BETH TAYLOR — JULIUS DRAKE

Unfortunately, Ailyn Pérez must withdraw from her recital for personal reasons. The mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor — who dazzled Aix audiences with the intensity of her performance in the solo alto part of Requiem, revived this summer at the Théâtre de l’Archevêché — has agreed to perform instead, still accompanied by Julius Drake.

REYNALDO HAHN
“Néère”, from Études latines, on a poem by Charles Leconte de Lisle
“When I Was Taken to the Pavilion” (Quand je fus pris au pavillon), from Rondels, on a poem by Charles d’Orléans
“The Exquisite Hour” (L’Heure exquise), from Chansons grises, on a poem by Paul Verlaine
HEDWIGE CHRÉTIEN Petits Poèmes du bord de l’eau (Little Poems by the Waterside), a cycle of six songs on poems by Ludovic Fortolis
EDWARD ELGAR Sea Pictures, Op. 37, a cycle of five songs
ROBERT SCHUMANN Frauenliebe und -leben (A Woman’s Love and Life), Op. 42, a cycle of eight songs on poems by Adelbert von Chamisso
GERMAINE TAILLEFERRE “La Rue Chagrin” (Sorrow Street), song on a poem by Denise Centore
AUGUSTA HOLMÈS “Le Vin” (Wine), from Sept Ivresses (Seven Intoxications), a cycle of seven songs on poems by the composer herself

Giving voice to women — whether as composers, poets or lead characters — is the ambition behind this programme of nineteenth- and twentieth-century mélodies and Lieder. The mezz-soprano Beth Taylor lends her burnished tones to a lesser-known French repertoire, including the impressionistic lyricism of Hedwige Chrétien, the naturalistic insouciance of Germaine Tailleferre, the bold freedom of Augusta Holmes and the symbolist elegance of Reynaldo Hahn. The Scottish singer will also bring to life Frauenliebe und -leben, a cycle written by Robert Schumann for his wife, the composer Clara Wieck-Schumann; and Elgar’s magnificent Sea Pictures, composed specifically for the extraordinary contralto Clara Butt. These stories and words by women creators resonate more powerfully today than ever before.
Guillaume Picard

DOWNLOAD THE PROGRAMME (IN FRENCH)