My Soul, What Fear You?
Price range: £8.99 through £13.00
The first album of song from acclaimed bass-baritone and King’s College alumnus Christopher Purves, alongside one of the UK’s finest pianists, Simon Lepper.
Christopher Purves
Simon Lepper piano
Miloš Milivojević accordion
Sarah Field saxophone
Lucy Shaw double bass
Lily Vernon-Purves flute
Rafael Onyett guitar
Release date: 5 May 2023
The first album of song from acclaimed bass-baritone and King’s College alumnus Christopher Purves, alongside one of the UK’s finest pianists, Simon Lepper.
Lieder by Strauss, Schubert, Pfitzner and Mahler come to life in dramatic performances by one of opera’s biggest names. Bach’s popular Ich habe genug, and extracts from Eisler’s Hollywood Songbook and Weill’s Das Berliner Requiem are recorded here in astonishing new sound worlds, with new orchestrations that include accordion, saxophone, guitar, flute and double bass.
1 Gefunden (6 Lieder, Op. 56, No. 1) | Richard Strauss
2 Nachtgang (3 Lieder, Op. 29, No. 3) | Richard Strauss
3 Im Spätboot (6 Lieder, Op. 56, No. 3) | Richard Strauss
4 Hussens Kerker (4 Lieder, Op. 32, No. 1) | Hans Pfitzner
5 Ich habe genug, BWV 82: I. Aria: Ich habe genug | Johann Sebastian Bach
6 Der Sieg, D 805 | Franz Schubert
7 Totengräberlied, D 44 | Franz Schubert
8 Grenzen der Menschheit | Franz Schubert
9 Der Schatzgräber (Romanzen und Balladen, Vol. 1, Op. 45, No. 1) | Robert Schumann
10 Frühlingsfahrt Op. 45, No. 2 | Robert Schumann
11 The Hollywood Songbook: No. 21, L’Automne californien | Hanns Eisler
12 The Hollywood Songbook: No. 3, An den kleinen Radioapparat | Hanns Eisler
13 The Hollywood Songbook: No. 24, Hölderlin-Fragmente, V. An eine Stadt | Hanns Eisler
14 Des Knaben Wunderhorn: XII. Der Tamboursg’sell | Gustav Mahler
15 Das Berliner Requiem: V. Alles, Was Ich Euch Sagte | Kurt Weil
Recorded at 192kHz 24-bit PCM at St John the Evangelist Church, Oxford, 21–23 February 2022.
Producer & Editor Benjamin Sheen
Engineer Dave Rowell
Mixing Dave Rowell
Mastering Benjamin Sheen
Orchestrators Bertie Baigent, Gerard McBurney
Language Supervisor Maria Thompson
Cover design Jeremy Hall, Benjamin Sheen & David Millinger
Cover image Marcus Doyle / Millennium Images, UK
Layout design David Hawkins (Untitled Studio)
Content layout David Millinger
Booklet editors David Millinger & Benjamin Sheen
Booklet photographs Tall Wall Media (pp3, 9–11); Chris Gloag (p28); Francis Marshall (p29)
With thanks to Roger Mayhew and another supporter who wishes to remain anonymous, whose generous support has made this recording possible.
Label management Benjamin Sheen & Rachel Walters
