Miah Persson: A WOMAN’S LOVE AND LIFE
With her appearances in Salzburg, the Met, Carnegie Hall, Covent Garden, Staatsoper Berlin, Aix-en-Provence and Glyndebourne, Miah Persson ranks as one of the most sought-after opera and song performers around today. Audiences and critics the world over appreciate her voice, her flawless technique and natural expression, which she imprints onto all her roles on the stage and concert platform. “Miah Persson gives one of the most detailed and nuanced acting performances of any singer of the past decade or more,” wrote Hugh Canning in The Sunday Times. She will appear at the Prague Spring with pianist Malcolm Martineau and together they will present a programme combining the Romantic song cycle Frauen-Liebe und Leben (A Woman’s Love and Life) by Robert Schumann with songs by Scandinavian composers.
Programme
- Clara Schumann: selection of songs
- Robert Schumann: Frauen-Liebe und Leben Op. 42
- Gösta Nystroem, Ture Rangström, Wilhelm Stenhammar, Edvard Grieg, Jean Sibelius, Bo Linde, Hugo Alfvén, Lars-Erik Larsson: selection of songs
Performers
- Miah Persson - soprano
- Malcolm Martineau - piano
“Ah, Clara, the bliss of writing songs!,” wrote Robert Schumann in 1840 to Clara Wieck, who was shortly to become his wife. In that year he wrote 138 songs, among them the cycle Frauen-Liebe und Leben, set to texts by Adalbert von Chamisso. Here, the German poet, a descendant of French aristocrats, who fled the French Revolution and headed for Prussia, describes a couple’s romantic involvement, from their first meeting, then their marriage, to the husband’s death, all seen from the woman’s point of view. Miah Persson decided to link Schumann’s cycle to songs by Nordic composers – Edvard Grieg, Jean Sibelius, Wilhelm Stenhammar and Gunnar de Frumerie, all of whom wrote musical settings to texts treating the same theme.
“The idea for a Scandinavian version of Robert Schumann’s well-known song cycle Frauen-Liebe und Leben came to me when I was asked to come up with a Scandinavian programme for a recital,” states the singer, who regularly performs in the world’s most prestigious opera venues, including New York’s Metropolitan Opera, London’s Covent Garden and the Vienna State Opera. “Having just sung in an extensive Stenhammar programme with many of the songs about the young girl dreaming of her lover and the girl’s first experience of love and heartbreak, I realised how interesting it would be to do a Scandi version of the masterpiece. I spoke to Malcolm about it and together we curated a programme that follows the idea of Frauen-Liebe, starting with the young girl’s first love and ending with the loss of her beloved,” explains Persson.
Malcolm Martineau not only complements the singer in ideological terms, but he is also her musical partner. The Scottish pianist is one of the most highly regarded accompanists, sought out by world-class singers. During his colourful career he has worked with such legends as Frederica von Stade, Sir Thomas Allen, Thomas Hampson, Bryn Terfel and Magdalena Kožená. “I very much look forward to this recital and also to working with Malcolm Martineau again,” Miah confesses. “We’ve been working together for a long time and it’s always a great pleasure to sing with him – his musicality and sensitivity towards the songs and the singer make him one of the absolute best there is!”
