Lise Davidsen
is the soprano of the moment, and
Christmas from Norway
might serve as a good introduction for general listeners to the wonders of her voice, from its incredible delicacy in the high register in
Silent Night
to the variety of sounds in a program where the dynamic level never rises above mezzo-forte.
Davidsen
fans, too, will find confirmation of their bias here. The program is a fresh take on a generally rather stale genre. It does indeed include some traditional Norwegian Christmas carols, as well as
O Holy Night
, sung in Norwegian (it is reprised at the end in English just for familiarity's sake). There is an early
Sibelius
religious song in Swedish and several songs in German, including
Hugo Wolf
's
Schlafendes Jesuskind
(from the
Moerike-Lieder
), that serve to demonstrate
's range. The program ends on well-trodden ground, with famous carols in English, at least one of which was arranged by
Douglas Gamley
for
Luciano Pavarotti
's mega-productions of yore. Some of the other arrangements are by
Norwegian Radio Orchestra
conductor
Christian Eggen
, who keeps the orchestra largely out of
's way where it belongs. The English-language carols, it must be said, have a bit of a Norwegian accent. One wonders sometimes why singers are expected to eliminate their accents in every language except English, but with a voice of this beauty, who cares? ~ James Manheim