Mendelssohn: Songs Without Words review – Chamayou makes each piece feel somehow familiar yet fresh
Bertrand Chamayou (Warner Classics) The pianist brings a singing quality and seeming effortlessness to the complete set of Songs Without Words Mendelssohn wrote 48 Songs Without Words for solo piano: eight sets of six, mostly under three minutes long, emerging over a 16-year period that spanned most of his short adult life. The handful that still regularly make their way on to recital programmes are only the tip of…
Key points
- Bertrand Chamayou has released a complete recording of Mendelssohn's 48 Songs Without Words on Warner Classics.
- The review says Chamayou brings a singing quality and seeming effortlessness to the pieces.
- The reviewer notes that the complete set is not recorded as often as might be expected.
Pianist Bertrand Chamayou has recorded the complete set of Mendelssohn's Songs Without Words for Warner Classics, and a new review praises his interpretation. Mendelssohn wrote 48 of these solo piano pieces, arranged in eight sets of six, mostly under three minutes long, over a 16-year period covering most of his short adult life.
The review notes that only a handful of the pieces regularly appear on recital programmes, and that the complete set has not been recorded as often as might be expected, making Chamayou's release welcome.
A singing, flowing approach
The review says these pieces belong to the world of Schubert Lieder, and that Chamayou brings a singing quality to them from the start. It singles out the Duetto that closes the Op 38 set, where the melodic lines alternate like a female and male voice, each lingering slightly as the other takes over.
Compared with other interpreters, Chamayou is described as often softer-edged, with playing that is a little smoother and more flowing. One exception is Op 62 No 6, known as Spring Song but originally titled Camberwell Green after the London suburb where it was written, which the review says is given a perky, almost frothy accompaniment.
opening a trunk of family photos faded by time
— Bertrand Chamayou
Familiar yet fresh
The review says Chamayou does not present these miniatures as if he thinks they are profound, yet they come across that way because of his seeming effortlessness. Chamayou has compared going through the pieces to "opening a trunk of family photos faded by time".
The reviewer calls that a good analogy for listening to him play them, saying each new piece feels somehow familiar while still demanding your fresh attention.
