The Auditory

Last Thursday I attended a very lovely recital given by the Swedish mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter, accompanied by and also featuring jazz pianist Brad Mehldau.  She brought art songs in Swedish, German, Norwegian, and English alive with her captivating presence and sensitive style of word-painting and phrasing.  However, most impressive (and admittedly foreign) to me was the set of singer=songwriter and jazz songs she offered at the end of the program.  I was pleased to find a recording she made of all these pieces and more. 

Some people say jazz is not her forte; others may argue that jazz and “popular music” has no place in the concert hall.  I found this a charming end to an otherwise very intellectual evening, and it is a great example of Ms. von Otter’s exquisite command of language in all styles.