STANLEY WILSON

• Schumann: Liederkreis, Op.39 - Waldesgespräch

“an earnest endeavor... Stanley Wilson has a compact, focused tenor… he sings with clear diction... Malcolm Halliday provides thoughtful support, demonstrating a fluid touch and clarity of articulation with occasional poetic flourishes... The sound of the recording has a pleasing concert hall ambiance...”

Carla Maria Verdino-Süllwold , Fanfare [November/December 2015]

During the early 19th century, there was an evolution from Classicism, the age of reason and logic, to the age of Romanticism, a time that affirmed nature and the natural, the individual and his soul, folk culture, the emotional and creative, and a longing for the unattainable. Painters began to look inward for their source of inspiration, and writers in many countries – particularly England, France and the
United States – felt its power in the realm of literature. In German literature, however, the movement was focused on the mystical, subconscious and supernatural. Poetry was also touched upon, as authors such as Goethe helped to formulate this new aesthetic.

Romanticism profoundly influenced all genres of music, including German and Italian opera, Chopin’s piano music, Brahms’ symphonies, and art songs of many countries, particularly France and Germany. The songs of this era were born from the soul of the poet who created the verse and the composer who set them to music. German romantic lied, art song of the 19th century as exemplified by Schumann’s Dichterliebe and Liederkreis cycles, is a genre firmly based in the ideas of Romanticism. Performance of these cycles shows the power of the genre as it rewards both singer and listener with a deeply
emotional experience.

Art Song seeks to portray human emotion in its purest musical form. Along the course of its history, it has grown to be the marriage of two distinctive realms of art – poetry and music – with beginnings firmly rooted in folk-song. While the songs of each nationality take a different journey, the heart of the music is  essentially the same. Through time, several principles have become clear for art song to be successful. First, the composer must convey not only the general essence of the poem in the music, but also the subtle changes in mood. Second, if the poet has found a rhythmic meter to relay a feeling, the composer must honor that pattern in the music. Lastly, to reach the highest level of  Inspiration, the song must express the meaning of the words in its own harmonic language. When all these aspects converge, then song reaches its pinnacle as an art form.



American tenor Stanley Wilson showed special vocal talent at an early age, and has diligently pursued a life of study and performance. Wilson has amassed an extensive list of oratorio and opera credits, which include performances of Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Requiem, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Schubert’s Mass in B-flat and works by Finzi and Rorem. He has sung the roles of Basilio and Don Curzio in Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro, Kaspar in Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors, Bardolfo in Verdi’s Falstaff and Gastone in La Traviata. As a recitalist, Wilson has performed extensively with pianist Malcolm Halliday, presenting programs that include works by Sir Edward Elgar, Frank Bridge, Roger Quilter, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Robert Schumann, and others. Wilson, who received a Master of Music degree in Opera Performance from the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, Massachusetts, currently studies with Sondra Kelly and teaches voice privately in Worcester. [ www.StanleyWilsonTenor.com ]

Pianist Malcolm Halliday has performed in the United States and Europe, both as a soloist and collaborator. Formerly the resident pianist for the American Schubert Institute in Boston, Halliday is particularly active as a collaborator with singers in art song recitals. He has performed on historical pianos at Jordan Hall and Faneuil Hall in Boston, Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and other locations throughout New England. With a 1828 Conrad Graf piano, he recorded Schubert’s Winterreise with bass-baritone Robert Osborne, and can also be heard on two recordings of music by Leo Sowerby (Albany Records). Halliday is currently Minister of Music at the First Congregational Church in Shrewsbury, Artistic Director and Conductor of the Master Singers of Worcester and serves on the Boards of Choral Arts New England and the Frederick Historic Piano Collection in Ashburnham.

  ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810-1856)
DICHTERLIEBE, OP.48
Im wunderschönen Monat Mai
Aus meinen Tränen sprießen
Die Rose, die Lilie, die Taube
Wenn ich in deine Augen seh
Ich will meine Seele tauchen
Im Rhein, im heiligen Strome
Ich grolle nicht, und wenn das Herz
Und wüßten’s die Blumen
Das ist ein Flöten und Geigen
Hör’ ich das Liedchen klingen
Ein Jüngling liebt ein Mädchen
Am leuchtenden Sommermorgen
Ich hab’ im Traum geweinet
Allnächtlich im Traume seh ich dich
Aus alten Märchen winkt es
Die alten, bösen Lieder

LIEDERKREIS, OP.39
In der Fremde
Intermezzo
Waldesgespräch
Die Stille
Mondnacht
Schöne Fremde
Auf einer Burg
In der Fremde
Wehmut
Zwielicht
Im Walde
Frühlingsnacht



MSR Classics