Enrique Granados - Dante (Symphonic Poem); 5 Piezas sobre Cantos Populares Españoles.

Enrique GRANADOS (1867-1916)

Dante, Symphonic Poem*

Cinco Piezas Sobre Cantos Poulares Españoles, 

La Maja y el ruiseñor from Goyescas**

Goyescas (Intermezzo)

Nancy Fabiola Herrera (mezzo-soprano)*

Frances Lucey (soprano)**

Gran Canaria Philharmonic Orchestra

Adrian Leaper

Review:

A simmering first recording of Granados’s luscious Dante and strong performances of Goyescas and Piezas‚ all vividly recorded

One does not really think of Granados as an orchestral composer so Dante is something of a find. Written between 1895 and 1910‚ it is a two­part symphonic poem‚ the first section emerging in a mood of sombre despair to depict Dante’s journey with Virgil into the ‘black malignant air’ of the Inferno‚ while in the second we meet Paolo and Francesca‚ their love already anticipated in a sadly yearning theme in Part 1 (not quite Tchaikovskian‚ but nearly so).

Granados writes fluently‚ using luscious post­Wagnerian chromaticism which even brings voluptuous hints of Scriabin and early Schoenberg. The music itself‚ scored with unexpected flair‚ moves forward with growing intensity. When Francesca tells her story (a straight­forward setting of Canto V of Dante’s poem) there are even hints of Puccini. The vocal entry‚ beautifully prepared‚ is longingly and entreatingly sung by Nancy Fabiola Herrera (her fully coloured mezzo darkening the lower notes tellingly). The whole performance exudes a simmering intensity.

Adrian Leaper has already proved his versatility in previous recordings‚ and so have the excellent Gran Canaria Orchestra‚ who create a rich body of sound and respond with ardour to his languourous grip. How beautifully and atmospherically they introduce the bewitching highlight of Goyescas‚ ‘La maja y el ruiseñor’! It is simply and beautifully sung by Frances Lucey‚ and they follow warmly and vibrantly with the opera’s Intermezzo. Anselm Ferrer’s orchestration of five of the Piezas sobre cantos populares re­creates the music in orchestral terms‚ sultry and sparkling. They are most vividly presented (Leaper’s rubato is congenial) to make an entertaining centrepiece in a first­class collection‚ richly recorded