Tag Archives: Hermann Schroeder

Episode 374. Maureen Lehane Sings Bach



Today’s episode offers music of consolation, divinely sung. On a Sunday morning back in December, freshly arrived back in New York from a challenging trip to my home state of Wisconsin, I sat down to a cup of coffee and began playing a setlist that I had created in the aftermath of my “Great Contraltos Sing Bach” episode a few weeks before. This setlist was comprised of arias from Bach cantatas sung by the British contralto Maureen Lehane (18 September 1932 – 27 December 2010) which I had discovered on YouTube as part of a huge cache of Bach cantata recordings from German radio, many of which featured Lehane as the alto soloist. I was thrilled to find such a treasure trove, since during the preparation of that episode, Lehane had stood out for her impeccable diction and fluid vocal technique, which served her equally well in recitative, cantilena, and coloratura. As I listened to that setlist and contemplated the texts, I realized that these recordings needed to be shared. I have chosen fourteen of the very finest of those recordings and am presenting them today to all who are seeking to make some kind of sense of the world in its current chaos. May the voice of Maureen Lehane singing the music of Bach provide you with a momentary oasis of order and beauty. A biographical sketch of Lehane rounds out the episode.

Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody’s core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody’s Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly or yearly support at whatever level you can afford.


Episode 338. Ameling and Friends Sing Bach



As a belated 92nd birthday tribute to our beloved Elly Ameling, I offer another episode of the Elly and Johann Show which features her in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. If you twisted my arm, I might opine that she is simply the ideal Bach soprano, and these recordings, made between 1961 and 1981, stem from her absolute prime. In this episode, the majority of the works featured (from various cantatas, oratorios, masses, and passions), are duets, with a few trios and even a quartet thrown in for good measure. Siegmund Nimsgern, Werner Krenn, Hans Sotin, Birgit Finnilä, Yvonne Minton, Helen Watts, Elisabeth Cooymans, Peter Pears, Samuel Ramey, Norma Procter, Tom Krause, Gerald English, Marga Höffgen, and Fritz Wunderlich lend their voices in harmony with our Elly. The featured recordings teeter between early period performance efforts and my preferred “full-figured Bach” performance practice. Without exception however, the style is never heavy, never thuddy, but rather gracious, flowing, and mellifluous. The episode is capped with a stunning 1966 live performance of the soprano aria from the Matthew-Passion in which Ameling, just for a moment, restores my faith in humanity.

Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody’s core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody’s Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly or yearly support at whatever level you can afford.