Songs about love, they can no longer be counted. Schubert's Winterreise, however, is a special case. This cycle starts exactly when love ends. And what follows is nothing but shocking. Gradually our hero loses all grip, his tracks are lost in a landscape of snow and ice. In the last song an old musician tries to get some music from his hurdy-gurdy. His fingers are stiff from the cold, the dogs growl
… at his bare feet. 'I keep discovering deeper layers', says baritone Matthias Goerne to Listen. Goerne sang the Winterreise in an alternative setting accompanied by sculptures by the South African artist William Kentridge. This idiosyncratic production of the Holland Festival, among others, does not have to hinder the CD discussed here. After all, the images come naturally to the listener as Goerne and his companion Eschenbach continue their icy journey. (HJ)more
