Praise for Seong-Jin Cho’s new Deutsche Grammophon release duo album with Matthias Goerne
Seong-Jin Cho and baritone Mathias Goerne (Photo Credit: Universal Music / News1)
The media has highlighted and praised Seong-Jin Cho and German baritone Matthias Goerne’s new Deutsche Grammophon album, entitled ‘Im Abendrot,’ featuring works by late German romantic composers such as Richard Wagner, Hans Pfitzner, and Richard Strauss.
Limelight Magazine declares the album a “2021 Limelight Recording of the Year”. It states: “The recording is a sublime and atmospheric program of nocturnal songs. Goerne infuses Pfitzner’s Lieder with magnificently multi-hued vocal colour, empathetically partnered by 27-year-old South Korean pianist, Seong-Jin Cho, who demonstrates a remarkable sensitivity that belies his age . . . This inspired detour off the beaten track is a detour worth taking. Don’t miss this superbly talented singer at the height of his powers.”
Limelight Magazine’s critic Tony Way writes in his original 5-star review of the album: “Goerne infuses Pfitzner’s Lieder with magnificently multi-hued vocal colour, empathetically partnered by 27-year-old South Korean pianist, Seong-Jin Cho, who demonstrates a remarkable sensitivity that belies his age.”
Norman Lebrecht in The Critic UK praises: “The new partnership of German baritone Matthias Goerne and Korean pianist Seong-Jin Cho on Deutsche Grammophon will be taking our breath away ten years from now. Performing drawingroom Lieder of Richard Wagner Hans Pfitzner and Richard Strauss, the pair transport us into unimagined realms of fantasy and fulfilment. A major contender for record of the decade.”
Yeonhap states that the album “is part of a series in which Goerne re-examines the history of pianists and German Lieder.”
News 1 and TV Chosun quoted Goerne: “The experience of exploring songs contemplating human origins with a great pianist was so wonderful that it was difficult to explain.” The two noted their excitement regarding their collaboration and interpretation of historic pieces.
Emphasizing the importance of this partnership, Herald Economy, Maeil Economy, and Joongang Sports note that “this is the first time that Seong-Jin Cho [has] participated in a vocal album.”
The Seoul Newspaper reported that the “two had a concert in Korea in September 2019 and performed a song by Schubert and received great acclaim from domestic fans.”
“The release is to follow Goerne’s previous album containing Beethoven’s works with Jan Rishitzki”, writes Maeil.
Asia Today notes that the album was released on the 16th through the label Deutsche Grammophon.