Texte paru dans: / Appeared in: Linn |
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Reviewer: Michael
Ullman Described as a “Rising Star of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment,” soprano Rowan Pierce was not too long ago a “Britten-Pears Young Artist.” Her youth may partially account for the beautifully rich tone of her voice and for its extraordinary flexibility in these songs by Henry Purcell, if not for her musical intelligence. We hear evidence of all three in the initial song, The cares of lovers. In a way that sounds perfectly natural, Pierce sounds sad and restrained singing “the cares of lovers,” and then agitated in the highly decorated way she sings the two simple words, “their alarms.” And she is charmed, even entranced, a moment later when singing of lovers, “their tears have pow’rful charms.” She’s also an able vocal actress. In From Silent Shades, she sounds, well, furious, singing: “The Furies lash their whips and call,” and genuinely distressed singing “Cold and hungry am I grown.” Remarkably, none of these effects seem forced. Nor does she lose momentum while emphasizing or elaborating key moments of each song, which include the famous If music be the food of love and Music for a while. Pierce is discreetly accompanied by two masters, Richard Egarr and William Carter. They get two solo pieces to show some of their skills. Both have been warmly praised in these pages. The much scorned poet William Shadwell has rarely sounded this good. | ||||
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