Magdalena Kozena, Sir Simon Rattle - Magdalena Kozena & Friends: Soiree (2019) CD-Rip

The publicity for this Magdalena Kožená release just about writes itself: the Soirée of the title is a session of putative domestic music-making, featuring not only Kožená but her husband, Sir Simon Rattle, on the piano, plus a string quartet and other instruments that come together into various groups. Much of the music is presented as written, but sets by Dvořák and Brahms (the not-terribly-common Five Ophelia Lieder, WoO 22) are arranged for small ensemble. The concept seems a bit strained: Stravinsky's 12-tone Three Songs from William Shakespeare don't feel like soirée music and don't fit with the rest of the program (give Kožená credit for largely accent-free English, though), and the multiple voices introduced in Janáček's Ríkadla (Nursery Rhymes) also break the mood. However, there are numerous strong moments, especially where Kožená is on home ground with Dvořák. Sample any of the four Gypsy Songs and appreciate Kožená's fine way with a text, nowhere more evident than when she is singing in Czech. The Brahms Ophelia Lieder are also something of a revelation here. Recommended.