Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #83124 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-06-18
• Rating: Exempt
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Classical, PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 91 minutes

Customer Reviews

Spirituality Personified
For those of us, who have no opportunity to attend Ian Bostridge's recitals, this DVD is a priceless gift. Having heard much about his "unorthodox" manner of delivery, we were surprised by just how natural and spontaneous he was. Every interpretive nuance seemed to stem from his deep inner conviction in how to bring to life the very essence of each lied. It was thrilling to have each song turned into an actual experience on stage, as though it were being "lived out" right before our very eyes. And it is a mistake to think that this can be achieved through mere "acting", for the power necessary for this would not be sufficient. The kind of mezmerizing hold that Mr. Bostridge has over the audience can only come from his spirit.

This actually takes a great deal of courage: to open yourself up to the point, at which the spirit can rise from within and take over the performance. This happens only with the greatest of artists, who put themselves entirely at the service of the music. In addition, it takes a particular stage of spiritual development, because it requires a nobility of soul - something that definitely cannot be "acted". In fact, it is so rare to see spiritual nobility these days that some people tend to mistake it for "posturing" or affectation.

Every song is a highlight (though, it must be said that a song like "Nimmersatte Liebe" is simply unworthy of Mr. Bostridge.) Rising to the dizzying heights of effortless virtuosity in "Willkommen und Abschied", "Storchenbotschaft", "Abschied", he contrasts it with spellbinding stillness in "Nacht und Traume", "Wanderers Nachtlied II", and the last encore, Schubert's "Erster Verlust", just needs to be experienced to be believed. To end an entire recital on a question! And to transform it into a kind of eternal, existential question!

Singing about the beauty of the spiritual ideal (in "An die Geliebte", "Neue Liebe"), Mr. Bostridge himself undergoes a kind of transformation and begins to emerge as the earthly personification of that ideal. His features become transfigured, as they take on a reflection of the unearthly beauty of his spirit, which has found its expression in the lieder of Schubert and Wolf. Glowing through the body's material cloak, the luminosity of his spirit has little to do with our modern concepts of beauty - but then true beauty is not dependent on the correctness of physical features, but only on the extent to which spirituality is revealed on the face.

Another phenomenon can be observed in this performance: Mr. Bostridge's extraordinary sensitivity to words. Much has been written about it, but to fully appreciate this, it is necessary to lift part of the veil covering the knowledge of the mysterious powers contained in every human word, to which most people remain oblivious. The great German philosopher, writing under the name of Abd-ru-shin (1875-1941), reveals:

"...there is a releasing quality in every word, because all words are firmly anchored in the Primordial Laws of Creation! Every word shaped by man has come into being under the pressure of higher Laws and, according to its application, must manifest formingly in a very definite way!" (Abd-ru-shin, "IN THE LIGHT OF TRUTH: THE GRAIL MESSAGE" - "IM LICHTE DER WAHRHEIT: GRALSBOTSCHAFT")

The more sensitive people perceive this intuitively. So very often in the course of the recital, what we see on Mr. Bostridge's face is how deeply he is affected by this special "releasing quality" contained in every word, particularly when it is even further amplified by the music. (The great Fischer-Dieskau also possessed this quality.) The facial expressions do not come from "acting", but from an inordinate degree of receptivity to the forming power of the words. "Erlkonig" is, perhaps, the most obvious illustration of this receptivity, but it is present throughout - already in "Wehmut" it is clearly discernible, as Mr. Bostridge, from the very first note, stands right in the power-current of his Calling.

And speaking of receptivity to Higher Realms, a set of Wolf songs ("Gebet", "An den Schlaf", "Neue Liebe" and "An die Geliebte"), written after the composer's attendance of Wagner's "Parsifal", reveals much more about him than just Wagner's stylistic influence on his music. During the intermission of "Parsifal", Wolf broke down in tears. For such a reaction to happen, he had to have been shaken to the innermost depths of his being, he had to have experienced a spiritual recognition of the actual existence of the Persona of Parsifal in Creation (despite the fact that Wagner's story, based as it is on purely human writings, contains many errors):

"Parsifal is a great promise! The defects and errors which the poets have added to the legends through their too earthly way of thinking distort the true essence of this figure. Parsifal is identical with the Son of Man, Whose coming the Son of God Himself proclaimed...

[His] mission will also bring redemption to those who are seriously seeking, and goes hand in hand with a stern judgment...

Man should cease to regard the Holy Grail as only something intangible, for It really exists! The human spirit, however, owing to its nature, can never behold It. But the blessing radiating forth from It, which can be and is being passed on by the Guardians of the Grail, can be absorbed and enjoyed by those human spirits who open themselves to it." (Abd-ru-shin, "IN THE LIGHT OF TRUTH: THE GRAIL MESSAGE").

After experiencing the reality of Parsifal through Wagner's highly-guided opera, Wolf and his music were never the same. The inner deepening that has occurred is clearly reflected in the so-called "religious" songs chosen for this recital. This is also where Mr. Bostridge sores to new heights of spiritual transcendence.

From the opening "Wehmut" to the closing question of "Erster Verlust", Mr. Bostridge shapes the whole recital as a spiritual journey, to which the audience is invited. The intensity of his own personal involvement turns it into an unforgettable experience.