Shining at the Schubertiade

Ian Bostridge opened this year's Schubertiade in Schwarzenberg with Antonio Pappano in a superb performance of Schubert's Schwanengesang (which they will perform at the Aldeburgh Festival this week and record for EMI this summer). The opening weekend also saw two major vocal debuts. Measha Brueggergosman replaced Thomas Quasthoff in a recital accompanied by Roger Vignoles in a dazzling programme featuring works by Mahler, Marx, Wolf, Poulenc and after Schönberg's Brettl Lieder the audience erupted with delight.

This was followed by Kate Royal, again with Roger Vignoles at the piano. They performed works by Brahms, Debussy, Schumann and Strauss - a combination of repertoire that shows why Kate Royal is one of the most important young singers of the classical Lied repertoire.

The weekend concluded with the Belcea Quartet giving profoundly moving performances of Schubert’s String Quartet in A minor, D.804 and Beethoven’s String Quartet in C sharp minor, op.131, and being joined by Ian Bostridge for a powerful rendition of Vaughan Williams’ beautiful ‘On Wenlock Edge’.

The Schubertiade continues through the summer, with appearances by Dorothea Röschmann, Felicity Lott, Hanno Mueller-Brachmann, Ian Bostridge, Graham Johnson, and concludes with an evening devoted to settings of Goethe by Christopher Maltman.

19 June, 2008