Songs of the Americas: Carole Farley at the Wigmore Hall

There was a buzz of expectation from a packed Wigmore Hall on Wednesday evening 1 June to greet the renowned American soprano, Carole Farley. Eschewing a traditional song recital, she boldly chose to present a selection of songs, which would be mainly UK or European premières from three living American composers, which would be unfamiliar to a London audience. These were to be  contrasted by a selection of Latin American songs. The sense of occasion was heightened by the astute inclusion of two of the composers as accompanists and a pre-concert round-the-table discussion. Generously, Miss Farley gave the concert to help benefit Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation and the Iberian and Latin American Music Society.

First on the stage was Lowell Liebermann, who is now in his forties and has a developing reputation, both in the concert hall and on CD where he has achieved considerable success with his instrumental compositions. He writes imaginative music in an appealing tonal idiom and at the piano presented a quietly confident air. It was clear from the opening phrases that the two artists had developed a keen rapport and had a real understanding for the poetry of Walt Whitman. The two songs were to lengthy texts and required variety and structure to achieve cohesion. These qualities were amply demonstrated, with an expressive and mostly understated piano accompaniment that offered the listener interesting musical detail, but not at the expense of the impact of the words. Miss Farley’s response was magnificent as she sang with an infectious and expressive lilt, and with clear diction, one rarely had to consult the texts printed in the programme.

It had been intended for the 81year old Ned Rorem to play a selection of songs but due to ill health he was regretfully unable to travel, so at short notice John Constable (who was also playing at the end of the programme) stepped in and gave an authoritative accompaniment to an appreciative audience. Miss Farley recorded a selection of songs with the composer several years ago for Naxos, to considerable critical acclaim, and she had selected 8 for the recital. Ned Rorem’s music has been subject to critical reappraisal in recent years and has enjoyed a growing recognition of a unique and strongly American voice. Rorem has a particular affinity for song writing as he combines wittily infectious melodies with a disarming simplicity, so that when the text demands it he can cut to the emotional bone to great effect. And none of this was lost as the artists responded imaginatively to these gems.

William Bolcom opened the second part with 9 songs (5 of which were taken from his set ‘I Will Breathe a Mountain’) that demonstrated his outstanding skills as a modern songwriter. Whereas Rorem offers a more homespun idiom, Bolcom uses striking contrasts in styles to great effect. His musical palette is more eclectic and with a bold use of contrasting modern idioms, he demands from the singer considerable vocal resources and a theatrical personae. With Miss Farley’s operatic background she responded to these brilliant and dramatic songs with relish, creating at times an almost palpable physical effect. At the piano, the composer was in commanding form and as in his recent CD with Carole Farley created a partnership of equals. He is an outstanding pianist who handles the virtuosic piano writing with ease (just remember those amazing ragtime piano LPs he cut many years ago).

The Brazilian guitarist, Fabio Zanon, member of the ILAMS Council, is no stranger to Wigmore Hall audiences, and he received a rousing welcome as he came on stage to accompany Carole Farley in 3 songs by the Argentine composer, Carlos Guastavino. He was a prolific songwriter (he died 5 years ago) who wrote in an essentially romantic nationalist style. The soft-grained textures were caressed and coaxed by Fabio in a lilting serenade to Carole’s expressive singing. She adopted an authentic Latin personae for these delightful songs that typify the composer’s work and together achieved a harmonious rapport.

The Latin theme was continued with a selection of 6 songs by the Cuban Ernesto Lecuona, who was accompanied by John Constable (again) as on their critically acclaimed disc of his songs for BIS. Lecuona is better known now for his piano works, but he wrote over 400 songs, many of which in their time became standards. Those chosen were delightful and reflected the composer’s own skills at the piano and an uncanny ability to write naturally for the voice. The songs are suffused with a characteristic sentimentality and the spirit of the dance is never far away. These two distinguished artists achieved a near perfect balance that at times was almost hypnotic.  John Constable’s performance superbly characterized these little gems and Miss Farley, who has a clear affinity for this music, achieved a subtly harmonious tone. And sadly the dance had to end, but not before two delightful encores by Lecuona and the Catalan, Xavier Montsalvatge and floral bouquets. As the artists left the stage the hall rang out with strongly appreciative applause.

Ray Picot

ILAMS