29 August 2023 Die Welt

The brief heyday of the Anhaltinische Hof in Zerbst (Saxony-Anhalt) coincided with the work of its court Kapellmeister Johann Friedrich Fasch. The benevolent and prudent Prince Johann August von Anhalt-Zerbst (1677-1742) expanded his court orchestra and engaged outstanding musicians for this purpose.

One of the leading mezzos of our day in a Schubert recital which offers seventy minutes of pure pleasure. The twenty-one songs recorded here are among Schubert’s finest, from ‘Erlkönig’ (written in the composer’s annus mirabilis of 1815) to ‘Leise flehen’ (which dates from his final summer).

A brilliant and radiant performance of Lehar's valedictory composition, his only operetta written for the august Vienna State Opera, which premiered the piece in 1934. Edith Moser and Nicolai Gedda head up a good cast in this work, which is more serious and profound than most of Lehar's music. The music is as attractive as in any Lehar work, but at times more self-consciously dramatic than in any piece except The Land of Smiles, despite the relatively straightforward subject, about the unhappy romance between the married title character and the officer she has run away with.

A brilliant and radiant performance of Lehar's valedictory composition, his only operetta written for the august Vienna State Opera, which premiered the piece in 1934. Edith Moser and Nicolai Gedda head up a good cast in this work, which is more serious and profound than most of Lehar's music. The music is as attractive as in any Lehar work, but at times more self-consciously dramatic than in any piece except The Land of Smiles, despite the relatively straightforward subject, about the unhappy romance between the married title character and the officer she has run away with.