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Louise Alder and Roger Vignoles offer French charm in their return to Wigmore Hall.

The tone was set for a shrewdly programmed hour of contrasts.

Soprano Elizabeth Watts brought tonal richness and energy to an evening of French song with texts by Théophile Gautier, but her expressive arsenal was diminished by a bout of flu.

Alek Shrader's Wigmore Hall debut was thrilling, touching, charming and mysterious.

Poise, control, stillness. Within two minutes of her Wigmore Hall debut, the qualities that make Elīna Garanča a consummate Lieder recitalist were evident.

Dutch National Opera performs Poulenc’s first opera, Les mamelles de Tirésias, as a project of the company’s talent development program... a fun occasion to witness the much lighter “voyou” side of the French composer.

Christoph Prégardien's spacious account of Die Schone Mullerin displayed his characteristically radiant sound and instinctive musicality, but was marred by flaws as the song cycle progressed.

Stepping in for an indisposed Carmen Giannattasio, Romanian mezzo Ruxandra Donose opened (and closed) her Rosenblatt Recital with… Carmen.

“Are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin...”So Julia Somerville, looking extremely comfortable in a pale yellow armchair, with a beautiful table and reading lamp beside her, began a rather unusual recital by Roderick Williams and Roger Vignoles of Brahms’ only song cycle, Die Schöne Magelone.

This was the first concert of Oxford Lieder's new season, and setting the bar pleasingly high for those who will come after was the partnership of tenor John Mark Ainsley, veteran of concert and opera stage alike, and Roger Vignoles, a name synonymous with the highest levels of professionalism in the accompaniment of song.

La mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink et le pianiste Roger Vignoles ont proposé à l’Auditorium du Musée d’Orsay un récital qui clôturait la première année de l’Académie Orsay-Royaumont, dédiée à la mélodie et au lied.

Marie-Nicole Lemieux, contralto pléthorique offre un récital jubilatoire soutenu par un Roger Vignoles royal ; malheureusement la truculence déjà légendaire de la cantatrice semble bien mal adaptée à l’exercice du récital.

Duparc disait que « la vraie musique, la seule, est la musique d'âme et d'émotion ». Il aurait trouvé avec Marie-Nicole Lemieux accompagnée par Roger Vignoles dans un programme de mélodies françaises, une parfaite illustration de son propos.