James Gilchrist, Anna Tilbrook & The Fitzwilliam String Quartet - Williams: On Wenlock Edge (2007) [Hi-Res]

A brilliant and moving recital coupling song cycles by Vaughan Williams, Warlock, and Gurney along with a very special stand alone song by Bliss, this disc by tenor James Gilchrist with the Fitzwilliam String Quartet, pianist Anna Tilbrook, flutist Michael Cox, and English hornist Gareth Hulse will thrill fans of English twentieth century vocal music. Each of the works had an interesting genesis. Vaughan Williams' On Wenlock Edge setting of six poems from A.E. Housman's "A Shropshire Lad" was written in 1909 at the high tide of the composer's keenness on French music. Ivor Gurney's Ludlow & Teme setting of seven poems from "A Shropshire Lad" was written in 1919 immediately following the composer's first hearing of On Wenlock Edge. Peter Warlock's The Curlew setting of four poems by W.B. Yeats was written in 1915 – without the poet's permission (Yeats capitulated only after the work was published in 1923). And Arthur Bliss' Elegiac Sonnet setting of a poem by Cecil Day Lewis for Noel Mewton-Wood, the Australian virtuoso pianist and film composer – remember his ornithological comedy Tawney Pitpit? – who killed himself after his lover Bill Fredricks died from a ruptured appendix, was written in 1954 immediately after the composer and poet had collaborated on A Song of Welcome greeting Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh on their return from a grand tour of the Commonwealth. And each of the performers is equally interesting. Gilchrist, a full-time doctor before he became a full-time tenor, sings with unfeigned enthusiasm, undisguised affection, and consummate musicality. The Fitzwilliam Quartet, the group that got its big break performing Shostakovich for Shostakovich, plays with tonal beauty, robust energy, and complete sympathy for the music and singer. Pianist Tilbrook is a big-toned but sensitive player, flutist Cox is a subtle but soulful player, and English hornist Hulse is a throaty but touching player. They all perform together with polish, power, and passion and the result is a superb disc of English art songs. Linn Records' super audio sound is incredibly clear and unbelievably real. Review by James Leonard