SCHUBERT Winterreise • Jakob Bloch Jespersen (bbar); Sharon Prushansky (fp); • NAXOS 8.226928 (68:42 )
Four Stars: A dramatic version of Schubert’s Winterreise sung by Danish bass-baritone, Jakob Bloch Jespersen immeasurably helped by Sharon Prushansky’s taut pianism and sound.
When you search for Winterreise on Presto music’s website over 550 titles are listed. At the beginning of electrical recording, the richly-voiced Austrian baritone, Hans Duhan became, in 1928, the first to record all three Schubert song-cycles. Gerhard Hüsch also recorded a famous and well-thought of Winterreise in 1933, beautifully sung. It is one of classical music’s great song cycles for voice and piano by Franz Schubert. It consists, in various orders, of a setting of 24 poems by German poet Wilhelm Müller. It is the second of Schubert's two song cycles with texts by Müller. Schubert himself called it “a cycle of shuddering lieder,” further remarking, that he was affected by this group of songs more than any.
With so many excellently performed versions, what might separate this version from Naxos from all the rest? A lot to live up to perhaps. Well, to start, we have a speedy “Gute nacht” as well as some fine playing from Sharon Prushansky on a forte-piano from 2015 but based on a Jakob Bertsche piano from 1810-1815. Jespersen is a bass-baritone with a low gravity level. Occasionally in the faster songs, the voice thins out on the high register. A baritone, such as Olaf Bär, who I have championed in these pages before in this cycle, finds the higher register easily. This is amply demonstrated in “Wetterfahne.” The tension in this song does not come with Jespersen, but with his pianist. Bär is dramatically much more convincing with a wide variety of dynamics and accents. Jespersen is much better in “Gefrorne Tränen,” and copes easily with the very low register in the middle verse at “Ei tränen.” This is effectively sung. “Der Lindenbaum” is smoothly sung and Jespersen has no difficulty with ‘ich wendete mich nicht.’ “Wasserflut” brings out Jespersen’s vocal acting. However, Bär brings an almost unbearable contrast saving his full voice for “das heisse Weh” at the end of each verse. “Der greise Kopf,” is full of mystery from both Prushansky and Jespersen as his hair returns to its original color and he sings ‘wie welt noch bis zu Bähre. In “Der Wegweiser” Jespersen manages to convey the wanderer’s search for rest and the last verse sounds almost hollow, as he sings about the road he must take ‘from which no man has ever returned.’ Jespersen manages a subtle and eery conclusion in “Der Leiermann.” and the whole song is sung in a ghostly half voice—very effective indeed with atmosphere helped by the almost frosty piano tone.
Jakob Bloch Jespersen received his early training in the Copenhagen Boys Choir, then at the Royal Danish Academy of Music and Royal Danish Opera Academy. He made his debut there in 2006. He has sung in a very varied repertoire including roles in Carl Nielsen’s Maskarade, The rape of Lucretia, Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Masetto in Don Giovanni. His voice is a deep bass-baritone and to these ears, it sounds less than youthful and even hoarse in places. In contrast, Jespersen does manage to successfully portray the character’s feelings of loss, as he embarks on his lonely journey without a clear destination. Prushansky helps immensely with her taut reading of the drama. I am not sure I would take down Bär, Fischer-Dieskau, Gerhaher or even Sly from the shelf, but I may well add Jespersen to the shelf. Naxos provide good notes, biographies and German texts without translation. David Cutler