CPO’s projected survey of Brahms’ 204 solo songs, plus 20 duets and 60 vocal quartets, gets off to a delicious start in this first installment. Even at a young age, Brahms already possessed an ability to shift from lofty introspection to playful light-heartedness on a dime, and did so with inspired ease in his early songs. Juliane Banse and Andreas Schmidt take turns throughout each of the four opus numbers containing six songs apiece, and sing gorgeously. They enliven each selection with heartfelt, lyrical beauty and impeccable diction. Helmut Deutsch provides sensitive and firm support, and quietly reveals the contrapuntal felicities sprinkled throughout the piano parts. The engineering couldn’t be better, and the annotations are usefully analytical in tone. If future releases in the series prove equally distinct, CPO will have in its catalog the best all-around Brahms lieder cycle on disc. Recommended with pleasure. [2/1/2000]
