Richard Strauss
Three Hymns & Opera Arias
Soile Isokoski, soprano
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
Okko Kamu, conductor
Track listing
8 tracks · 60:46Richard Strauss
- from Ariadne auf Naxos, Op. 60
- 1 Ein Schönes war (Ariadne) 5:51
- 2 Es gibt ein Reich (Ariadne) 5:13
- Three Hymns, Op. 71
- 3 1. Hymne an die Liebe 8:42
- 4 2. Rückkehr in die Heimat 7:04
- 5 3. Die Liebe 6:28
- from Der Rosenkavalier, Op. 59
- 6 Die Zeit, die ist ein sonderbar Ding (Marschallin) 2:38
- 7 Da geht er hin (Marschallin) 4:51
- from Capriccio, Op. 85
- 8 Closing scene (Countess) 19:59
About this recording
On this release of legendary Strauss-singer Soile Isokoski the rarely recorded Three Hymns are coupled with opera arias from Ariadne auf Naxos, Der Rosenkavalier and Capriccio. All these arias are part of Soile Isokoski's standard repertoire, she has performed them regularly at opera houses like Vienna State Opera, Covent Garden, Milan's La Scala, the Semperoper in Dresden, in Berlin, Paris and at prestigious festivals like Salzburg, Edinburgh, Orange and Savonlinna.
A multiple award-winner, Iskokoski's recording of Strauss's Four Last Songs won a Gramophone Award in 2002, in March this year it was the Winner in the blind test arranged by French magazine Classica.
Three Hymns is a major work, which so far has been surprisingly rarely recorded, no doubt partly because of the great vocal demand it poses to the soloist. Nonetheless they are atmospheric concert pieces with Strauss' orchestration in full bloom. They already anticipate the Four Last Songs and are waiting to be rediscovered.
Features
Booklet with liner notes in English, German and Finnish and the lyrics in German and English
Press
Hier (Drei Hymnen) wie in den drei Opernrollen zeigt sich die unverbrauchte Frische der Stimme, die in der Höhe wahrhaft hymnische Leuchtkraft entwickelt.
Ekkehard Pluta, Klassik-Heute.de, 16.11.2012
La admirable soprano finlandesa, que se encuentra en su dorada madurez, posee las mejores cuualidades para ello: un timbre de perladas irisaciones, que se expande límpido y generoso -cada vez con más cuerpo, lo que le permite incorporar papeles levemente dramáticos-, y un fraseo aristocrático.
Rafael Banús Irusta, Diverdi 11/2012
Soile Isokoski is an ideal interpreter of Richard Strauss's music. This satisfying if not electrifying recital combines poised performances of scenes from the operas ... with the rarely heard Three Hymns, written in 1921 in a style that is palpitating and creamily rapturous.
Rupert Christiansen, The Daily Telegraph, 13.10.2012
Soile Isokoski in dieser Partie (der Madeleine aus Capriccio) zu loben hieße Eulen nach Athen tragen - dass das Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra unter Leitung von Okko Kamu einen so flammenden Strauss-Klang beherrscht, hat sich hingegen noch nicht genug herumgesprochen.
Andreas Schubert, HR2-Kultur, Der CD-Tipp, 11.10.2012
Soile Isokosken sointi on edelleen majesteetillisen lempeä.
Auli Särkiö, Rondo Classic 10/2012
It's good to have a souvenir of her distinguished Marschallin and her Madeleine (...). With Kamu's Helsinki orchestra providing a lush underlay, Isokoski soars in the ecstatic Hölderlin settings.
HC, The Sunday Times, 30.9.2012 - CD of the Week
Huhtikuussa Helsingin uudessa Musiikkitalossa äänitetty levy on syntynyt onnellisten tähtien alla. Kapellimestarin, orkesterin ja solistin yhteistyö on saumatonta, ja esityksistä huokuu rauha ja tasapainoinen tunnelma. (...) Uudella levyllä kuuntelijan on turvallista heittäytyä Straussin musiikin hehkuun, intohimoon ja lähes ekstaattiseen tilaan: Soile Isokoski, Okko Kamu ja orkesteri kyllä kannattelevat kuulijaa ensimmäisestä viimeiseen nuottiin.
Risto Nordell, YLE Radio 1, Uudet levyt, 6.9.2012
The artists
Soile Isokoski
Soile Isokoski is recognized as one of the world's finest lyric sopranos. After graduating from the Sibelius Academy, she gave her début recital in Helsinki in 1986 and subsequently won a number of important international singing competitions. She made her début at the Finnish National Opera as Mimì in Puccini's La Bohème and has since delighted audiences and critics alike at opera houses in Vienna, Berlin, Munich, Hamburg, London, Milan and Paris, at The Metropolitan Opera and at music festivals in Salzburg, Savonlinna, Edinburgh and Orange.
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, the first professional symphony orchestra to be founded in the Nordic countries (1882), has grown from a band of 36 players to an orchestra of 102 regular members.
Okko Kamu
Okko Kamu was born in 1946 into a musical family in Helsinki, where his father played double bass in the Helsinki Philharmonic. At the age of two, Kamu started studying the violin with Väinö Arjava, the leader of the orchestra. In 1952, he continued with Onni Suhonen at the Sibelius Academy, where he also began studies on the piano. He became the leader of the Suhonen Quartet in 1964.
Also recommended
Richard Strauss
Vier letzte Lieder · Orchestral Songs
Soile Isokoski, soprano · Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin · Marek Janowski, conductor
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