SCHUBERT: Schone Mullerin (Die) (Schade, Martineau) (Franz Schubert - Wilhelm Muller)

Album review

Listeners who first heard tenor Michael Schade in the later volume of Hyperion's complete Schubert edition have been waiting for a full disc of his Schubert. This 2004 CBC recording of Schubert's song cycle Die schöne Müllerin with pianist Malcolm Martineau proves the wait was worthwhile. Schade has a strong and expressive voice with a full tone, a supple technique, and, best of all, a sensitive way of putting across a lyric. In his Die schöne Müllerin, Schade not only makes Schubert's heartrending music affective, he makes Wilhelm Müller's sentimental lyrics effective. Where some singer's interpretations make the cycle's protagonist seem like a jerk, a twit, or a loser, Schade lets him be what he really is: a teenager who, having loved and lost, has no choice but to die. Martineau is, as always, a responsive accompanist who knows when to support and when to challenge the singer. CBC's sound is fully competitive with the best in the world. With this disc, Schade's promise is fulfilled. Anyone looking for a moving performance of Die schöne Müllerin need not look further.
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