For the last few days I've been listening to probably my favorite music, Jessye Norman singing Strauss's Four Last Songs. I've loved them for as long as I remember. Still every time I listen, I am crushed and uplifted. I feel dunked in holy water and hung in sunshine to dry.
Conversation
I’ve been soaking in the Kiri Te Kanawa interpretation myself, but only because it’s the one I have on CD. I like Norman’s voice slightly better. But yeah. The composition is so of the moment.
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te Kanawa made two recordings, one in the early 80s with Andrew Davis, and a later one with Solti and the Vienna PO. That one with Solti is my favorite. Autumnal and radiant....
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I only have the Davis. It’s not great.
Yes, it’s a somewhat stiff performance compared to the Solti/Vienna version, which (for me) is far more subtle and compelling. Her catch in the throat on the word “wandermüde” at the end of “Im Abendrot” is like a shiver of mortality—unforgettable.
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