THE DIVINE MUSE ARTIST’S NOTE

One of the challenges of being in a recital Haydn, Schubert and Wolf (who all came from 1 Vedi, quanto adoro, D.510 Franz Schubert (1797-1828) [4.29] duo is finding new and interesting ways to the same lineage of Austrian composers) each 2 Son fra l’onde, D.78 Franz Schubert [1.48] present programmes to our audiences. When took the Lied art form into new harmonic and 3 Die Götter Griechenlands, D.677 Franz Schubert [4.06] researching, one is often flooded with songs expressive realms during their lifetimes and, 4 Ganymed, Goethe Lieder No. 50 Hugo Wolf (1860-1903) [5.26] about love or springtime, loss or longing and above all, what they shared was a love of poetry 5 Zum neuen Jahr, Mörike Lieder No. 27 Hugo Wolf [1.51] it can be difficult to find originality of theme and text. All three composers clearly found 6 Seufzer, Mörike Lieder No. 22 Hugo Wolf [2.34] (not that it is always necessary to have a inspiration when setting these texts to music, 7 Gebet, Mörike Lieder No. 28 Hugo Wolf [2.38] theme of course). So the idea for this album creating with them some of Lied’s greatest 8 Gesang Weylas, Mörike Lieder No. 46 Hugo Wolf [1.43] came when Joseph Middleton wanted to create works. We very much hope you enjoy this 9 Ganymed, D.544 Franz Schubert [4.06] a programme that reflected my interest album and the stories within. Arianna a Naxos, Hob XXVIb:2 Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) in mythology and the history of religion (I 0 No 1, Recitative: Teseo mio ben! [4.54] read Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic Studies Mary Bevan, 2019 q No 2, Aria: Dove sei, mio bel tesoro? [4.16] at Cambridge). In thinking along these lines w No 3, Recitative: Ma, a chi parlo? [3.19] we found a wealth of texts set to music which e No 4, Aria: Ah! che morir vorrei [3.58] were inspired by people (mostly women as it turned out) who lived within the spheres of r Geistliches Lied, Hob XXVI:17 Joseph Haydn [3.33] myth and divinity, i.e. they were ‘other-worldly’ t Gott im Frühlinge, D.448 Franz Schubert [1.57] but yet suffered all the pains of humanity. Or y Marie, D.658 Franz Schubert [1.30] they were of the earth but the experiences u Wie glänzt der helle Mond, Alte Weisen No. 6 Hugo Wolf [3.42] they lived through set them apart from i Auf ein altes Bild, Mörike Lieder No. 23 Hugo Wolf [2.26] others. Jesus himself appears throughout the o Die ihr schwebet, Spanisches Liederbuch No. 4 Hugo Wolf [2.43] programme, as does his mother Mary, since p Schlafendes Jesuskind, Mörike Lieder No. 25 Hugo Wolf [3.36] themes of Christianity often inspired poetic

Total timings: [64.35] texts and indeed art forms of all kinds. It is because these heroes and heroines lived through moments of intense pain or drama MARY BEVAN SOPRANO JOSEPH MIDDLETON PIANO that their stories have great emotional depth. www.signumrecords.com - 3 - THE DIVINE MUSE the 16 verses – the one which expresses most settings of ‘Ganymed’ and ‘Prometheus’ had not Gebet, like the equally famous ‘Verborgenheit’, powerfully the sense of loss. The song is justly been entirely successful, and that ‘it was left to a is a fervent plea to avoid violent emotional Vedi quanto adoro comes from Act II, scene famous for the alternations between minor and post-Wagner era to compose these magnificent upheavals (Mörike had been seduced by the 4 of Metastasio’s first full-length opera libretto major modes, A minor for the wistfully repeated poems’. While Schubert’s setting of Ganymed young Maria Meyer, a relationship that produced Didone abbandonata. Schubert, having composed ‘Schöne Welt, wo bist du?’ and A major for the speaks more of contented love than yearning, the Peregrina poems and others in which he this aria, in which Dido pleads with Aeneas not (illusory) vision of an ideal Greek world. Wolf’s song, especially in the rise and fall strives to avoid amorous entanglements), to abandon her, asked Salieri for his opinion of the piano’s quavers above the stave, convey which Wolf sets to a sort of four-square hymn on his composition. Might he have had his Goethe’s Ganymed begins by describing a an intense yearning that is absent from tune, until at ‘doch in der Mitten/Liegt holdes eyes on an appointment at the opera house? common enough human experience, that of lying Schubert’s more melodious setting. Bescheiden’, the piano soars ecstatically Whatever – it is a most impressive operatic stretched out on a hill in springtime. The poet before descending gently into the final heart- scena and an ideal vehicle for a soprano with a then goes on to express the oneness of all things, Zum neuen Jahr is subtitled ‘Kirchengesang’ easing cadence. powerful top C. man, nature and creator, and addresses Spring as (‘Hymn’) – a song in diatonic mode that uses a lover. Ganymede in myth was raised up to a succession of parallel thirds in contrary During his childhood and adolescence, Mörike Of Schubert’s 11 solo settings of Metastasio, Olympus by Zeus, who had fallen in love with motion between the two hands to express used to explore the deep woods with two Son fra l’onde is one of the finest. Composed the boy, wished him to be his cup-bearer and the harmony of the text. Note how he handles friends, where they created their own at the age of 16, the music betrays Schubert’s abducted him in the guise of an eagle, as depicted the climax in verse two, by giving such kingdoms, peopled by elves and nixies. Orplid newly awakened interest in the world of opera. in Rembrandt’s fine painting in Dresden. In important words as ‘Lenke’, ‘Herr’, ‘Anfang’, was an island where they could escape the The words, from Metastasio’s Gli orti Esperidi, typical Sturm und Drang fashion, Goethe changes ‘Ende’ and, above all, ‘alles’, ever longer note pressures of the all too real world – but even describe Venus’s uncertainty as she lurches myth, although Zeus appears in a variety of values, until the music, significantly marked here the dionysian asserts itself, primeval between hope and despair, and Schubert in guises throughout the poem (morning breeze, ‘überströmend’, overflows with joy and praise. waters rise, rejuvenated, around the island’s this aria of turbulent right-hand semiquavers nightingale), Goethe has Ganymede borne aloft hips. Wolf told Emil Kauffmann that in Gesang expresses her commotion to perfection. by the intensity of the boy’s feelings – a process Like another priest, John Donne, Mörike had Weylas he imagined Weyla sitting on a that is given almost tangible form by Schubert’s a highly developed erotic side, and his guilt moonlit reef, accompanying herself on the Schiller’s Die Götter Griechenlands (1787), a key-design, from A flat to F major via G flat and is expressed with harrowing force in Seufzer, harp. The orchestral version increases the poem of 25 eight-line stanzas, laments the lost E major, also by the melismatic setting of the a poem he based on the Passion Hymn of incantatory mood by adding clarinet and horn. beauty of the Hellenic world and, in its original final phrase, and the soaring postlude of minims Fortunatus that he had found in an eighteenth version, contained sharp criticism of Christian and semibreves, marked pp and diminuendo. century hymnal. Wolf responds with a setting It was during his first London season in 1791 theology and iconography. Schubert’s song uses In a letter to Emil Kauffmann of 22 December of profound torment, packed with dissonances that Haydn performed Arianna a Naxos with Schiller’s second version and sets only one of 1890, Wolf expressed the view that Schubert’s and tolling bells in the accompaniment. the famous castrato Gaetano Pacchierotti

- 4 - - 5 - at a Ladies’ Concert held at the home of a Gott im Frühlinge, composed to a poem by an old woman, feeling death approach, imagines thirds, Wolf was clearly at pains to illustrate the Mrs Blair in Portland Place, then subsequently Johann Peter Uz, is a paean of praise to God. the scene that will await her in Paradise. impending danger that threatened both Mother at the Pantheon Theatre. The Morning Chronicle The song is a delight and though marked Keller, the atheist, eschews all sentimentality and Child, plenty of dynamic contrast, surging in its editions of 23 and 26 February gave ‘mäßig’ pulses along merrily, the first 47 and depicts the old crone with affectionate bass octaves at ‘Ihr Palmen von Bethlehem’, glowing reviews. The work had been written bars of the accompaniment have an identical humour. Wolf seems to misinterpret (or re- and chilling sforzandi at ‘Grimmige Kälte sauset two years previously, and deals with a theme figure comprising three pairs of four interpret?) the text, and writes one of his most hernieder’. The winds sough throughout until, that has attracted composers from Monteverdi semiquavers, of which the final two are beautiful songs, with pianissimo repeated in the miraculous postlude, they abate and to Richard Strauss and Alexander Goehr. played staccato. This rapturous mood is chords high above the stave, suggesting the finally vanish, as Wolf rounds off the song Ariadne, daughter of King Minos, having helped intensified in bar 48, where the staccatos night sky, and a sweet and harmonious close. with the opening motif in the opening key – but Theseus escape from Crete, has gone with vanish and the pianist is instructed to use this time marked not ‘ziemlich bewegt’ but him to the Island of Naxos. The opening the sustaining pedal, as though to underline In Auf ein altes Bild Mörike contemplates an ‘verklingend’ or ‘dying away’. recitative in E flat major, marked largo and triumphantly the poet’s final lines, ‘I shall old painting of the Virgin and Child resting in sostenuto, describes Ariadne calling Theseus. praise the Lord/ Who made me what I am!’ an idyllic landscape. The mood, however, is Schlafendes Jesuskind, based on a painting by There is no reply, and as her cries become disrupted at ‘Kreuzes Stamm’ by means of a the Renaissance artist Francesco Albani, is one more urgent, she sings the aria ‘Dove sei, mio When Novalis’s beloved, Sophie von Kühn, minor ninth, as the poet ponders that in the of Mörike’s most tender religious poems, and bel tesor!’ – a most expressive largo in B flat died on the eve of her fifteenth birthday, his forest the tree is already growing that will it inspired Wolf to compose a rapt and serene major. The aria is followed by a recitative whole world collapsed. Novalis mourned not provide the wood for Christ’s cross. The song which he instructs singer and pianist to in C and F major, Ariadne climbs to the top only by visiting Sophie’s grave and laying out dissonance, though, is of brief duration, and perform sehr getragen und weihevoll – in a very of a nearby hill and sees to her horror that her clothes at home to feel her nearness to though the little postlude repeats the stab of sustained and solemn manner. The opening Theseus’ ship has gone. Realizing that she him, but also by creating the wonderful Hymnen pain in a telling sforzando, the final two chords phrase, ‘Sohn der Jungfrau’, is repeated by has been abandoned, she laments her fate in an die Nacht and Geistliche Lieder, which resolve the tension in a magical return to Wolf at the end of the song in hushed the final F minor aria. helped him solve his emotional crisis. Marie is the major. adoration, the singer is requested to sing addressed to the Virgin Mary but also, obliquely, pp., wie in tiefes Sinnen verloren (as though Geistliches Lied comes from Haydn’s second to Sophie, whose death became for him a deeply Die ihr schwebet, from the Spanisches Liederbuch, lost in deep thought); and pianists must within set of X11 Lieder für das Clavier published in religious experience. Schubert sets the poem expresses Mary’s anxiety at the storm, as she two bars effect a diminuendo from ppp. to pppp. 1784. The only religious text in the collection, as a hymn tune, but it also sounds like a love song. shelters beneath the palm trees. Whereas in it is characterized by sforzato outbursts of Brahms’s setting of Lope de Vega’s poem (Op. © Richard Stokes grief that disturb the gradual unfolding of the Wie glänzt der helle Mond, from Wolf’s six Alte 91/2) it was the idea of peace that predominated, Adagio cantabile melody. Weisen, sets a poem by Gottfried Keller in which expressed by a seamless succession of parallel

- 6 - - 7 - TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS

1 Vedi quanto adoro You see how much I love you

Vedi quanto adoro You see how much I love you, Ancora ingrato! Ungrateful man! Con uno sguardo solo With one single glance Mi togli ogni difesa e mi disarmi. You destroy my defences and disarm me. Ed hai cor di tradirmi? Do you have the heart to betray me? E puoi lasciarmi? And can you leave me?

Ah! no lasciami, no, Ah, do not leave me, Bell’ idol mio: My beloved: Di chi mi fiderò, Whom shall I trust Se tu m’inganni? If you deceive me? Di vita mancherei I would die, Nel dirti addio; Taking leave of you; Che viver non potrei For I could not live Fra tanti affanni. With such grief.

from Didone abbandonata Pietro Metastasio

2 Son fra l’onde I am surrounded by waves

Son fra l’onde in mezzo al mare, I am surrounded by waves far out to sea, E al furor di doppio vento; A prey to the fury of fierce winds; Or resisto, or mi sgomento Now I am resolute, now I tremble, Fra la speme, e fra l’orror. Torn between hope and terror.

- 8 - - 9 - Per la fè, per la tua vita Now I fear for your faith, for your life, Unendliche Schöne! Beauty without end! Or pavento, or sono ardita, Now I am brave, Daß ich dich fassen möcht’ To clasp you E ritrovo egual martire And I find equal torment In diesen Arm! In these arms! Nell’ ardire e nell’ timor. In braveness and in fear. Ach an deinem Busen Ah, on your breast, from Gli orti Esperidi Lieg’ ich und schmachte, I lie and languish, Pietro Metastasio (1698-1782) Und deine Blumen, dein Gras And your flowers, your grass

Drängen sich an mein Herz. Press against my heart. 3 Die Götter Griechenlands The gods of Greece Du kühlst den brennenden You cool the burning Durst meines Busens, Thirst of my breast, Schöne Welt, wo bist du? Kehre wieder, Beautiful world, where are you? Come again, Lieblicher Morgenwind! Sweet morning breeze! Holdes Blütenalter der Natur! Sweet golden age of nature! Ruft drein die Nachtigall The nightingale calls out to me Ach, nur in dem Feenland der Lieder Ah, only in the enchanted land of song Liebend nach mir aus dem Nebeltal. Longingly from the misty valley. Lebt noch deine fabelhafte Spur. Does your fabled memory live on. Ausgestorben trauert das Gefilde, The fields, deserted, mourn, Ich komm’, ich komme! I come, I come! Keine Gottheit zeigt sich meinem Blick, No god appears before my eyes, Ach wohin, wohin? Where? Ah, where? Ach, von jenem lebenwarmen Bilde Ah, of all that living warmth Blieb der Schatten nur zurück. Only the shadows now remain. Hinauf strebt’s, hinauf! Upwards! Upwards I’m driven. Es schweben die Wolken The clouds float Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805) Abwärts, die Wolken Down, the clouds Neigen sich der sehnenden Liebe, Bow to yearning love. 4 & 9 Ganymed Ganymede Mir! Mir! To me! To me! Wie im Morgenglanze How in the morning radiance In eurem Schoße Enveloped by you Du rings mich anglühst, You glow at me from all sides, Aufwärts! Aloft! Umfangend umfangen! Embraced and embracing! Frühling, Geliebter! Spring, beloved! Mit tausendfacher Liebeswonne With thousandfold delights of love, Aufwärts an deinen Busen, Upwards to your bosom, Sich an mein Herze drängt The holy sense Alliebender Vater! All-loving Father! Deiner ewigen Wärme Of your eternal worth Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) Heilig Gefühl, Presses against my heart,

- 10 - - 11 - 5 Zum neuen Jahr A poem for the New Year Habs nicht geheget And have failed to tend it Und nicht gepfleget, And failed to cherish it, Wie heimlicher Weise Just as a cherub, Bin tot im Herzen – And am dead at heart – Ein Engelein leise Secretly and softly O Höllenschmerzen! O hellish pain! Mit rosigen Füßen Alights on earth Die Erde betritt, With rosy feet, from Maler Nolten So nahte der Morgen. So the morning dawned. Anon., trs. Eduard Mörike Jauchzt ihm, ihr Frommen, Cry out, you gentle souls, Ein heilig Willkommen! A holy welcome! 7 Gebet Prayer Ein heilig Willkommen, A holy welcome, Herz, jauchze du mit! O heart, rejoice as well! Herr! schicke, was du willt, Lord! send what Thou wilt, Ein Liebes oder Leides; Pleasure or pain; In ihm sei’s begonnen, May the New Year begin in Him, Ich bin vergnügt, daß beides I am content that both Der Monde und Sonnen Who moves Aus deinen Händen quillt. Flow from Thy hands. An blauen Gezelten Stars and planets Des Himmels bewegt. In the blue firmament. Wollest mit Freuden Do not, I beseech Thee, Du, Vater, du rate! O Father, counsel us! Und wollest mit Leiden Overwhelm me Lenke du und wende! Lead us and guide us! Mich nicht überschütten! With joy or suffering! Herr, dir in die Hände Lord, let all things, Doch in der Mitten But midway between Sei Anfang und Ende, Whether birth or death, Liegt holdes Bescheiden. Lies blessed moderation. Sei alles gelegt! Be entrusted into Thy keeping! Eduard Mörike

Eduard Mörike 8 Gesang Weylas Weyla’s song 6 Seufzer Sigh Du bist Orplid, mein Land! You are Orplid, my land! Dein Liebesfeuer, The fire of your love, Das ferne leuchtet; That shines afar; Ach Herr! wie teuer O Lord, Vom Meere dampfet dein besonnter Strand Sea-mists rise from your sunlit shore Wollt ich es hegen, How I longed to tend it, Den Nebel, so der Götter Wange feuchtet. And moisten the cheeks of the gods. Wollt ich es pflegen! How I longed to cherish it,

- 12 - - 13 - Uralte Wasser steigen Ancient waters climb, Stringi con nodo più tenace Who adores you with constancy, Verjüngt um deine Hüften, Kind! Rejuvenated, child, about your waist! E più bella la face With a more tenacious knot, Vor deiner Gottheit beugen Kings, who attend you, Splenda del nostro amor. And let the torch of our love Sich Könige, die deine Wärter sind. Bow down before your divinity. Soffrir non posso d’esser da Shine more brightly. te divisa un sol momento. I cannot bear to be separated Eduard Mörike (1804-1875) Ah, di vederti, o caro, from you for a single moment. già mi stringe il desio. Ah, the desire to see you, my love, 9 Ganymed – see track 4 Ti sospira il mio cor. already seizes me. Vieni, vieni, idol mio. My heart sighs for you. Arianna a Naxos Ariadne on Naxos Come, come, my idol! q 0 Aria Recitativo Dove sei, mio bel tesoro? Where are you, my beloved? Teseo mio ben! Ove sei? Ove sei tu? Theseus my love, where are you? Chi t’invola a questo cor? Who steals you from this heart of mine? Vicino d’averti mi parea, I thought that you were near, Se non vieni, io già mi moro, If you do not return, I shall die, Ma un lusinghiero sogno fallace m’ingannò. But a false and alluring dream tricked me. Nè resisto al mio dolor. Being unable to endure my grief. Già sorge in ciel la rosea Aurora Pink Aurora already rises in the sky, Se pietade avete, oh Dei, If you have pity, O Gods, E l’erbe e i fior colora Plants and flowers are coloured Secondate a’ voti miei, Hear my prayers, Febo uscendo dal mar col By Phoebus emerging from the sea A me torni il caro ben. Let my beloved return to me. crine aurato. with golden locks. Dove sei, Teseo, dove sei? Where are you, Theseus, where are you? Sposo adorato Adored husband, w Dove giudasti il piè? Where do your steps lead you? Forse le fere ad inseguir ti chiama Perhaps your noble ardour Recitativo Il tuo nobil ardor! Calls you to hunt wild beasts! Ma, a chi parlo? But to whom am I speaking? Ah, vieni! ah, vieni, Ah come! Ah come, my dearest, Gli accenti Eco ripete sol. Only Echo repeats my cries. o caro ed offrirò and I shall offer Teseo non m’ode. Theseus does not hear me. Più grata preda a tuoi lacci. A more welcome prey to your snares. Teseo non mi risponde, Theseus does not reply – Il cor d’Arianna amante Embrace the heart of E portano le voci e l’aure e l’onde. The winds and the waves bear away my words. Che t’adora costante, your loving Ariadne, Poco da me lontano esser egli dovria. He cannot be far away from me. Salgasi quello che più d’ogni altro Let me climb that cliff

- 14 - - 15 - S’alza alpestre scoglio, Which towers above all others, e Ivi lo scoprirò. And I shall see him. Aria Che miro? Oh stelle! Misera me! What do I see? Oh Heavens! Unhappy me! Ah! che morir vorrei Ah! How I long to die Quest’è l’Argivo legno! That is the Argive ship! In sì fatal momento, In such a fateful moment; Greci son quelli! Those are Greeks! Ma al mio crudel tormento But the unjust heavens Teseo! ei sulla prora! And Theseus is there in the prow! Mi serva ingiusto il ciel. Abandon me alive to cruel torment. Ah, m’inganassi almen . . . Ah! If only I were mistaken! Misera abbandonata, Unhappy and abandoned, No, no, non m’inganno. No! No! I am not mistaken. Non ho chi mi consola, I have no one to console me, Ei fugge, ei qui mi lascia in abbandono. He is escaping and he abandons me here. Chi tanto amai s’invola, The man I so loved flees from me, Più speranza non v’è, tradita io sono. I have no hope. I am betrayed. Barbaro ed infidel. Cruel and faithless. Teseo! Teseo! m’ascolta! Teseo! Theseus! Theseus! Hear me, Theseus! Ma oimè, vaneggio! But alas! I talk wildly! Anonymous I flutti e il vento The wind and the waves Lo involano per sempre agli occhi miei. Are stealing him forever from my sight. r Geistliches Lied Sacred song Ah, siete ingiusti, o Dei, Ah Gods! You are unjust Se l’empio non punite! If you do not punish this wicked man. Dir nah’ ich mich, nah’ mich dem Throne, I draw near to Thy throne Ingrato! Ingrato! Ungrateful wretch! Dem Thron der höchsten Majestät, The throne of highest majesty, Perchè ti trassi dalla morte? Why did I save you from death? Und mische zu dem Jubeltone And mingle my song of thanksgiving Dunque tu dovevi tradirmi? So that you could betray me? Des Seraphs auch mein Dankgebet. With the seraph’s song of praise. E le promesse? E i giuramenti tuoi? And your promises? And your vows? Bin ich schon Staub, ein Staub der Erden, Though I am but dust, dust of the earth, Spergiuro! Infido! Perjurer! Unfaithful man! Fühl ich gleich Sünd’ und Tod in mir, I feel both sin and death in me, Hai cor di lasciarmi? Have you the heart to leave me? So soll ich doch ein Seraph werden, But I shall become a seraph, Mein Jesus Christus starb dafür. My Jesus died for this. A chi mi volgo? To whom can I turn? Da chi pietà sperar? From whom can I hope for pity? Wort’ sind nicht Dank. Nein, edle Taten, Words are no thanks. No – noble deeds, Già più non reggo, il piè vacilla I can no longer stand, my legs give way, Wie Christus mir das Beispiel gibt, With Christ as my exemplar, E in così amaro istante And in such a bitter moment Vermischt mit Kreuz und Tränensaaten, Blended with affliction and tears, Sento mancarmi in sen I feel my breast is abandoned Sind Weihrauch, den die Gottheit liebt. Are the incense loved by God. L’alma tremante. By my trembling soul. Dies sei mein Dank, und denn mein Wille These be my thanks, and may my will

- 16 - - 17 - Sei jede Stunde dir geweiht! Be consecrated each hour to Thee! y Marie Mary Gib, daß ich diesen Wunsch erfülle Grant that I might continue thus Bis an das Tor der Ewigkeit. As far as the gates of eternity. Ich sehe dich in tausend Bildern, I see you in a thousand pictures, Maria, lieblich ausgedrückt, Mary, sweetly portrayed, Anonymous Doch keins von allen kann dich schildern, Yet none of them can show you, Wie meine Seele dich erblickt. As my soul has seen you. t Gott im Frühlinge God in Spring Ich weiß nur, daß der Welt Getümmel I only know that the world’s tumult In seinem schimmernden Gewand You have sent us Spring Seitdem mir wie ein Traum verweht, Has since vanished like a dream, Hast du den Frühling uns gesandt, In his shimmering robes, Und ein unnennbar süßer Himmel And an ineffably sweet heaven Und Rosen um sein Haupt gewunden. And entwined roses about his head. Mir ewig im Gemüte steht. Is forever in my heart. Holdlächelnd kömmt er schon! Here he comes, sweetly smiling, Es führen ihn die Stunden, The Hours lead him Novalis (1772-1801) O Gott, auf seinen Blumenthron. To his throne of flowers, O Lord. u Wie glänzt der helle Mond so kalt und fern How cold and distant the bright moon shines Er geht in Büschen, und sie blühen; He moves among the bushes, and they bloom; Den Fluren kommt ihr frisches Grün, The meadows take on their fresh green, Wie glänzt der helle Mond so kalt und fern, How cold and distant the bright moon shines, Und Wäldern wächst ihr Schatten wieder, And shade returns to the woods, Doch ferner schimmert meiner Schönheit Stern! But my beauty’s star gleams more distant still! Der West liebkosend schwingt The West Wind waves caressingly Sein tauendes Gefieder, Its dewy wings, Wohl rauschet weit von mir des Meeres Strand, The sea pounds the shore far away from me, Und jeder frohe Vogel singt. And every happy bird sings. Doch weiterhin liegt meiner Jugend Land! Farther still lies the land of my youth!

Mit eurer Lieder süßem Klang, With the sweet notes of your songs, O birds, Ohn’ Rad und Deichsel gibt’s ein Wägelein, There is a wagon without wheels or shafts, Ihr Vögel, soll auch mein Gesang Let my songs also Drin fahr’ ich bald zum Paradies hinein. I’ll soon drive in it to Paradise. Zum Vater der Natur sich schwingen. Soar up to the Father of Nature. Entzückung reißt mich hin! I am transported with rapture! Dort sitzt die Mutter Gottes auf dem Thron, The Mother of God sits there on her throne, Ich will dem Herrn lobsingen, I shall sing praises to the Lord, Auf ihren Knieen schläft ihr sel’ger Sohn. With her blessed Son asleep on her lap. Durch den ich wurde, was ich bin! Who made me what I am! Dort sitzt Gott Vater, der den heil’gen Geist There sits God the Father, with the Holy Ghost Aus seiner Hand mit Himmelskörnern speist. Whom He feeds from His hand with manna. Johann Peter Uz (1720-1796))

- 18 - - 19 - In einem Silberschleier sitz’ ich dann Then I’ll sit in a silver veil Wie mögt ihr heute Why do you bluster Und schaue meine weißen Finger an. And gaze at my white fingers. So zornig sausen! So angrily today? O rauscht nicht also! Oh roar not so! Sankt Petrus aber gönnt sich keine Ruh, Only Saint Peter will not take a rest, Schweiget, neiget Be still, lean Hockt vor der Tür und flickt die alten Schuh. He squats at the Gate and cobbles old shoes. Euch leis’ und lind; Calmly and gently over us; Stillet die Wipfel! Silence the tree-tops! Gottfried Keller (1819-1890) Es schlummert mein Kind. My child is sleeping. i Auf ein altes Bild On an old painting Der Himmelsknabe The heavenly babe Duldet Beschwerde, Suffers distress, In grüner Landschaft Sommerflor, In the summer haze of a green landscape, Ach, wie so müd’ er ward Ah, how weary he has grown Bei kühlem Wasser, Schilf und Rohr, By cool water, rushes and reeds, Vom Leid der Erde. With the sorrows of this world. Schau, wie das Knäblein Sündelos See how the Child, born without sin, Ach nun im Schlaf ihm Ah, now that in sleep Frei spielet auf der Jungfrau Schoß! Plays freely on the Virgin’s lap! Leise gesänftigt His pains Und dort im Walde wonnesam, And ah! growing blissfully there in the wood, Die Qual zerrinnt, Are gently eased, Ach, grünet schon des Kreuzes Stamm! Already the cross is turning green! Stillet die Wipfel! Silence the tree-tops!

Eduard Mörike Es schlummert mein Kind. My child is sleeping. o Die ihr schwebet You who hover Grimmige Kälte Fierce cold Sauset hernieder, Blows down on us, Die ihr schwebet You who hover Womit nur deck’ ich With what shall I cover Um diese Palmen About these palms Des Kindleins Glieder! My little child’s limbs? In Nacht und Wind, In night and wind, O all ihr Engel O all you angels Ihr heil’gen Engel, You holy angels, Die ihr geflügelt Who wing your way Stillet die Wipfel! Silence the tree-tops! Wandelt im Wind, On the winds, Es schlummert mein Kind. My child is sleeping. Stillet die Wipfel! Silence the tree-tops! Es schlummert mein Kind. My child is sleeping. Ihr Palmen von Bethlehem You palms of Bethlehem Im Windesbrausen, In the raging wind, Lope de Vega (1562-1635)

- 20 - - 21 - p Schlafendes Jesuskind The sleeping Christ-child Operatic highlights for Bevan include her Royal Danish Opera debut as Bellezza Il trionfo del Sohn der Jungfrau, Himmelskind! am Boden Son of the Virgin, Heavenly Child! Tempo e del Disinganno, Rose Maurrant Street Auf dem Holz der Schmerzen eingeschlafen, Asleep on the ground, on the wood of suffering, Scene at the Teatro Real, Madrid, the title role Das der fromme Meister, sinnvoll spielend, Which the pious painter, in meaningful play, in Turnage’s new opera Coraline for the Royal Deinen leichten Träumen unterlegte; Has laid beneath Thy gentle dreams; Opera at the Barbican, Zerlina Don Giovanni Blume du, noch in der Knospe dämmernd O flower, the Father’s glory, for English National Opera, and Merab Saul for Eingehüllt die Herrlichkeit des Vaters! Though still hidden in the dark bud! the Adelaide Festival. At the Royal Opera House, O wer sehen könnte, welche Bilder Ah, if one could see what images, Covent Garden, Bevan created the role of Lila in Hinter dieser Stirne, diesen schwarzen Behind this brow and these dark David Bruce The Firework-Maker’s Daughter, and Wimpern sich in sanftem Wechsel malen! Lashes, are reflected in gentle succession! also performed the roles of Barbarina Le nozze di Figaro and the title role in Rossi Orpheus at Eduard Mörike the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse.

On the concert platform, she has appearance with the BBC Symphony, BBC Concert Orchestra Mary Bevan at the Proms, and with Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla and the CBSO in the world premiere of Roxanna Praised by Opera for her “dramatic wit and In 2019/20, Bevan makes her role debut as Panufnik’s Faithful Journey. She joined the vocal control”, British soprano Mary Bevan is Eurydice in a new production of Orpheus in the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment as Mary internationally renowned in baroque, classical Underworld for English National Opera, performs in Sally Beamish The Judas Passion; performed and contemporary repertoire, and appears Sifare in Mozart Mitridate for Garsington Opera, Bach Christmas Oratorio on tour in Australia regularly with leading conductors, orchestras reprises the role of Rose Maurrant in Weill Street with the Choir of London and Australian Chamber and ensembles around the world. She is a Scene for Opera de Monte Carlo, and tours as Orchestra; and Handel Messiah with the Academy winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Diana Iphigenie en Tauride with the Orchestra of of Ancient Music. She also headlined a tour of Asia Young Artist award and UK Critics’ Circle Award the Age of Enlightenment. Bevan will also appear with The English Concert and Harry Bicket and for Exceptional Young Talent in music and with The Hallé, The Handel and Haydn Society, made her Carnegie Hall debut with the ensemble was awarded a MBE in the Queen’s birthday the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the CBSO and as Dalinda in Handel Ariodante. In 2020 she makes honours list in 2019. the Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla. her debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. © Victoria Cadisch

- 22 - - 23 - Bevan’s discography includes her art song Newby, Mark Padmore, Miah Persson, Ashley album Voyages with pianist Joseph Middleton Riches, Amanda Roocroft, Kate Royal, Matthew and Handel’s Queens with London Early Opera, Rose, Carolyn Sampson, Nicky Spence and both released by Signum Records, Mendelssohn Roderick Williams. He regularly collaborates songs for Champs Hill Records, Handel, The with rising stars from the younger generation Triumph of Time and Truth and Handel, Ode for and in 2012 he formed the Myrthen Ensemble St Cecilia’s Day with Ludus Baroque, and to further explore lesser-known song repertoire Vaughan Williams Symphony No.3 and Schubert with regular duo partners Mary Bevan, Clara Rosamunde with the BBC Philharmonic. Mouriz, Allan Clayton and Marcus Farnsworth. Signum Records released their début CD ‘Songs Joseph Middleton to the Moon‘.

Pianist Joseph Middleton specialises in the Recent seasons have taken him to London’s art of song accompaniment and chamber Wigmore Hall, Royal Opera House and Royal music and has been highly acclaimed within Festival Hall, the Vienna Konzerthaus, Amsterdam this field. Described in the BBC Music Magazine Concertgebouw and Muziekgebouw, Köln as ‘one of the brightest stars in the world of Philharmonie, Strasbourg, Frankfurt, Lille and song and Lieder’, he has also been labelled Gothenburg Opera Houses, Paris Musée d’Orsay, © Sussie Alhberg ‘the cream of the new generation’ by The Times Zürich Tonhalle, deSingel Antwerp, Luxembourg and ‘a perfect accompanist’ by Opera Now. Philharmonie, Bozar Brussels, Tokyo’s Oji Hall Cambridge and a professor and Fellow at his and Alice Tully Hall. He regularly appears alma mater, the Royal Academy of Music. He has Joseph enjoys fruitful partnerships with at festivals in Aix-en-Provence, Aldeburgh, a fast-growing and award-winning discography internationally established singers including Sir Edinburgh, Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Ravinia, and was the recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Thomas Allen, Louise Alder, Ian Bostridge, Dame Japan, San Francisco, Toronto and Vancouver Society’s Young Artist of the Year Award in 2017. Sarah Connolly, Lucy Crowe, Iestyn Davies, Fatma as well as the BBC Proms, and is often heard Said, Samuel Hasselhorn, Wolfgang Holzmair, in his own series on BBC Radio 3. Christiane Karg, Katarina Karnéus, Angelika Kirchschlager, Dame Felicity Lott, Christopher Joseph Middleton is director of Leeds Lieder, Maltman, John Mark Ainsley, Ann Murray, James musician in residence at Pembroke College

- 24 - - 25 - Recorded in All Saints’ Church, East Finchley, London, UK from 4th to 7th January 2019 Producer & Editor – Mark Brown Recording Engineer – Mike Hatch Recording Assistant – Tom Mungall

All translations © Richard Stokes Cover Image – © Victoria Cadisch Session photos – © Catherine Yeats Design and Artwork – Woven Design www.wovendesign.co.uk

P 2020 The copyright in this sound recording is owned by Signum Records Ltd © 2020 The copyright in this CD booklet, notes and design is owned by Signum Records Ltd

Any unauthorised broadcasting, public performance, copying or re-recording of Signum Compact Discs constitutes an infringement of copyright and will render the infringer liable to an action by law. Licences for public performances or broadcasting may be obtained from Phonographic Performance Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this booklet may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission from Signum Records Ltd.

SignumClassics, Signum Records Ltd., Suite 14, 21 Wadsworth Road, Perivale, Middlesex, UB6 7LQ, UK. +44 (0) 20 8997 4000 E-mail: [email protected] www.signumrecords.com

- 26 - - 27 - ALSO AVAILABLE on signumclassics

Songs to the Moon Voyages Myrthen Ensemble: Mary Bevan, Clara Mouriz Mary Bevan, Joseph Middleton Allan Clayton, Marcus Farnsworth, Joseph Middleton SIGCD509 SIGCD443

“The four voices blend beautifully in quartets by Brahms … Best “Bevan’s purity of tone and discreet yet telling way with words of all, though, is Bevan singing Elisabeth Machony’s ‘Sun can be by turns unnerving and alluring in the Baudelaire Moonand Stars’, a mystic, high-lying setting of Thomas settings… Middleton, as one might expect, is marvellously Traherne, her voice ascending into the stratosphere with insightful, playing throughout with weight as well as grace rapturous ease … Middleton is outstanding, his reputation as and subtlety.” a rising star among accompanists richly deserved.” Gramophone Magazine BBC Music Magazine

Available through most record stores and at www.signumrecords.com For more information call +44 (0) 20 8997 4000

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