Music to my ears
What the classical world has been listening to this month
Jennifer France Soprano
In preparation for a concert in the autumn, I’ve been immersing myself in Dutilleux’s Correspondances, in a recording by Barbara Hannigan, and George Walker’s Lilacs, sung by Nicole Cabell – both are conducted by Simon Rattle. These pieces are new to me as a performer and are both really beautiful but very contrasting. They are such interesting works, as they are dense in their subject matter and emotionally very complex, and Lilacs isn’t like anything I’ve ever heard before.
Shortly before we got married, my husband and I listened back to a lot of music that meant a lot to us, and one of our favourite songs is ‘Beyond’ by the American singer-songwriter Leon Bridges.
It’s the perfect wedding song in that it’s about a man who thinks he has met ‘the one’, and he’s scared about it while also embracing those loving feelings. Bridges has an incredible, very soulful voice.
We play quite a lot of classical music to Aurelia, my two-yearold daughter. Her favourite thing in the whole world to listen to is Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker so, as a result, it is always on in our house – she has something called a Toniebox on which she can play it herself and she loves dancing around to it. She adores the whole work, and particularly the battle with the Mouse King.
And also…
Through work, I have been lucky enough to have spent a large part of this summer in Aix-enprovence in the south of France. We have had such an enjoyable time exploring this beautiful city, going to the various playgrounds, visiting the markets which are on three times a week and immersing ourselves in French culture. We even went for a hike up the Montagne Sainte-victoire. It is such a magical place.
Jennifer France sings Dutilleux and Walker with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Royal Festival Hall on 28 September
Geoffrey Paterson Conductor Mahler’s Seventh is a favourite symphony of mine and Kirill Petrenko is a very favourite conductor – possibly the one I admire the most. I worked with him in Bayreuth as an assistant for a couple of seasons and he’s an incredible musician – his hallmarks are a combination of forensic attention to detail coupled with a blazing intensity. He doesn’t record very much, but I have a recording taken from two live performances with the Bavarian State Orchestra in Munich.
I’ve been listening quite a lot recently to the 1932 recording of Elgar’s Violin Concerto by Yehudi Menuhin. It’s one of the landmark recordings of the last century and an incredible historical document – Menuhin was 16, Elgar was 75 and had less than two years to live. Despite all the imperfection of the 90-year-old recording, it’s like you’re there in the room with Elgar. It’s an extroardinary thing – completely transporting, and very special to return to.
I’ve had the recording of
Birtwistle’s Earth Dances, conducted by Pierre Boulez with the Ensemble Modern, since it came out. I used to listen to it a lot, and since Harry died I’ve come back to it and listened a few
Despite the defects of the 90-year-old recording, it’s like Elgar is in the room
times. The piece was dedicated to Boulez, but I don’t think he performed it often. It’s a hugely expanded orchestra comprising contemporary music specialists, so the commitment you hear, the precision of attack and the overall clarity is utterly flabbergasting. And also…
I’m very much a latecomer to popular science, but I’ve read a few of geneticist Adam Rutherford’s books, the most recent being
The Book of Humans. What he does is incredible – genetics is mindbending and he makes it extremely accessible and really entertaining. These books are page-turners and I’ve learned something new and surprising on every single page. I think if they were compulsory reading, the world would be a different place. Geoffrey Paterson conducts saxophonist Marius Neset and the London Sinfonietta at the Proms on 3 September
Mariam Batsashvili Pianist Something I listen to a lot, and which is close to me, is Johann Strauss II’S Csárdás from the opera Ritter Pázmán, as performed at the New Year’s Concert in Vienna in 1989. It’s just four or five minutes long, but the conducting by Carlos Kleiber in the concert is simply sensational. There is something very serious and deep in it, but it is delivered with this terrific and absolute lightness. It is really worth taking time to listen to.
Music has to reach me and touch me, and Doris Day’s song ‘Que sera, sera (Whatever will be, will be)’ definitely does; I very often have it on in my car.
The lyrics are very important to me, and her voice is fantastic. Sometimes we are so overwhelmed with ‘what’s going to happen?’ and ‘is this going to work out?’, but this makes me think, ‘okay, just chill, relax, and whatever will be, will be.’ It gives me positive vibes.
I’m a very romantic person and I think Dean Martin is very charming. The song ‘That’s amore’ has very specific meaning for me, because I heard it when I was actually falling in love with my partner. The song was telling me ‘if you feel like you are drunk, but you haven’t drunk anything… that’s amore’, and I had each and every symptom! The lyrics are fantastic and he delivers them in such a wonderfully relaxed and attractive manner.
And also…
I enjoy many things in life, but I do love fast, powerful and goodlooking cars. I was just at the
Mille Miglia festival in Italy and watched all the beautiful cars. There were Bugattis and Alfa Romeos; it’s sensational. You stand there and there are more than
400 cars racing through the city over four days. Some of the cars are worth three million euros and above, which is crazy. I don’t own one, but I would certainly love to! Mariam Batsashvili’s ‘Romantic Piano Masters’ is out on 26 August on Warner Classics