Weltgeheimnis: Songs by Liszt, Mahler, Pizzetti, Rihm Christoph Pohl

• 1 No. 1. La vita fugge e non s'arresta un'ora 02:29
• 2 No. 2. Levommi il mio pensier in parte 03:07
• 3 No. 3. Quel rosignol che si soave piagne 03:31
• 4 No. 1. Der Reigen dreht ohn Unterlass 01:41
• 5 No. 2. Gestern war und morgen ist nicht 02:16
• 6 No. 3. Verwelkte Blume 01:54
• 7 No. 4. Weltgeheimnis 03:23
• Franz Liszt (1811–1886) Tre sonetti del Petrarca
• 8 No. 2. Pace non trovo 05:00
• 9 No. 1. Benedetto sia'l giorno 05:19
• 10 No. 3. I'vidi in terra angelici costumi 05:33
• Gustav Mahler (1860–1911) Fünf Rückert-Lieder
• 11 No. 1. Blicke mir nicht in die Lieder 01:31
• 12 No. 2. Ich atmet' einen linden Duft 02:30
• 13 No. 3. Liebst du um Schonheit 02:38
• 14 No. 4. Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen 06:21
• 15 No. 5. Um Mitternacht 06:52
• Total Runtime 54:05

Info for Weltgeheimnis: Songs by Liszt, Mahler, Pizzetti, Rihm

A recital album like this GENUIN release by baritone Christoph Pohl and pianist Tobias Krampen would have been called a “concept record” back in the days of vinyl records. All the songs by Liszt, Mahler, Pizzetti and Rihm chosen for this recording are about the same theme and are combined into an intriguing whole. From Petrarch’s sonnets all the way to poetry by Friedrich Rückert–all the settings are of a piece and fit within the dramatic concept. Going beyond this, Pohl’s soft, flexible baritone voice is magical, Krampen’s sensitively nuanced pianism beguiling, and the interpretative force of both musicians impressive. These are true discoveries, even for connoisseurs of the art-song!

'Christoph Pohl was a singer new to me, but his recording of songs by Pizzetti, Rihm, Liszt, and Mahler makes a surprisingly coherent program. He has an inviting voice and artistry to match, and is well-seconded by Tobias Krampen.' (Fanfare)

'...One appeal of this program is hearing the music of four very different composers selected well across a theme: each of these songs captures in some way a universal human longing for meaning in an often confusing world. Another appeal is hearing a fine voice with skilled accompaniment, The more I listened, the more I found to like.' (Robert A Moore - American Record Guide)

Christoph Pohl, baritone
Tobias Krampen, piano

Christoph Pohl
Baritone Christoph Pohl gained his first singing experience as the age of nine in the Knabenchor Hannover. He was a member of the well-known a cappella group “Modell Andante” for eight years . He completed his studies at the Hanover Hochschule für Musik. From September 2003 to July 2005, Christoph Pohl was a member of the opera studio at the Hamburg State Opera. He has been a prizewinner at many competitions including the German Voice Competition, the German Music Competition the Fourth International Competition for Wagner Singers in Bayreuth and the International Schumann Song Competition. He was awarded the Christel Golz Prize of the Semper Opera Foundation in 2008. Christoph Pohl has sung under well-known conductors such as Fabio Luisi, Peter Schneider, Ingo Metzmacher, Donald Runiccles, Ivor Bolton, and Sir Roger Norrington, and has appeared in song recitals and as a soloist at numerous festivals in Germany and abroad. In the course of these activities he has sung with well-known choruses and orchestras including the Dresden Kammerchor, the Mädchen- und Knabenchor Hannover, the Dresden Kreuzchor, the NDR Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Dresden Philharmonic. He has appeared as a guest artist in Bonn, Stuttgart and Leipzig, as well as the Bavarian State Opera and the Salzburg Festival. Christoph Pohl has been a permanent member of the Semperoper Dresden since September 2005 and and sings the leading baritone roles such as Harlequin, Guglielmo, Papageno, Count Almaviva, Marcello, Dandini, the Barber of Seville, Graf Danilo and Wolfram von Eschenbach.

Tobias Krampen
Born in Bad Pyrmont, Tobias Krampen initially studied piano with Prof. Heidi Koehler, before he completed an Artist Diploma major at McGill University in Montréal in solo piano and chamber music under Prof. Tom Plaunt and Prof. Michael McMahon. After this came studies in song accompaniment with Prof. Jürgen Glauß at the Cologne Hochschule für Musik followed by a performance degree in Song Duo in the master class of Prof. Irwin Gage in Saarbrücken. Tobias Krampen holds a scholarship from the Richard Wagner Society, Cologne, and has been a prizewinner at numerous competitions such as the German Music Competition. In addition, he was awarded the 2007 Schubert Prize of the German Schubert Society. He has concertized and given master classes with Sibylla Rubens, Francisco Araiza, Peter Schreier, Manfred Jung and Thomas Thomaschke. Together with Ingeborg Danz he gives courses in song interpretation for singers and pianists. Tobias Krampen is a lecturer in song interpretation at the Cologne Hochschule für Musik.

Booklet for Weltgeheimnis: Songs by Liszt, Mahler, Pizzetti, Rihm