JOHN CHEST, BARITONE and MARCELO AMARAL, PIANO: DIE SCHÖNE MAGELONE

ALL ABOUT THE ARTS

JOHN CHEST

ALPHA 431 / JOHN CHEST, BARITONE and MARCELO AMARAL, PIANO / 2018 / FRANCE / DIE SCHÖNE MAGELONE, OP. 33 – JOHANNES BRAHMS

American baritone John Chest and Brazilian collaborative pianist Marcelo Amaral have both forged important individual careers in Europe, often collaborating on song recitals when their busy schedules permit it.

Luckily they were able to come together in Paris in May of last year to record this CD in the acoustically-friendly recesses of Temple Saint Marcel.

The multi-tasking producer Franck Jaffrès also took care of the mastering and editing of this lovely album, equipped with insightful liner notes and sensible translations of the songs.

All in all this is an elegantly realized project that thanks to the musicianship of both its interpreters delivers a faithful rendition of Brahms’ telling of the story of the beautiful medieval princess Magelone and the chivalrous Count Peter.

John Chest sings with utmost sensitivity in impeccable German and in a supple lyric baritone voice that serves excellently  both the delicacy of Ruhe, Süssliebchen and the heroic Verzweiflung.

Pianist Marcelo Amaral is the perfect partner for this project, commanding great pianistic technique and pliability in his work with Chest.

Rafael de Acha  http://www.Rafael’sMusicNotes.com

Published by ALL ABOUT THE ARTS

Rafael de Acha has enjoyed a distinguished career in the arts as a performer, stage director, producer, and educator. He was born and grew up in Cuba. At the age of 17 he moved to the United States to study Drama at the University of Minnesota, and later Languages at L.A. City College, Music at the Juilliard School of Music, at the University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music, and at the New England Conservatory of Music, from which he received the Master's degree. He has taught courses on the History of Music at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music and at Florida International University, and contributed writings and reviews to Seen and Heard International (www.seenandheard-international.com ) and to this blog. He co-founded the award-winning New Theatre in Coral Gables, Florida, where he produced and staged twenty seasons of classical and contemporary theater, including fifty world premieres of plays that went on to have international and national productions on and off Broadway, including Ana in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz (Pulitzer Prize for Drama 2002 and Tony Nomination 2003.) In 2006 he was presented with a citation from The Dade County Cultural Affairs Council for “trailblazing contributions to the arts in South Florida.”