The album title, "Fleur de mon âme" (Flower of my soul), is taken from a line in Théophile Gautier's poem "Les papillons", set by Ernest Chausson.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Reynaldo Hahn, a composer featured on this album, advocated for 'graduated sensations' in singing, keeping excessive emotion in check.
Compositional Technique
Debussy's "Bilitis" settings feature largely syllabic vocal writing with small intervals, influenced by Pierre Louÿs' prose-style text.
Performer Biography
Karen Cargill, the mezzo-soprano on this album, was the winner of the 2002 Kathleen Ferrier Award and regularly performs with major orchestras worldwide.
Composition History
Claude Debussy's "Chansons de Bilitis" are based on a poetic work by Pierre Louÿs that falsely claimed to be translations from a 'lost' Ancient Greek source.
Composition History
Ernest Chausson's "Chanson perpétuelle" was his last completed work, written in 1898-99, and uses a poem by Charles Cros about a woman's abandonment.
Recording & Production
This album was recorded in the New Auditorium, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, UK, in February 2020.
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