When Last Was First

When I first began collecting classical recordings, I had an aversion to the operatic voice inherited from my familiarity with rock and soul voice styles. This disk was my first real introduction, apart from the final movement of Beethoven's 9th. A programme of Strauss orchestral songs by soprano Karita Mattila with the Berliner Philharmoniker conducted by Claudio Abbado, I acquired it by "mistake" when I forgot to cancel the recording of the month choice from a mail order company. It turned out to be a happy mistake however and began the process of a growing appreciation of the art of singing. The headline work on the disk is the Four Last Songs, although more substantial in terms of length are the accompanying Lieder fur Gesang und Orchester. It is in fact surprising to be reminded of the brevity of the Four Last Songs given their fame and frequent programming and recording. Written at the end of Strauss's life and that of his wife, they are seen as being an evocation of approaching death and a sad but resigned farewell to the beauty of life on earth and a hope for what will follow. The truth however is that they probably weren't even written as programmatically connected songs, they certainly weren't given the title Four Last Songs by Strauss and the order in which they are performed is not set in stone or pre-ordained by Strauss. The other orchestral song settings on the disk are equally romantic and sensual, using some fevered poetry from various sources. The Berlin Phil are in suitably lush form and Karita Mattila's singing is soulful and laid back, a fine contrast to any Wagnerian bellowing which would have put me off in my early classical listening career.