You can only stand back and gasp in admiration at this recorded monument. Yes, Naxos is moving ahead with its own complete edition, and it’s very good, and Fischer-Dieskau did his comprehensive but by no means complete thing for DG, but for all-around quality of performance, erudition, and sheer joy in singing, this set is going to be very, very hard to beat. Now assembled in one big box, you get 40 CDs by 60 singers containing not just all the songs, but three bonus discs containing 81 songs by Schubert’s colleagues, contemporaries, and models, from Haydn to Spohr. A beautifully printed, 400-page book contains an index to the songs, all of the texts and translations, and a Schubert calendar by Graham Johnson, accompanist extraordinaire and director of the entire project. It’s full of interesting and useful information all by itself.
It has been an incredible pleasure to go back and listen to some of the early discs once again, particularly the recitals by Janet Baker, Elly Ameling, Sarah Walker, Felicity Lott, Christophe Prégardien, and Arlene Auger. Hyperion was lucky to get tenor Ian Bostridge while still in his best voice, this version of Die schöne Müllerin roundly outclassing his more recent, terribly mannered EMI remake. It goes without saying that everyone will have his or her favorite Schubert song recital, but with so many treasures waiting to be discovered, you can use this set as a reference edition and never find yourself disappointed. The sonics are excellent throughout, and the repackaging is both carefully done and convenient to access. What an achievement! Bravo! [2/27/2006]
