Tuesday, March 13. 1984


Baritone Collup beats the French song blahs

By David M. Charvonia

Anna Russell's characterization of the French song as great poetry set to rather drippy music is far from true, but the genre does require imaginative performers in order to avoid lapsing into bland monotony. In the Phillips Collection series on Sunday, baritone Donald Collup and pianist Walter Huff accepted the challenge in a program devoted entirely to French song. Mr. Collup has impressive credentials and he did not disappoint. Mr. Huff was a fine accompanist, technically secure and always sensitive to the singer.

Two great cycles, Fauré's "La Bonne Chanson" and Poulenc's "La Fraicheur et le Feu," were the heart of the recital. With its diffuse chromaticism and sinuous lines, the Fauré possesses an elusive quality that seems to elicit either total adoration or hopeless boredom. These songs of love, dreams, the earth, and the sky found a superlative advocate in Mr. Collup. His clear, lyric voice brought Verlaine's words to life with interpretive depth, good diction, and a restrained passion that proved completely apposite.

The Poulenc is a more straightforward, almost neo-classical work. Some of the songs are almost miniatures, but they inhabit a rich world of image and idea. Again, the reading was wonderful, both artists seeming right at home in the composer's unique idiom.

"Le Carnaval' is a short cycle by Jacques Leguerney, a friend and imitator of Poulenc. Mr. Collup brought a sneering intensity to the often acidic texts.

Chausson wrote superbly lyrical and introspective songs, and their luscious melancholy was beautifully captured, as was the folk flavor of three Creole songs which ended this rewarding program.