Romantic Residues
Songs for tenor & harp

‘[Gilchrist] is now unsurpassed among lyric tenors in sweetness and technical security, and for his musical intelligence’ (The Independent).

James Gilchrist is one of the finest British tenors of today, acclaimed as a concert soloist, a recitalist and a recording artist, each latest event eliciting more rapturous comments from critics and audience alike. In his first solo disc for Hyperion, he features in a fascinating recital of English, French and American music for tenor, harp and flute.

What do we remember of our past romantic encounters? This is the theme of ‘Romantic Residues’, the opening section of Vikram Seth’s collection of verse All You Who Sleep Tonight, first published in 1990. There are nine poems in all, varying widely in content and mood—from the light and whimsical to the melancholy and dark. The songs were commissioned by the Bury St Edmunds Festival and composed for James Gilchrist and Alison Nicholls who gave the first performance. This charming, impeccably-performed collection of morceaux and mélodies also includes works by Britten, Saint-Saëns, Ravel and Fauré.

CDA67725  64 minutes 43 seconds
‘These are attractive works … the resources of voice and instruments are imaginatively exploited. And the performances are excellent. On the Hyperion disc Roth shares with Britten, Ravel and othe ...
‘Beautifully played here by Alison Nicholls. Gilchrist sounds quite at home in the Welsh songs … an interesting and intelligent singer, well served by his distinguished accompanists’ (BBC Music M ...
‘The balance between voice and instruments is good, and Gilchrist's recorded voice is present but not too close. Because of its instrumentation and the interesting choice of music, this recital is sli ...