Search - Henri Duparc, Richard [Classical] Wagner, Franz Liszt :: DEBUT ~ Michelle DeYoung - Duparc · Wagner · Liszt · R. Strauss Songs / Kevin Murphy

This record introduces a young singer in a varied selection of French and German songs; surprisingly, of two by Liszt one is in French and one is in Italian. Michelle DeYoung is billed as a soprano, but sounds more like a mezzo-soprano: her voice is beautiful, dark, and warm, with a pure, resonant low range, and she has sung alto roles such as Wagner's Fricka. The program is not entirely felicitous: there are too many slow, lamenting songs, and, worse, not all present the singer to optimal advantage. She comes into her own in the Liszt and Strauss songs, for which she clearly has the greatest vocal and emotional affinity. Her expressiveness, which had been a bit overdone and calculated on the other songs, becomes spontaneous, deeply felt, and strongly projected. DeYoung's voice soars radiantly in the upper register; even her only vocal flaw, a wide vibrato, almost disappears, the tone becoming focused and intense. Kevin Murphy, a splendid pianist, supports her with empathetic sensitivity, although the recorded sound is too subdued and remote. The disc sorely lacks texts and translations, especially since many of the songs are comparatively unfamiliar; the booklet's invitation to find these on EMI's Web site is not much help to the listener. --Edith Eisler