Mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston and pianist Sholto Kynoch have released a new album, 'A Poet’s Love', which centres on Robert Schumann’s Dichterliebe cycle, a piece still relatively uncommon for female voices. The disc also includes other Heine settings by contemporaries such as Felix and Fanny Mendelssohn, and features the first recording of 'Knight’s Dream', a commissioned companion piece by composer Héloïse Werner.
Werner’s work tells of a gallant lover in an enchanted fever dream, with Charlston relishing the haunting, folk-inflected vocal lines. Her wine-dark mezzo-soprano savours every note, while Kynoch supports with resourceful piano playing, embellishing the narrative by speaking, humming, and even knocking on the piano. Similar vitality is brought to Loewe’s 'Die Lotosblume' and Fanny Mendelssohn’s 'Schwanenlied', where Charlston’s voice flows like molten lava, each word crystal clear.
Charlston’s interpretation of Dichterliebe is decidedly individual, with both artists taking time to land their points. 'Im wunderschönen Monat Mai' begins in a trancelike state, with voice and piano stretching phrases to the limit. This mood recurs frequently, surprising listeners with elongated measures in 'Die Rose, die Lilie' and an uncommonly elastic 'Ich grolle nicht'. Charlston’s honeyed middle register draws the ear throughout, and Kynoch’s perceptive handling of Schumann’s mighty postludes is thoroughly absorbing.
