Harmonie du soir : mélodies
songs

"This splendid two-disc anthology, incorporating many of his finest songs in the context of their complete cycles, provides a more than welcome reminder. There are some forty songs here, as well as four piano pieces ... If the thought of a two hour mélodie recital featuring just one composer sounds daunting, the quality of performance on offer here and the intrinsic interest of the repertoire may well confound listeners' expectations; in any case the programme is so beautifully varied and well-planned as to justify treating the discs as two individual one hour recitals ... Both pairs of performers on these discs emerge as Debussyans to their very core. It is a rare delight to encounter almost half of the French master's songs in performances as carefully conceived as they are committed ... This beautifully produced set is a treat indeed and marks another splendid contribution from Harmonia Mundi to the Debussy centenary".

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"Editor's choice: Karthäuser's dewy soprano is light and fresh and she floats lines in 'Le tombeau des naïades' with ease. 'Beau soir' is almost sung on a half-breath, Degout is a singer of pure class. He has recorded six of these songs before, ... since when his high baritone has darkened ... It's now a touch more oaken ... but it's still an elegant, polished instrument ... Two blissful hours from four winning advocates for Debussy".

"So many aspects of Dessay's disc are firstclass ... However, the intrusion of her increasingly wide vibrato makes itself felt in nearly every song ... feels like a large vocal ink-blot in Debussy ... It's an extremely effective performance, but would have been more so five years ago, when the voice had less mileage".

"Sie hat es also getan. Natalie Dessay singt erstmals Lieder. Ruhig, feinstimmig, mit kleinem Ton, mehr auf die Wortbedeutung als die Klangfülle bedacht. Der mit transparentem Anschlag, aber auch fordernd drängender Rhythmik aufwartende Pianist Philippe Cassard hat das Kunststück fertiggebracht, der scheuen Sopranistin Vertrauen zu implantieren".

"Four early Debussy songs, discovered only recently, are recorded here for the first time ... This alone is enough to make this disc an important release ... but there are planty of other reasons to acquire it. Natalie Dessay has a very winning way with these songs and she is accompanied magnificently by Philippe Cassard ... Warmly recommended".