Christopher Howell's review on MusicWeb is fairly scathing about this wonderful disc; he claims to have been "plain bored stiff" by it. Well, it would be a funny old world if we all agreed but I am pained and mystified by his verdict, especially as he admits that it could very well be the best sung of all the recordings out there. And he is right about that, at least; Von Stade is in freshest voice, deploying rich, plaintive, plangent and wholly even tone throughout the extraordinary range of her lovely voice - yet, pace Mr Howell, also injecting profound feeling into key moments such as the great cri de coeur in "Absence" (my favourite song) about how the immense distance separating the lovers is enough to tire the horse's feet ("a lasser le pied des chevaux"). Ozawa's accompaniment has likewise been accused of being "soporific"; again, I do not find it so; merely measured and gently moulded, nothing showy or extreme - but plenty of detail and delicacy. The sultry passion of the Ravel songs is sensuously delineated and Von Stade caresses those semitone intervals - just occasionally sliding into a note a little too much for my liking - my only gripe. Most critics consider Crespin's reading on Decca Legends to be peerless. It is true that of course her treatment of the words is wonderfully nuanced but her basic quality of tone has often more than a touch of the fishwife about it. Von Stade is no slouch in French, either - and she has a more beautiful voice. This disc is a snip at bargain price and a must for those who love this song cycle (if it really is a song cycle - I don't much care; they are all about love, in any case). It seems to me that a mezzo with warm tone and a soprano's range is best suited to do this music justice, so this takes pride of place alongside Janet Baker's lovely, slightly cooler, version and Eleanor Steber's tour de force. (The other Berlioz items can also be found on Von Stade's French operatic recital disc; equally treasurable -see my review.)

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