Othmar Schoeck - Orchestral Lieder (Stephan Genz; Olena Tokar)

Information

Composer: Othmar Schoeck

• Nachhall, Op. 70
• Drei Lieder von Heinrich heine, Op. 4
• Acht Lieder, Op. 17

Olena Tokar, soprano

Stephan Genz, baritone

Bern Symphony Orchestra

Graziella Contratto, conductor

Date: 2024

Label: iMD-Schweizer Fonogramm

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Review

The late Romantic Swiss composer Othmar Schoeck (1886-1957) composed almost 400 piano songs. The cycle Nachhall op. 70 (1954/1955), for medium voice and orchestra based on poems by Lenau and Claudius, can be heard on this album alongside two early song cycles op. 4 and 17 orchestrated by Graziella Contratto.

The German baritone Stephan Genz sings with a clear, balanced voice that radiates great warmth, especially in the middle register, and is always expressive. Another advantage is the perfect comprehensibility of the text, which shows how much Genz cares about the poets’ words.

Genz translates the immediacy of the music very well and expresses the various moods grippingly, giving this wonderful music depth, sensitivity and a lush tone.

The soprano Olena Tokar also sings expressively in the two cycles opulently orchestrated by Graziella Contratto with a warm, luminous voice, but is unable to achieve the same degree of musical impact due to a lack of text comprehensibility. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that Tokar understands this repertoire with heart and soul.

Graziella Contratto gets everything that is important out of the music and the orchestra.

— Remy Franck

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Othmar Schoeck (1 September 1886 – 8 March 1957) was a Swiss Romantic composer and conductor known for his extensive output of art songs. He studied at the Zurich and Leipzig conservatories under Friedrich Hegar and Max Reger. Based in Zurich, he worked as a composer, accompanist, and for over 20 years, chief conductor of the City Orchestra of St. Gallen. His notable works include the opera Penthesilea and concertos for violin, cello and horn. Schoeck's music was championed by renowned conductors and singers of his time, and in recent years, his work has seen renewed international recognition.

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Stephan Genz (born 1973 in Erfurt) is a German baritone. A former member of the Leipzig Thomanerchor, he studied with notable teachers such as Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Elisabeth Schwarzkopf. Genz has won major singing competitions and gained acclaim for recitals in venues like Wigmore Hall, Concertgebouw and Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. He has performed at La Scala, Deutsche Oper Berlin and Paris' major houses, collaborating with renowned conductors. His recordings, particularly of Brahms, Schumann and Beethoven, have received high praise, including a Gramophone Award in 1999.

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Olena Tokar is a Ukrainian lyric soprano. She studied at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Kiev and the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy in Leipzig, working closely with Regina Werner-Dietrich. Since 2010, she has been a member of the Leipzig Opera, excelling in roles like Pamina, Susanna, Mimi, Violetta and Rusalka. Tokar has also performed at major venues such as Semperoper Dresden and Grange Park Opera. A winner of the ARD Music Competition and other awards, she has worked with renowned conductors and appeared at prestigious festivals in Salzburg, Verbier and Tokyo. 

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