Mahler: Urlicht

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Opera Today 24-07-2007

Stotijn holds audience in the palm of her hand

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Daily Telegraph 

Mezzo-Soprano Stotijn Earns Mostly High Marks
Christianne Stotijn puts her deep, attractive mezzo-soprano to the service of a sure and sensitive musicianship. Her Sunday night recital at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater, presented by the Vocal Arts Society, had much to recommend it.

A selection of songs from Mahler's "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" -- mystical meditations shot through with emotional urgency -- represented Stotijn at her best. "Urlicht," best known for its later incorporation into Mahler's Symphony No. 2 ("Resurrection"), was particularly fine: Stotijn managed to reconcile the song's wide-eyed, childlike sense of wonder with its paradoxical world-weariness, and her lower register is especially luscious.

I was less happy with her rendition of Schubert's "Erlkonig," which seemed strangely unformed and under-characterized. But her renditions of more purely lyrical Schubert selections -- "Auf dem Wasser zu Singen" and "Du bist die Ruh," for example -- were exemplary, neat matings of melody and meaning.

Charles Ives was represented by two early, unusually tidy settings of German poetry -- "Feldeinsamkeit" and "Ich grolle nicht" -- which were more interesting than the familiar "Memories" and "The Circus Band" that rounded out the set. It is always a courtesy when a visiting artist brings American music to town, but I do think we have richer works to offer than these over-celebrated pastiches.

The evening closed with five songs by Richard Strauss, sung with requisite nuance yet never devolving into fussiness. One had the sense, rare in Strauss performances, that Stotijn trusted the composer's tunes and felt no need to bury them in extraneous subtleties. Pianist Joseph Breinl -- alert, responsive and good-humored -- was a full partner in the evening's success.

Tim Page
Washington Post 30-01-2007

The Proms 2006: Mahler Symphony No. 2
Christianne Stotijn, who gave an impassioned account of the fourth movement text (Urlicht), a re-working of the "St Anthony of Padua's Sermon to the Fishes" song from Des Knaben Wunderhorn. This was the highlight of the evening
Music OMH 

The Proms 2006: Mahler Symphony No. 2
quietly concentrated singing of the mezzo soloist Christianne Stotijn, Haitink's long-term vision for the symphony began to yield dividends. (Richard Fairman)
FT 

The Proms 2006: Mahler Symphony No. 2
Urlicht was fittingly rapt, with Christianne Stotijn a deeply expressive mezzo soloist. (Barry Millington)
Standard 

The Proms 2006: Mahler Symphony No. 2
Yet after that, magic started to happen. The young Dutch mezzo Christianne Stotijn sang a rapt and lyrically phrased Urlicht, (Morrison)
Times 

The Proms 2006: Mahler Symphony No. 2
The mezzo-soprano Christianne Stotijn sang the Urlicht movement with a richness of timbre and expressive diction.
Daily Telegraph 

The Proms 2006: Mahler Symphony No. 2
Christianne Stotijn's mezzo solo, emerging out of stillness, fetchingly combined warmth and fresh, eager ardour. (Robert Maycock)
Independent 

Beethoven: Missa Solemnis
Barbican Centre London
...Stotijn’s gorgeous mezzo was a miracle of warm, rich tone...
MusicWeb International 05-07-2005

Oxford Lieder Festival 2004
...Dutch mezzo-soprano Christianne Stotijn teamed up with accompanist Julius Drake to present a concert of songs by Schumann, Brahms, Mahler and Strauss (in German) and Sibelius (in Swedish) as part of the two-week Oxford Lieder Festival... Christianne launched confidently into the first Schumann song and commanded the performance immediately. The style demands much of the singer – apart from obvious mastery of German and Swedish diction - poise, dynamics and acting skills are requisite and, in this case, masterfully executed... Christianne is obviously a singer of the highest calibre and gave an impressive, poised and well-executed performance from start to finish...
Daily Info, Oxford 18-10-2004