Christine Brewer, Roger Vignoles, Wigmore Hall

Unqualified rapture - Strauss songs find their voice

by Edward SeckersonWednesday, 09 December 2009

American great: 'Christine Brewer in Richard Strauss is about as right as it gets'

Wigmore Hall does not always take kindly to big voices; it’s an easy hall to over-sing. But when the singer is the American soprano Christine Brewer and the sound so open, so rich and effulgent, hall and voice become one resonance. It’s almost as if Wigmore is selective in its response. It warms to the right voice in the right music. Brewer in Strauss is about as right as it gets. And besides, regardless of the venue, Brewer has never sung to be heard; she sings to be understood.

Explore topics

Share this article

The future of Arts Journalism

You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!

We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d

And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.

Subscribe to theartsdesk.com

Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.

To take a subscription now simply click here.

And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?

more Classical music

Mahan Esfahani, Wigmore Hall review - shimmering poise and radical brilliance Magnificent demonstration of a lifelong dedication to the harpsichord

Gromes, Hallé, Chauhan, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - new concerto and music of triumph Spirit of Germany in the 1930s captured in Herz’s tense and despondent work

Helen Charlston, Sholto Kynoch, Temple Church review - fine singing, powerful stage presence Coups de théâtre in a well-constructed programme

Ridout, 12 Ensemble, Wigmore Hall review - brilliant Britten and bombastic Brahms Dazzling solo and ensemble playing in pieces inspired by music of the past

Argerich, Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Papadopoulos, Barbican review - the great pianist as life and soul Her delivery of the Beethoven made it clear that she still merits legend status

Jessica Duchen: Myra Hess - National Treasure review - well-told life of a pioneering musician Biography of the groundbreaking British pianist who was a hero of the Blitz

Chamayou, BBC Philharmonic, Morlot, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - blasts of Boulez, magical Ravel Celebration of the two French masters continues in big bangs and gentleness

Classical CDs: Snow, shards and swinging oars Contemporary choral works, revamped lieder plus piano music from Ireland and Scotland

Bach's Mass in B minor, The English Concert, Bezuidenhout, St Martin-in-the-Fields review - solemnity and splendour The greatest of choral anthologies smoulders, then flies

Sidorova, Philharmonia, Alsop, Royal Festival Hall review - ladies of the dance Vitality, virtuosity and sensuality on a pan-American trip

MacMillan's Ordo Virtutum, BBC Singers, Jeannin, Milton Court review - dramatic journey of a medieval soul Choral music's finest advocate runs the gamut in an epic battle of heaven and hell

Gilliver, Liverman, Rangwanasha, LSO, Pappano, Barbican review - a rainbow of British music Poetic Maconchy and Walton, surging Vaughan Williams bursting its confines

Follow @theartsdesk