SIGFRID KARG-ELERT: Four Lieder based on Poems by Melanie Barth, Op. 62; Moods and Contemplations, Op. 53; To My Woman, Op. 54; 10 Epigrams, Op. 562 lieder, Op. 43; 5 Lieder, Op. 52; 3 Lieder, Op. 59 – Markus Schafer, tenor/ Ernst Breidenbach, piano – NCA Multichannel SACD 60152-215, 62:32 [Distr. by Naxos] ***½:
Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877-1933) was a German composer of no little fame, best known for his choral works, lieder, works for the piano, chamber and orchestral music, and compositions for organ and harmonium. Claude Debussy, Alexander Scriabin, and Arnold Schoenberg were all influences, though none dominated his work. His works, especially those written for organ, were very popular in many countries of the world.
Though he did go through a period of relative decline, recently there has been a reassessment of his music, and the results are often favorable. Current there are over 125 recordings of his music on the market—not a bad number by any means—but none of his lieder. This is curious because he composed 150+ songs. These pieces are representative of this early and later periods, of varying styles—some linear and dependent on the complexities of the piano part, and others richly ornamented and submerged in a sea of late-romantic harmony.
The reward for this disc’s excellence—tenor Schafer’s passionate and easeful voice is a perfect choice for this music, and pianist Breidenbach possesses comparable and discerning accompanying skills—could have been four stars was it not for the sinful omission of English texts. With the complexity of the music, the sensitivity of the music to the words, and the fact that NCA provides a 75-page booklet, with excellent English notes on each set of lieder, why this production gaff occurred is simply beyond me. It is stupid and greatly hinders an understanding of Karg-Elert’s achievement for a non-German audience.
The sound is great, proving once again that even the smallest of chamber settings benefits greatly from Super Audio. This is the only game in town as far as I can tell, so that might be the decision-maker for many. But come on NCA, do some thinking about foreign buyers next time!
— Steven Ritter
