Frederick Schauwecker, Jussi Bjorling - Jussi Björling Rediscovered

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Music reviews of Jussi Björling Rediscovered

Music Review: A Jussi Bjorling 'discovery' to cherish forever
Rating: 5 Stars

Bjorling possessed what is probably the most beautiful voice ever to come out of a human throat - a sweet, powerful, radiant sound with unbelievable high notes and an 'unshed tear' that makes anything he sings deeply affecting. What is even more important is how Bjorling uses this voice. His musicianship is astonishing, he pays deep attention to the texts, and he is capable of the most extraordinary level of nuance. He often scales down his heroic voice to delicate pianissimi, something many other singers either cannot or will not do in a space the size of Carnegie Hall. He sings in six languages (including excellent English!) and a dizzying variety of styles, moving with ease from a gentle ballad to a operatic tour-de-force. Ultimately, Bjorling is a poet and a storyteller, not just someone who emits gorgeous notes.

The program is extremely generous - 25 selections including 10 encores (most announced by the tenor in his beautiful speaking voice), inserted between song sets as well as sung at the end. While Bjorling is still warming up during the first selection, 'Adelaide', and probably not even he could equal his unsurpassable 1939 recording, he is on superb form by the beginning of the Schubert group, highlighted by an appropriately quicksilver and sympathetic 'Die Forelle' (he was an avid fisherman!) and a 'Die Bose Farbe' full of rage, pain, resignation and tenderness. Moving to Strauss, Bjorling inhabits two kinds of ecstasy - the gentle seductiveness of 'Traum durch der Dammerung' and the explosive passion of 'Caecilia' . However, Bjorling is most himself in Scandinavian music, rarely more heartfelt than when singing in Swedish. Indeed, he is one of the singers most responsible for making the songs of Grieg and Sibelius popular and part of the standard recital repertoire. Although Bjorling sang many versions of 'Sav, sav susa', 'Svarta rosor', and 'Tonerna', these may well his finest on record. Two songs by Paolo Tosti - the sweetest, tenderest 'Ideale' imaginable and a blazing 'L'alba separa della luce ombra' - are better than many versions by native Italians. And what a special treat 'Jeannie With The Light Brown Hair' is! Singing with complete simplicity and sincerity and gorgeous legato, Bjorling actually makes us hear the night wind sigh and the rain sob.

And of course, what would a Bjorling recital be without plenty of opera? This is probably the only time he ever sang 'Il mio tesoro'- a pity as his superb breath control makes the difficult runs look easy and his Don Ottavio could never be a 'musical nitwit'. Actually, many of the arias sung here are from operas that Bjorling unfortunately never sung on stage or even recorded in their entirety. He gives a lesson in French style in the Flower Song from 'Carmen' and the Dream from 'Manon', sings 'Come un bel di di maggio' with appropriately poetic abandon (what a pity we can't have his Improvviso as well!), and thrills in his favorite encore aria 'Amor ti vieta'. Cavaradossi and Rodolfo are no less wonderful for being known quantities. The piece de resistance, though, is the jaw-dropping 'Addio alla madre' from 'Cavalleria Rusticana', which makes mincemeat of accusations that Bjorling was a 'cold' singer who 'had no passion' and 'couldn't act'!

Frederick Schauwecker was Bjorling's main accompanist for his American tours and one of his best friends; their rapport is evident. He matches his singer for high drama, but isn't quite as effective in some of the quieter and subtler selections. I suspect this is less his fault than the fact that (at least on my equipment) there is a lot of feedback on loud piano notes even at medium volume, making him sound more ham-fisted than he undoubtedly was. Prior to working with Bjorling, Schauwecker had played for several noted singers including Giovanni Martinelli and Richard Crooks.

Piano feedback aside, the sound is clear and present, if not as warm as I remember the LP being; this recital could have been sung yesterday. The audience is understandably ecstatic - so much that the recording engineers had to cut some of the applause in order so that the entire concert could fit on one disc. Actually, there are a few moments where I wish the audience would have let Bjorling FINISH his selection before breaking into a rapturous response!

The CD comes in an beautifully produced, ecologically sound digipak. Full texts and translations are included, as well as a fine essay on both singer and recital by my favorite Bjorling expert, Cantor Don Goldberg, comments from the reissue producer, photos, and reminiscences from fans who were at the concert.

Forty-three years after his death, Jussi Bjorling continues to thrill and inspire new generations of opera lovers and singers. For this reason, I call upon RCA to issue on CD everything left from their Bjorling LPs, especially his final August 1960 concert, with a Swedish-language 'In fernem land' which surpasses any other version in ANY language. There will always be room for 'new' Bjorling, and there are still untold numbers of people who are waiting to discover - and rediscover - what great singing is all about.

Description of Jussi Björling Rediscovered

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