Martin J. Walker wrote:
>
> Frederick, I'm still in the process of reading your long & engrossing poem,
> an original verse narrative, (apocalyptic pastoral?), but a first looking
> over has produced this:
> <The Schwarzkopf/Böhm Lied von der Erde>
> This is impossible: S. had a soprano, not an alto voice & could never have
> negotiated the low tessitura. Böhm certainly never recorded _Das Lied_;
> though I'm not prepared to swear he never conducted it I find it unlikely.
> He avoided Mahler to my knowledge, perhaps to do with guilt over his Nazi
> party membership, conscious or unconscious, if not with anti-Jewish feeling.
> Is this a sign that the whole poem takes place in some alternative universe?
> Best, Martin
Truth to tell, I didn't know S couldn't sing that range. I was pretty
sure she and Boehm had never recorded it; I love his Bruckner and
thought, why not? Am inclined to keep him - poetic justice - but if you
could suggest a likely famous alto - likely, that is, in an alternate
world - I'd be grateful. Two syllables if possible.
"Apocalyptic pastoral" is good. My basic genre. Thanks again.
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