(3 / 5)

After two concerts over the space of a day, I was not quite yet done with Wigmore Hall.  The next afternoon, we got an afternoon dubbed ‘Au cimetière de Montmarte’, a tribute to the cultural district in Paris. Though this was mostly a French programme, we started in German with Robert Schumann. His Dichterliebe were a delightful collection of songs. These little pieces oozed with love, and more love, nature and landscapes and a passion for the heroic. So brief, over in a few bars and they delighted in every sense. Tender listening.

Julien is a fine baritone  but my one reservation are the high notes. They go into a realm of the almost uneasy, an enforcement not pleasing at all. Though the middle register is great, the low notes wonderous pools of depth. On to France with Berlioz and Lili Boulanger, the later being much more intriguing. The former’s extracts from Les nuits d’ete were witty and sombre, though with Lili we gets lots of ideas and impressionisms. Her Attente is new to me, though anytime we hear her it’s quite special, her tragically early death snubbed out a composer of real talent.

Poulenc and his Banalités are cheeky portions of froth and nostalgia in equal measure. The cabaret is very much the setting, the mood is sultry and fun. Pianist Alphonse Cemi looks like he enjoys the material just as much as our singer, playing with an abandon little seen today, fast and truly tight when needed. Further merry treats from Guilbert and Trenet ended this Parisian voyage. It was one of light humour, conversational insights and of moody illusions. An English classic as an encore: A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square was musically just about right, bringing us back to our current local.