**** Bo Skovhus received good scores on this site for his recording of Die schöne Müllerin by Franz Schubert (link to text, July 2017). With Winterreise he completed the recording of the three great song cycles and again collaborated with pianist Stefan Vladar for this. The baritone confirms his talent as a great art song singer.
The performers set a brisk pace with Gute Nacht, a fast opening that simultaneously creates a certain tension. In other "fierce" songs such as Der stürmische Morgen they go at it with full force. But that certainly does not mean they work without nuance. On the contrary. In the intimate songs the tension is internalized and the tempo is precisely chosen to never become monochrome or monotonous. Thus Auf dieser ganzen Reise, the final verse of Der greise Kopf, sounds long and laborious. In his tenor-baritone timbre Skovhus applies never exaggerated vibrato and the voice intones where appropriate frêle and velvety. He sings with much textual meaning and applies fine nuances. Just listen to the way he sings Fein Liebchen in the first song, geweinet in Gefror'ne Tränen or süssen Traum in Der Lindenbaum. Das Wirtshaus he begins with a tone like a sad funeral song and Stefan Vladar plays the accompaniment in parallel as an extremely slow marcia funebre. In the closing song Der Leiermann the courageous tone of the first song has meanwhile turned into pure stillness.
Skovhus is a paragon of the cultivated art song singer, with perfect legato and outstanding voice control. Stefan Vladar is his perfect partner and like-minded ally at the piano. A CD that presents the singer as a moving and very personal interpreter and that can stand alongside the most sublime recordings – which for me personally are Ian Bostridge and Matthias Goerne. This recording makes me look forward to seeing Skovhus again live in Das Floss der Medusa by Hans Werner Henze, coming soon at De Nationale Opera Amsterdam in the Opera Forward series.
- WHAT: Franz Schubert (1797-1828) | Winterreise
- WHO: Bo Skovhus (baritone) and Stefan Vladar (piano)
- RELEASE: Capriccio C5291
