RECORDS Maggie Teyte’s Debussy Reissued

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30178, 9 July 1963, Page 11

RECORDS Maggie Teyte’s Debussy Reissued

DEBUSSY: Fetes Galantes I and II: Trois Chansons de Bilitis; Le Promenolr des Deux Amants; Romance; Beau Soir; Green; Le Jet d’Eau; . Proses Lyriquei; Ballade des Fem- , mes de Paris. Dame Maggie Teyte (soprano) with Allred Cortot* (piano) and Gerald Moore (piano). HMVCOLH. 134 (12in, 42s 6d). All Dame Maggie Teyte’s Debussy song recordings are contained in this invaluable "Great Recordings of the Century” disc. i’ggie Teyte, who was born in Scotland and studied singing in Paris with Jean de Reszke, wa- only 20 in 1908 when she succeeded Mary Garden as Melisande in Debussy’s opera and studied the role with the composer himself. About this time Debussy also accompanied her in several recitals of his songs. She had a very distinguished operatic career late- u it has been overshadowed in repute .and recorded documentation by her eminence as a singer of French songs, especially those of Debussy. Her interpretations are of unquestioned authenticity. Maggie Teyte’s upper register had no special of beauty or power, but the lower parts of her voice were of great beauty and firmness, and she was able to meet perfectly Debussy’s frequent demands on the bottom of the voice.

Her style of singing Debussy contrasts s*~ongly with that of present-day singers. The latter (even Sou/”’;), no doubt influenced by the misleading tag of “impressionist” so often applied to Debussy, sing his music with all sorts of flickering half-lights and changing colours, whereas Maggie Teyte rightly treats Debussy as the musical equivalent not of the impressionists but of the later painters who were his contemporaries and friends—the symbolists, such as Denis and Bernard —and places the emphasis on vocal line. This does not mean that she neglects the verbal values; on the contrary, she enunciates the poems vividly and meaningfully,’ but she always maintains the balance between the word and the vocal line. With the records comes a booklet containing essays on composer and singer and texts and translations of the songs, so that those who have little or no French can appreciate the subtle relationship of words and music of the five song-cycles and five separate songs. Maggie Teyte is accompanied by Cortot in the two sets of “Fetes Galantes,” the "Chansons de Bilitis.” “Le Promenoir,” the “Ballade des Femmes d laris” and two of the “Proses Lyriques,” all recorded in March, 1936, and by Gerald Moore in the other two “Proses Lyriques” and the remaining separate songs, recorded from 1940 to 1944. Both pianists play beautifully, especially Cortot, whose association with Debussy was as extensive as the singer’s. It would be going too far say that every lover of fine singing should have this record, for neither Debussy’s music nor the perfumed sensual poetry he often set is satisfying to all tastes, but anyone who admires these songs cannot afford to be without it. The transfers from 78 are excellently made and the recording is mostly good, especially in the 1936 series with Cortot.

J. S. BACH: Cantata No. 203 (Amore Traditore). HANDEL: Canutes Dalia guerra amorosa; Cuope tai volte U cielo. Trio Sonata in D minor. Dietrich Fischer - Dieskau (baritone), Aurele Nicolet (flute), Lothar Koch (oboe), Irmgard Poppen (cello), and Edith Plcht - Axenfeld (harpsichord). HMV mono MALP. 1804 (12in. 42s 6d). A completely delightful recording of Bach’s ‘'Peasant” and “Coffee” Cantatas by Fischer-Dieskau (with Lisa Otto) led to great hopes tor “Amore Traditore,” but it proves to be one of the least interesting of Bach’s secular cantatas, and Fischer-Dieskau is not at his best either. Some of the florid writing is too difficult for him, and his whole performance is afflicted by uncertainty of intonation. The two Handel cantatas contain some delightful music, but Fischer-Dieskau doesn't

sound really involved with it. Although he brings all his professional polish to the job, one does not feel that he has got inside the music. Again his technique is overtaxed and he seldom sounds right on the note. The little Trio Sonata, a product of Handel’s boyhood, is beautifully played. BEETHdVEN: Violin Concerto in D, Op. 61. Alfredo Campoli (violin) with John Pritchard conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. HMV mono XLPMJOO43 (12in. 29s 6d). Stereo also available.

The solo violin is slightly too prominent on this record, but otherwise the sound is good. In the first movement, taken at brisk pace* Campoli makes an over-expressive entry that arouses fears for the worst, but they are not justified. It proves to be a good performance in a rather romantic style, with golden, mellow violin tone and a fine bounce in the finale. The patrician performance of Hei-' fetz remains the first choice, but Campoli will do very well for those who insist on having either stereo or a lowerpriced record.

OTTO KLEMPERER conducting the PhUharmonia Orchestra: Johann Strauss ll—Wiener Blut; Die Fledermaus Overture; Emperor , Waltz. Weill—Suite from Driegroschenoper. Klemperer—Merrv Waltz. Columbia stereo SAXM.246O (12in, 42s 6d). Mono also available. In recent years Klemperer has been so widely presented as a somewhat austere interpreter of the standard classics that it is often forgotten that before the war he was identified with a much wider repertoire. It was,' in fact, at Klemperer’s suggestion that Weill made the suite from “The Threepenny Opera.” Whether it “turns the loss of Brecht’s superb lyrics to good account,” as David Drew claims on the sleeve, is dubious. but it does allow an assessment of Weill’s purely musical qualities unhampered by feelings about the playwright. Klemperer proves to be a first-rate Strauss conductor, and he makes his first recorded appearance as a composer with the Merry Waltz and One-Step from his opera, “Das Ziel.” It Is curiously haunting music and the rather grim, wraith-like quality of the merriment is perhaps explained by the fact that in the opera the Waltz and One-Step are danced by patients in a sanatorium. The Philharmonia plays brilliantly throughout, and the recorded sound is of high duality.

BYRON JANIS (piano): Liszt—Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6; Valse Oubjiee; Sonetto del Petrarco 104. Schumann—Romance No. 2 in Fsnarp.Op. 28; Novellette No. 1 in F Op. 21. Chopin— Etude in F. Op. 25, No. 3; Waltz in A minor, Op. 34, No. 2. Mendelssohn—Song Without Words No. 25 in G (May Breezes); FallaMiller’s Dance. Prokofiev— Toccata in D minor. Guion— The Harmonica Player. Pinto—Scenes from Childhood. Mercury stereo SR. 90305 (12in, 42s 6d). Mono also available. All but three of these encore pieces were recorded on magnetic film by Mercury in Moscow during Byron Janis’s tour of Russia The rest were recorded in New York. The quality of the recording is startling at first—it is like being inside the piano—but if the record is played at a considerably lower volume setting than usual the piano sounds-most realistic. Janis is a splendid pianist and he maintains a high standard throughout this very mixed collection. Outstanding are Prokofiev’s terrific Toccata and the “Scenes from Childhood” by the Brazilian composer, Octavio Pinto.

DVORAK: Slavonic Dances.. Nos. 11-16; Op. 72; Serenade for Strings in E. Op. 22. Rudolf Schwarz conducting the 8.8. C. Symphony Orchestra. World Record Club • stereo STZ.7OB or mono TZ.708 (12in). The set of the Slavonic Dances is completed by the issue'of this companion to a disc issued some tiirie ago. The performances are as fine as in the previous record and the second side presents a glowipgly fresh performance of the extremely charming Serenade for Strings. In both forms the recording is excellent.