English baritone Roderick Williams, the “most engaging of performers” who “has one hanging on every word” (The Evening Standard), joins artistic director and pianist Julius Drake in a continuation of our Vocal Series’ exploration of the influence of Beethoven on art song.
Like the rest of the Vocal Series, this concert includes the “series motto,” Beethoven’s An die ferne Geliebte, using it as the springboard into an investigation of the songs of Johannes Brahms. In this program, also part of 92Y’s Inflection Series, we hear a rare performance of Brahms’ work setting the legend of Count Peter of Provence and his search for Magelone the Fair in its original form, with narration interpolated between the songs. The Brahmsian journey begins with a meditation on death and dying, the Four Serious Songs, written for Clara Schumann near the end of her life.