just came from hearing her at a church on madison ave. accompanied by a lutenist. unbelievable. i am in love. what a voice!

thank you for telling us about her or i would not have known to go see her spur of the moment.

You're welcome! I can't believe you heard her in real life. That's awesome!

She blew my friends and me away the first time I played the Mozart arias I brought back from the store one day. I always did get credit for "discovering" her.

You know, she's been knighted by Queen Elizabeth. Now she's "Dame Emma Kirkby".

I'm so jealous, piqué. I'm so glad you got to see her and that you enjoyed it. Thank you for telling us about it.

i really wanted to meet her, but there must have been a thousand people at the church, and you had to buy a premium over the ticket to go to her q&a afterwards, and those tickets were sold out. i really just wanted to give her a copy of "grand obsession" as i so had a feeling she would love it.

there's something about her face and bearing that is just radiant. she's quite a presence. and the songs she sang were just exquisite--the poetry was wonderful and profound.

daniel, can you suggest some cds of hers? i'm definitely getting some.

She wrote the book on authentic performance method and her voice is indeed unique and wonderful. She will go down in history as one of the best sopranos who ever lived.

quote:

Originally posted by piqué:
daniel, can you suggest some cds of hers? i'm definitely getting some.

Sure, my pleasure. Give me a few hours to finish eating dinner and I'll get something together for you.

I'll add to this as I look for what I want.

First, this is one of my favorites.

http://www.getmusic.com.au/art...x?pid=30259&aid=6954

I bring it up, also, because it's accompanied by Anthony Rooley on the lute. I'd be curious to know if that's who you saw.

This is a "must have"! Please trust me on this!



They've packaged other Mozart she did with Christopher Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient Music. The covers look similar to this one but make sure it's this one. This is the original recording.

I bought this on that day so long ago. I'd never heard her or even heard about her before. I had other Academy of Ancient music stuff and I love Mozart so that's why I chose it.

It blew us all away, including my SO.

The coloratura is so natural, so, so beautiful. This woman is really a genius. We felt very strongly that this is what Mozart must have had in mind.

Incredible. If you're a Mozart fan, you'll love this.

She has over 100 recordings and I won't pretend to be familiar with most of them. Here's a short overview of her career.

http://www.goldbergweb.com/en/...ters/vocals/8116.php

You have a lot to choose from.

I would look for recordings under "Decca" and "L'Oiseau-Lyre". These are recordings she made with the Academy of Ancient Music.

http://www.aam.co.uk/

While I'm at it, I love this recording of Mozart's clarinet concerto.

" Antony Pay Basset clarinet
Michel Piguet Oboe
The Academy of Ancient Music
Christopher Hogwood
Decca L’Oiseau-Lyre 414 339-2OH (also available as part of 460 027)"

From the AAM, I have:

Mass in C major K.317 "Coronation"
Requiem K626 (ed. Richard Maunder)- it's the only version I listen to
Exsultate Jubilate K165

This one looks great:

Concert Arias from Zaide & Il Re Pastore

She's done Bach for them, lots of Purcell, Handel, and on and on.

I have this one.



Emma Kirkby and Christopher Hogwood. LOL!

A couple notes: not that she's in them- but I don't like AAM Mozart operas. I like John Eliot Gardiner.

The other place I'd look first is the "Hyperion" label.

http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/a.asp?a=A154

When you get to this link, please put "Emma Kirby" in the serach engine and hit "Search".

The ones I have are:

Hildegard: A feather on the breath of God
The Emma Kirkby Collection
Time Stands Still (Elizabethan songs, Anthony Rooley, lute)
Arne: Dr. Arne at Vauxhall Gardens (good but not my favorite)

I'd particularly recommend The Emma Kirkby Collection and Time Stand Still but if your musical tastes lead you to others on this list, I wouldn't hesitate.

So this is my basic advice- look for "Decca", "L'Oiseau-Lyre" and "Hyperion" but I also think it would be worthwhile for you to look for composers you like on whatever label because she has recorded so much music.

Good luck and please let us know if you find things you particularly like.

quote:

I bring it up, also, because it's accompanied by Anthony Rooley on the lute. I'd be curious to know if that's who you saw.

no. jakob lindberg, from sweden. he was playing the oldest known playable lute in existence. it was made by sixtus rauwolf of augsburg, germany, c. 1590, and has the original soundboard.

i had no idea she was so well recorded. thank you for the suggestions. she does indeed have the most natural and effortless soprano i have ever heard. pure silver. and i usually don't even like the soprano voice!

i'll definitely get the mozart. i love mozart.

if you ever get a chance to see her live, definitely do. as her program notes say: "emma still prefers live concerts, especially the pleasure of repeating programmes with colleagues; every occasion, every venue and every audience combine to create something new."

she is a fairy-like presence, and a bit of a hippie--the wild hair, and dressed all in shades of iridescent violet and plum, and acting up the story of the songs with humor and pathos, as if she were telling a fairy tale to a group of children. she's a luminous being even before she opens her mouth.

About the performer and the lute- wow! I love period instruments.

I will definitely see her if I get the chance.

I told the SO about your experience and he was very impressed too.

Please yes do get that Mozart- you soo won't regret it.

You made my day with your description. Thank you so much.

i was telling grotriman this morning that her voice is the voice of my piano's treble when marc has tuned it--it has the same quality. full of color.

My music teacher (musicologist in college, music history class) described it as "piercing but in a good way".

I've never heard anything else like it. I don't expect I ever will.

She really made an impression on you, piqué. I'm glad!