Yvonne Minton sings 'Softly and gently' from Elgar's 'The Dream of Gerontius'

[carlolamberti1]

una musica, di inusitata bellezza, una voce umana che, prendendoti per mano, ti porta in alto, lasciandoti intravvedere e desiderare la dolcezza infinita, dove tutto, avvolto in una serenità senza fine, è capace di donarti la spiritualità del sublime per confodersi nella voce soave di un tema celeste ed incorporeo, dove l'arpa e la voce si stagliano nell'azzurro del cielo...

carlo lamberti

[elgar104]

@violinista it wasnt hidden very well was it? Trust me, I'm more blatant on other posts. The only challenge to my anti theist leanings is music such as this...

[JackieDeeMusic]

This is my great Aunt .... so beautiful Aunt Yvonne.... you've inspired me my whole life. I love you x

[elgar104]

Nice relaxed tempo - just as it should be. Beautiful. I may be an avowed athiest but I can not deny that even delusions can be sublimely inspirational!

and to think my brother was singing in the choir. And not just any choir - but arguably the best there ever was.... Kings at it's zenith !

[violinista53]

@elgar104 Must you hide an insult within a compliment?

[DelGuy03]

I am somehow not in general an Elgar fan, but I absolutely melt into a puddle when I hear this excerpt in this performance. Minton is one of my absolute favorite voices and artists, and her guiding of the line, conveyed by her peerlessly beautiful timbre and shading, is as close to heaven as I've experienced. I would call this passage a PERFECT rendition.

[57monks]

Her voice is rich and pliant, but the tempo is too fast and robs this glorious music of its serenity and consoling power

[Tenortalker]

Yvonne Minton was a star of Covent Garden . A terrific singer and a very beautiful voice. She was still singing a few years ago as i heard her in Nantes as the old Prioress in Poulenc's 'Carmelites.'

[dermie12]

beautiful version from a wonderful recording

[TheBumblebee84]

There is no frontier to musical beauty, it is simply eternity and this song feels like that.

[blarny38]

Music to die to!

[bobareebop]

Ravishingly beautiful. I had never heard of Yvonne Minton before. Where has this voice been all my life?

[mtenor]

she was my wonderful teacher

fantastic singer and teacher and lovely woman

[jrdaw]

Where did you learn from Yvonne Minton? I know she was Australian.

[mtenor]

she used to teach at the Royal academy in London

[rossings]

I'd never heard of Yvonne Minton before, but this is the MOST BEAUTIFUL mezzo voice. Truly lovely.

[coyoacan73]

For me, Yvonne is the greatest mezzosoprano to sing this amazing work! What a fantastic sound!

[jrdaw]

I agree wholeheatedly. In fact this is such a remarkable recording all round.

Apparrently Britten took a lot of pains over it and it shows. The orchestra plays superbly.

Janet Baker was a wonderful angel too but I believe Minton brought a a real sense of drama to it. The interactions between her and Pears are quite heart wrenching at times.

[safeinpants]

Britten's conducting of Elgar is all the more impressive because his own music was so different from Elgar's. His recordings of GERONTIUS and the INTRODUCTION AND ALLEGRO show one great British composer coming to terms with the legacy of another. This is the greatest thing about composers who are also performers; Britten could engage with his predecessors directly. Thankfully, unlike Mahler and other great composer-conductors, we have recordings to show us this process with Britten.

[mtenor]

i agree