Lost is My Quiet

Carolyn Sampson (soprano), Iestyn Davies (countertenor), Joseph Middleton (piano)

Carolyn Sampson and Iestyn Davies have collaborated on many occasions in the field of Baroque opera and oratorio, but on this occasion they venture into a somewhat different territory. In the company of Joseph Middleton, they have been exploring the Lieder for one and two voices of Mendelssohn and Schumann, combining them with songs and duets by Roger Quilter.

And even though the disc actually opens with a set of Purcell songs – repertoire which both singers have previously made their mark in – they are here performed with the piano accompaniments realized by Benjamin Britten, turning them into something quite new and different.

‘Creamy’, ‘luminous’ and ‘supple’ are words that often appear in reviews about both Carolyn Sampson and Iestyn Davies, and in these duets they achieve a marvellous blend as well as the utmost precision. They are aided in this by Joseph Middleton, described in The Telegraph (UK) as an ‘unfailingly sensitive accompanist’.

Mendelssohn:
3 Duets, Op. 77
6 Gesange, Op. 19a
Gruss, Op. 63 No. 3
Ich wollt' meine Lieb' ergösse sich, Op. 63. No. 1
12 Lieder, Op. 9
6 Lieder-Duette, Op. 63
Maiglöckchen und die Blümelein, Op. 63 No. 6
Neue Liebe, Op. 19a No. 4
Scheidend, Op. 9 No. 6
Volkslied, Op. 63 No. 5

Purcell:
If music be the food of love, third version, Z379C
Lost is my quiet for ever, Z502
Music for a while, Z583
No, resistance is but vain (from The Maid's Last Prayer or Any Rather Than Fail, Z601)
Oedipus: incidental music, Z583
Oroonoko: Celemene, pray tell me, Z584
Sound the trumpet, beat the drum, Z335

Quilter:
Drink to me only
Five Shakespeare Songs Op. 23
It was a lover and his lass
Love calls through the summer night
Love's Philosophy, Op. 3 No. 1 (Shelley)
Music, when soft voices die, Op. 25 No. 5 (Shelley)
Seven Elizabethan Lyrics, Op. 12
3 Songs, Op. 3
Weep ye no more, sad fountains

Schumann:
Aufträge, Op. 77 No. 5
Der Einsiedler, Op. 83 No. 3
Drei Duette Op. 43
Drei Gesänge, Op. 83
12 Gedichte von Justinus Kerner Op. 35
Lieder und Gesänge III, Op. 77
Lieder und Gesänge IV, Op. 96
Nachtlied, Op. 96 No. 1
So wahr die Sonne scheinet, Op. 37, No. 12
Stille Liebe, Op. 35 No. 8
Zwölf Gedichte aus Liebesfrühling Op. 37

The art of vocal duetting is exemplified at its best in this recital by two of today’s finest British singers, working with an accompanist of equal merit…each singer has solo items…Yet the most memorable tracks are inevitably the duets, with Joseph Middleton’s striking playing reminding us how essential pianism is to such enterprises."
BBC Music Magazine - Christmas 2017 *****

"Carolyn Sampson and Iestyn Davies make a symbiotic partnership in these assorted duets, their tone (not least their control of vibrato) and style ideally matched. They are compelling interpreters, too, with an infectious sense of shared enjoyment...Here is a captivating, unhackneyed programme, presented by singers – a double act in a thousand – and pianist with a style and allure it would be hard to beat."
Gramophone Magazine - November 2017