the final song of the program, the quasi concert aria Der Hirt auf dem Felsen.
Anna Lucia Richter is a particularly enthusiastic lied singer. She has already built up an extensive repertoire and gives guest performances in all the major lied venues, for instance at the Schwetzingen SWR Festival, at the Heidelberger Frühling, the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, the Schubertiade Schwarzenberg and in der Wigmore Hall London. She made her USA debut giving three lied recitals in New York’s Park Avenue Armory, accompanied by Gerold Huber. This season she can again be heard in New York, this time in the Weill Hall of the Carnegie Hall singing her highly acclaimed and unusual Liederkreis programme of Eichendorff settings and improvisations, accompanied by Michael Gees. She also gives lied recitals at the Schubertiade Vilabertran, in the Bavarian Radio studio in Munich and in the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.
Here is Ms. Richter in Schubert’s “Der Hirt auf dem Felsen”
