Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin Roderick Williams & Iain Burnside

• Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828): Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795:
• 1Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: I. Das Wandern02:32
• 2Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: II. Wohin?02:22
• 3Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: III. Halt!01:41
• 4Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: IV. Danksagung an den Bach02:35
• 5Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: V. Am Feierabend02:48
• 6Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: VI. Der Neugierige04:05
• 7Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: VII. Ungeduld02:36
• 8Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: VIII. Morgengruß04:32
• 9Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: IX. Des Müllers Blumen03:32
• 10Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: X. Tränenregen03:26
• 11Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XI. Mein!02:21
• 12Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XII. Pause04:28
• 13Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XIII. Mit dem grünen Lautenbande02:20
• 14Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XIV. Der Jäger01:19
• 15Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XV. Eifersucht und Stolz01:49
• 16Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XVI. Die liebe Farbe04:46
• 17Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XVII. Die böse Farbe02:05
• 18Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XVIII. Trochne Blumen04:04
• 19Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XIX. Der Müller und der Bach04:00
• 20Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin, Op. 25, D. 795: XX. Des Baches Wiegenlied07:42
• Total Runtime01:05:03

Info for Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin

In this, the first of a series of three recordings of Schubert’s great song cycles for Chandos, Roderick Williams and Iain Burnside bring their formidable talents to bear on one of the pinnacles of classical lieder.

In November 2015, Williams decided to immerse himself in an intensive three-year period of studying and performing the three song cycles by Schubert, following an invitation from the Wigmore Hall to perform them – with Iain – in their 2017 / 18 season.

The process has involved not just performances in concert around the globe, but open rehearsals, master-classes, workshops, and radio broadcasts. Roderick Williams has documented all of these experiences in great detail in his fascinating Schubert Cycle Project blog.

He writes: ‘Somewhere along the way I came to a decision; that my eventual performances at the Wigmore would not be the ultimate goal of my study; rather, the study itself, the act of preparation would be my focus. It is possible that other singers might find the process interesting, even if only to share some of the grind that is most often done alone; it is also possible that others might be intrigued, especially audiences, perhaps even (fellow) students.’

"… The Chandos recording is ideally sensitive to the openness in Williams’s youthful baritone, which can shift eloquently both to a disarming clarity in his middle register to a haunted, veiled quality; he charts the miller’s minute dissection of ‘she-loves-me, she-loves-me-not’-type observations with deadly accuracy, and in his higher voice his light, flexible vibrato is immensely expressive… All this works powerfully in the pivotal songs, from ‘Pause’ (XII) to ‘Die böse Farbe’ (XVII), in which he teases out the millers amazement, jealousy and loss with unswerving insight, and the intertwining imagery of fate, flowing water and the colour green reveal how thoroughly both artists have understood the cycle’s poetic and emotional arch, gathering to a quietly devastating close. Burnside’s role at the piano is equally subtle, as he makes the distinction between confrontation and reflection with artless directness, and the recording ensures that the piano’s retreats never sound artificial… The Williams-Burnside duo is seriously sympathetic, with the sort of imagination that ensures there is something new to hear after many hearings of this fine release…” (Peter Reed, ClassicalSource.com)

"Popular baritone Roderick Williams has recorded a good deal of Schubert, some of it in English (which is rare these days). This reading of Die schöne Müllerin, D. 795, is the first of a trio of recordings devoted to Schubert's late song sets (Schwanengesang is not a true "cycle"), and it certainly suggests a major statement in the field. Call it a British Die schöne Müllerin, all intelligent restraint and precision. If you're looking for an inward, dramatic reading, try one of the newer German singers like Christian Gerhaher, who recites some of the poetry that originally connected lyrics. With Williams, there isn't a strong sense of a narrative developing in the cycle: what you have are 20 separate songs. Sample his dispassionate Trockne Blumen to hear whether you're in tune with his approach. Against this is the jewel-like quality of many of the individual readings. Williams and accompanist Iain Burnside have performed these songs together many times, and by now their partnership is one for the ages. Chandos' Potton Hall sound is ideal for this enterprise, and Williams' album is important listening, even for those who aren't entirely on board with his approach." (James Manheim, AMG)

Roderick Williams, baritone
Iain Burnside, piano

Roderick Williams
encompasses a wide repertoire, from baroque to contemporary music, in the opera house, on the concert platform and in recital. He enjoys relationships with all the major UK opera houses and is particularly associated with the baritone roles of Mozart. He has also sung world premières of operas by, among others, David Sawer, Sally Beamish, Michael van der Aa, Robert Saxton and Alexander Knaifel.

Roderick Williams sings concert repertoire with all the BBC orchestras, and many other ensembles including the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Philharmonia, London Sinfonietta, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, the Hallé, Britten Sinfonia, Bournemouth Symphony, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Orchestra of the Age of the Enlightenment. He has worked with the Berlin Philharmonic, Deutsches Symphonie- Orchester Berlin, Russian National Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome and Bach Collegium Japan, Tonkünstler Orchester, Cincinnati Symphony, Music of the Baroque Chicago, Virginia Arts Festival, San Francisco Symphony, Utah Symphony, amongst others. His many festival appearances include the BBC Proms (including the Last Night in 2014), Edinburgh, Cheltenham, Aldeburgh and Melbourne.

He is an accomplished recital artist who can be heard at venues and festivals including Wigmore Hall, Kings Place, LSO St Luke’s, the Perth Concert Hall, Oxford Lieder Festival, London Song Festival and the Musikverein, Vienna.

Roderick Williams is also a composer and has had works premièred at the Wigmore and Barbican Halls, the Purcell Room and live on national radio. In April 2016 he was Artistic Director of Leeds Lieder and in May 2016 won the RPS Singer award. His numerous recordings include two of Albion Records’ earlier albums: ALB001 The Sky shall be our Roof and ALBCD002 Kissing her Hair.

Iain Burnside
is an acclaimed vocal accompanist. Artists with whom he has collaborated include Dame Margaret Price, Susan Chilcott, Galina Gorchakova, Ailish Tynan, Susan Bickley, Ann Murray, John Mark Ainsley, Roderick Williams and Bryn Terfel. His recordings straddle an exuberantly eclectic repertoire ranging from Beethoven to Judith Weir with a special place reserved for the highways and byways of English Song, as much praised CDs of Britten, Finzi, Ireland, Butterworth, Gurney, Parry and Vaughan Williams have all proved. Delphian has just released Burnside’s complete Rachmaninov songs with seven outstanding Russian artists. He also enjoys a close association with Rosenblatt Recitals, both on stage and in the studio, in collaboration with Opus Arte.

He is a Sony Award-winning broadcaster and a master programmer, curating various festivals and recital series. In association with London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Burnside has written a number of highly individual theatre pieces, performed at the Barbican Centre, Milton Court and the Cheltenham Festival. A Soldier and a Maker, based on the life of Ivor Gurney, has been commissioned as a radio play as part of the BBC’s World War One season. In demand as teacher and animateur, Burnside also works at the Royal Opera House and the National Opera Studio. He is International Visiting Artist at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin.

Booklet for Schubert: Die Schöne Müllerin