CD Review: Mirrors (Jeanine De Bique, soprano; Concerto Köln / Luca Quintavalle) Berlin Classics 0302017BC

The Trinidadian soprano Jeanine De Bique has in recent years been making quite a name for herself, garnering appreciation in the international music press. Her slender discography to date indicates but a fraction of her eclectic repertoire – Rameau’s Platée, Handel’s Rodelinda (title role) and Mahler’s Symphony no 8. The present recording is De Bique’s first solo release and comprises of opera arias from the baroque period. Yannis François, musicologist and concept creator for the album explains: “The listeners can experience different reflections of the same character as if they were looking at themselves through a broken mirror.” The arias tell of key moments in the psychological development of the protagonists, illuminate the diversity of the female experience and the relatable perspectives of their lives.

Thus, there are portraits of Cleopatra from Handel’s eponymous opera and Carl Heinrich Graun’s Cesare e Cleopatra, from 1742. Agrippina appears in Handel’s opera of 1709 and Georg Philipp Telemann’s lesser-known Germanicus of five years earlier. Rodelinda, from Handel’s 1725 opera of the same name, is contrasted with that of Graun’s eponymous opera from 1741. Alcina, from Handel’s 1728 opera, has a counterpart in the character of Morgana in Riccardo Broschi’s neglected L’Isola D’Alcina from 1735. Deidamia in Handel’s under-rated eponymous 1741 opera is paired with the forgotten 1745 opera Achille in Sciro by Gennaro Manna. Overtures to the opera Partenope by Handel and Leonardo Vinci provide interludes at junctures in this interesting programme.

Many exponents of baroque opera fall down in my experience often fall down on two counts: their enunciation of the text and ability to maintain the desired emotion convincingly throughout the aria. Not so, with Jeanine De Bique. On the evidence of this recording, she’s a singer equally at home in faster, more dramatic repertoire (Handel's 'L'alma mia fra le tempeste' from Agrippina), where her voice flashes with rapier accuracy, as the more contemplative arias (Handel’s ‘Se pietà di me non senti’ from Giulio Cesare), which find her gleaming tones lingering seductively on every note. There’s more though, and it is best summed up in the word feeling. In Jeanine De Bique’s assumptions, these are not dry renditions, but characters inhabited, lived and brought to life through the arias.

The Concerto Köln under Luca Quintavalle’s direction provide appositely discrete yet characterful accompaniment. The recording is first rate, the three booklet notes on the recording concept are informative and the texts and translations are available via a QR code.

If you feel in need of a New Year’s gift – and who does not after the past years – Jeanine De Bique stylish and up-to-date take on the baroque is sure to brighten your life for some time to come. 

CD Review: Enescu / Mussorgsky / Borodin (Alexander Krichel, piano) Berlin Classics 0302072BC

The combination of piano works by Enescu and Mussorgsky is a new one on record, though both works included here have been recorded several times before. Therefore, this recording by Hamburg-born artist Alexander Krichel faces stiff competition from the start.

Enescu’s Second Piano Suite was written in 1903 and consists of four movements. Given Enescu’s love of J. S. Bach’s music it is unsurprising that he followed the Baroque model of a dance sequence – a majestic Toccata, a noble Sarabande, a slow Pavane and a lively Bourrée.

Even though it is missing the opening Toccata and is captured in less-than-ideal sound, fans of Dinu Lipatti may still want to track town this historic recording of the suite. Lipatti’s compatriot, Aurora Ienei, recorded the suite in 1981 for the Romanian Electrecord label (it was licenced to the Olympia label and second-hand copies can be occasionally tracked down. Although Ienei’s touch is sure, the boxy acoustic does little to enhance her piano’s sound. Luiza Borac’s 2003 recording for Avie was hailed as ground-breaking at the time and followed extensive research into the autograph scores of Enescu’s piano oeuvre. This led to many errors in the printed versions being corrected; the recording very much continues to stand the test of time. Matei Varga turned in a more than creditable recording for Naxos. Christopher Falzone’s recording for the Sisyphe label rather flew under the radar and is intent on sounding more like Bach than anything else. Heard alongside the best of these alternatives (Borac and Varga), Krichel’s recording sounds somewhat cool and detached, even though it is technically very well played indeed.

Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition might be the more famous of the two works on this release, for many that might be a draw. The work might be better known in orchestral incarnations – most often Ravel’s – but the piano original is worthy of exploration. Mikhail Pletnev (Virgin Classics) gets to the heart of the work with insightful characterisation of the Promenade across its several incarnations. Krichel’s performance, although interesting, finds less variety in this connective tissue that runs through the work. Where Krichel does score though is in a few of the individual tableaux that form the exhibition. The missing element, though, is the same one missing from his Enescu: feeling for the music. With that there might be more palpable weight and Russianness in his overall conception.

The slender two minute Nocturne from Borodin’s Petite suite provides an addendum that rounds out the recording in a pleasant manner.

The recording captures the piano faithfully. The interview with Krichel, though, is maybe rather more questionable. When all is considered though, this is a recording that, although possessing positives, does not quite lead the field in this repertoire.