I have owned these recordings on vinyl and every time I listen to them they seem to get better. It is truly a marvel to hear such a beautiful voice singing these works along side the solid musicianship of a master like Jorg Demus (who performs on a Conrad Graf Hammerflugel).

The original title of the Schubert release was Schubertiade, indicating that the spirit of the album was to resurrect what it might have been like to be at one of Schubert's many gatherings, where musicians got together to play and listen to his music. The result is that we are transported to another time and place by these perfomances (all of which are on authentic instruments, thus heightening this feeling). The playing by Demus is truly of the highest musical order. It is easy to understand why Paul Badura-Skoda (himself, a great Schubert and Mozart interpreter) has expressed so much admiration for Jorg Demus.

The Schumann Lieder are no less stunning--and reveal to us a side of the composer which is often left unheard. In some of the earlier songs, we can hear a connection to the music of his upbringing, in a way which is more obvious than in some of the composer's other works. Throughout all of the individual Lieder the voice and phrasing of Elly Ameling is simply stunning and can only be described as Heavenly.

It is tempting to dismiss Ameling as a "pretty voice" and reach for Elisabeth Schwarzkopf instead, as a previous reviewer suggests. Ameling's interpretations place a premium on simplicity and directness - two traits that are often undervalued. To my ears, however, Ameling's self-effacing approach is ideally suited to lieder performance. Schwarzkopf's recording with Edwin Fischer on EMI, while admirable in its own way, is too fussy for my tastes. Take, for example, the rendition of "Im Fruehling" by each singer: where others find Schwarzkopf to be intense and dramatic, I find her to be mannered and melodramatic. Ameling's version strikes closer to the heart and shows greater insight and intellect, in my view. Note: on this CD, Ameling's ravishing voice is at its peak.

Elly Ameling is in glorious voice, and Demus's instrument here is fortepiano, which suits the music exquisitely. Der Hirt auf dem Felsen alone is worth the price, but all the Schubert and Schumann songs are well chosen. I'm so happy that this 1965 performance is available on CD.

I also owned this on vinyl and have wonderful memories of this perfect blend of voice, clarinet and piano. Truly haunting melodies and the greatest musical integrity. Can't wait to get this one next month!

The songs in this CD were released on 2 LPs. The Schubert LP, entitled "Schubertiade") was one of the most exquisite LPs ever made. It included also a set of Ländler played beautifully by Demus on a 1835 fortepiano and unfortunately not on the CD. The Schumann LP came out a bit later and though it had some wonderful things, was not quite as stellar as the Schubert.

Each of the Schubert songs is a treasure, from the long 'Shephard on the Rock' which is breathtakingly beautiful and probably will never be equalled, to 'The Birds" (Die Vögel), one of the shortest Schubert songs and here a true delight.

This is surely Ameling's most remarkable recording, made when she was vocally in her prime. Her voice is extraordinarily pure and fresh, and used to perfection. Her understanding of the songs matches her heavenly voice. There is great simplicity and nobility, yet the sentiment is always there. Goethe's Gretchen, for instance, has never been better represented, and the quiet despair of "You don't love me" (Du liebst mich nicht) is wonderfully rendered. For this record alone, Ameling's place is assured among the greatest Lieder singers (Elisabeth Schumann, Tiana Lemnitz, Elena Gerhard, etc). Beside her, Schwarzkopf sounds often overly sophisticated (this contrast to Ameling's favor is most apparent in some of the Brahms Volkslieder -- another Ameling disc that is a pure marvel is her Brahms LP with Norman Schetler reissued on CD in 'Elly Ameling, The Early Recordings V.3' Yet another is a later Schubert recording with Demus on modern piano which includes notably one of Schubert's most beautiful but - because of its vocal demands - seldom performed Lieder: Ellen's First Song (Raste Krieger), here in a marvelous performance that she herself could not equal in her later recording.

One could regret that Ameling did not evolve entirely as one might have hoped: as her voice shed its youthful sheen, this was not compensated by increasing interpretive depth (as for instance with Elisabeth Schumann or Julius Patzak, whose best recordings arguably were made when they were vocally past their prime). But the accusation of shallowness or blandness, easily levied against light sopranos, does not apply to her. Her recordings of Lieder were consistently on a high level in every respect (including diction, which many non-German singers manage less than perfectly).

Demus's fine accompaniment on a fortepiano is entirely convincing and heightens the beauty of the performances. One only wished that more Lieder would be recorded with fortepiano. In fact, it would be very interesting to have a disc where each song is recorded in two versions, one with a fortepiano and one with a modern piano.

Voice is very personal, and taste cannot be argued. But as a aficionado of Lieder who has been listening for over half a century, I recommend this disc without reservation as one of the summits of the art. This is one disc to which I would give six stars.