Sunday 8 March 2015

Solo vocal works

Holmboe wrote a considerable number of songs, not only with piano accompaniment but with other ensembles or orchestra. However, these works are very poorly represented on disc with only the song-cycle Moya (7 Japanese Songs), op.57 (M.176) and Egilskvad (Egill's Ballad), op.185 (M.352) having been recorded.

Moya, for voice and piano, has in fact been recorded several times and by both male and female singers. The most recent recording is by mezzo-soprano Hetna Regitze Bruun with Kristoffer Hyldig, included in a recital called Skønne Perler (Beautiful Pearls) (Naxos 8.572728). According to Naxos the CD version was only released in Denmark, but the collection is more widely available for download or streaming.


The other recording that is fairly readily available is by Peder Severin and Dorte Kirkesov, in a recital of Danish works simply called Songs (Da Capo 8.224010).


There are two earlier recordings on the Paula label. The first is by Bodil Christensen and Eva Meile, on an LP called 4 Danske Komponister fra det Tyvende Arhundrede (4 Danish Composers from the Twentieth Century) (Paula LP 8). The other composers are Jersild, Norholm and Schierbeck.


The other recording is by Ole Hedegaard and Erik Kaltoft, as part of a collection called Contemporary Danish Songs (Paula LP 32), with works by Holten, Olsen and Herman Koppel.


Ole Hedegaard also made a separate recording of the 7th song, "Sneen" (Snow), with pianist Henrik Metz.  That recording is available on Tit er jeg glad (Often I am glad) (Classico CLASSCD 767).


Egilskvad, for baritone with brass quintet accompaniment, has been recorded once. As discussed in the discography entry for brass ensemble, it is included on  Holmboe på Holmen (Classico CLASSCD 679), and consequently also in the 10-disc box set Spirales: Snapshots Of Contemporary Classical Music (Classico/Membran 233317).

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