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Tenor Charles Daniels and pianist Geoffrey Govier |
Celebrating the joys of summer
Sommerreise
Hampstead Parish Church
By Jane Wild
SUMMER was the inspiration for this Sunday afternoon concert of Schubert songs, organised to raise funds for Hampstead Parochial school’s music trust.
Excellent tenor Charles Daniels, who has made over 60 solo recordings, joined pianist Geoffrey Govier to sing evocative tales of picnics in the evening breeze, shepherds, fishermen, birdsong-filled woods and summer romances.
The duo characterised the songs with a elegant simplicity and spun a feeling of intimacy with their gentle style.
Daniels excelled as the storyteller, his voice full of colour and inflection.
Nowhere was this demonstrated more effectively than in the famous Nacht und Traüme, Schubert’s ode to night.
It was as if Daniels was sitting next to the listener whispering a secret, such was the intimate atmosphere he conjured up.
Des Fishers Liebesglück, was another highlight, setting the scene of two blissful lovers shrouded by mists in a boat at sea and sung with an intriguing wistfulness.
Geoffrey Govier accompanied with a softly moving piano part, painting a picture of the boat gently rocking.
Heidenröslein, the last song of the afternoon, was a story of how a boy picked a rose that resisted by pricking his finger with a thorn.
A fun song, it closed an altogether excellent performance on a light-hearted note. |
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