Schumann
Das Paradies und die Peri
Le Concert des Nations, La Capella Nacional de Catalunya/Jordi Savall
Alia Vox AVSA9968 98:87 mins
Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri has never settled comfortably into the repertoire.
Neither opera nor conventional oratorio, it demands considerable resources while resisting easy categorisation. Jordi Savall makes a strong case for it, trusting the score’s lyricism and allowing the narrative to unfold naturally.
Le Concert des Nations plays with refinement and alertness, the period instruments lending welcome transparency to music that can sound densely upholstered. String textures remain light, woodwind and brass lines emerge bright and clear, and there is a rhythmic spring that recalls Mendelssohn. La Capella Nacional de Catalunya gives shape and definition to choral writing that can easily turn opaque. Schumann’s shifts of colour and atmosphere are easier to follow, particularly across the longer stretches of narration.
A seasoned Savall collaborator, soprano Lina Johnson brings a fresh tone to the Peri. She avoids making the character’s progress towards redemption more portentous than it needs to be, and the simplicity and eloquence of her singing is affecting. Tenor Kieran Carrel handles the principal narration with intelligence and an easy command of the German text, while baritone Manuel Walser makes a strong impression. Johanna Rosa Falkinger, Marianne Beate Kielland, Ferran Mitjans and Nicolas Brooymans complete an
evenly matched cast.
There are more overtly theatrical recordings of the work, but few are as alert to the delicacy and breadth of Schumann’s conception. Savall lets the poetry emerge from the score’s detail while allowing drama and grandeur to be unleashed where needed. This is a superb recording of an elusive work, making it
sound coherent and approachable.
