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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Since winning the Cardiff Singer of the World Competition in 1995, Katarina Karnéus' career has gone from strength to strength, and listening to this album it is not hard to hear why. She is an intelligent singer, with nothing of flashy display or extravagance about her performance. Everything here is handled with a simplicity and naturalness, even down to a miraculously controlled vibrato, which can only have been achieved by many sweaty hours of hard work. And she avoids the temptation of artificially forcing and darkening her voice that some mezzos fall into--which makes this disc a refreshing addition to the recorded mezzo repertory. Vignoles accompanies with an unobtrusive sensitivity, and perfectly supports Karnéus' long, floating phrases. She begins her selection of Lieder ("German with an Austrian twist") with Strauss, and proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that his songs need not only remain the sole province of sopranos. Her lower voice gives a number like Morgen! for example, (which she sings a tone below written) a particularly nostalgic and cool magic which is worth the price of the disc alone. --Warwick Thompson
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Customer Reviews
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent, particularly the five Marx songs,
By A Customer
This review is from: Mahler/Marx/R Strauss - Lieder (Audio CD)
This is a very good debut recital. And a nice Austrian theme, demonstrated particularly in the idiom of the Marx songs. If four stars appears churlish, the only reason for retaining the 5-star rating is that Karneus sounds even better in her native Swedish on the subsequent Sibelius CD for Hyperion. Also, if you can locate a back-issue there's an excellent version by Karneus of Les Nuits d'Ete on the cover CD of the April 2000 issue of BBC Music Magazine.Be warned however that as with several of the other discs in this EMI Debut series (i.e. the Shtoda recital, De Young recital, Russian choral recital and American Anthems) the original pressings, with black and white cover photos, did not include the librettos - which had to be downloaded from EMI's web page (though they have now vanished). That has now changed, although the catalogue numbers remain the same, and EMI have added full libretto-booklets distinguished by a colour photo CD cover. The only exception appears to be the Lemalu Brahms disc which has a colour booklet photo but still no texts.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Unforced, velvet control,
By g.morgan@ucc.ie (Cork; Ireland) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Mahler/Marx/R Strauss - Lieder (Audio CD)
What a give-away price for such a marvellous CD. If you enjoy lieder you will enjoy this collection. Karneus sings with relaxed assurance; no need to force no need to plays tricks, every note and every syllable perfectly audible and perfectly weighted. Listening to her renditions of all these songs, one is convinced that they can only be sung this way. The warmth and sympathy of Karneus's voice and where appropriate it's humour and gayiety shine through in these joyous performances. Roger Vignoles is masterly in his accompaniment and the clarity and delicacy of the piano line appears as if light in a forest clearing. Take this journey with Karneus into nature, childhood and the faint longings of the heart and be satisfied.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review) 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A beaautiful tone and appealing femininity carry this debut CD,
By Santa Fe Listener - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Mahler/Marx/R Strauss - Lieder (Audio CD)
Having released this album in their "Debut" series, EMI realized that young Swedish mezzo Kararina Karneus, who was trained in London, has turned into a rising star, so you will see the CD repackaged with a more attractive cover. The company has gamely promoted quite a few young female singers -- Sally Matthews, Alice Coote, and Kate Royal among them -- and of that crop, I think the potential stars are Royal and Karneus. the latter has a bright mezzo that sounds like a ripe soprano but with plenty of flexibility. The tone is immediately appealing, and her musical instincts make her an emotionally spontaneous, natural interpreter. What could be better?
I've heard online performances from Karneus that made me sit up before I came to this CD. She's much in demand in Europe, singing the familiar Mozart-Mahler, Strauss axis, two of which are featured here. With able, but not inspired, accompaniments from Vignobles, Karneus is at home in every song. Like Royal, her approach isn't flashy at first; she's comfortable and relaxed much of the time, but what keeps your ear interested is the gorgeous, even voice and its femininity. The only weakness I hear is a lack of rhythm, but this may be due to the pianist as much as the singer. Since Stauss's songs call for a steady stream of tone, she's most successful there. the folk-inspired innocence of Mahler's early Lieder und Gesange also suit her charming style, but here I wanted more dynamism and alertness to the composer's changes of mood. Karneus doesn't really change her style from what she uses for Strauss. The great Ruckert Lieder find her a bit out of her depth, but she's up against great interpreters like Janet Baker and Kathleen Ferrier. Of the Marx songs I know nothing and cannot comment. In all, I think EMI has found an outstanding young talent. The voice is certainly there; now let's see where the artist goes. |
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