My colleague Dan Davis raved about Volume 1 in this series, and I find no reason to question his judgment. This disc contains the remaining Auvergne songs, including some of the most eloborate and extended settings (Pastorale and Obal, din lo coumbèlo). More importantly, you also get the stunning Triptyque, a gorgeous song cycle that also appeared as the coupling to Frederica von Stade’s fine series on Sony (never issued complete on CD). The French songs make an even more generous bonus. Veronique Gens sings with effortless beauty and simplicity. There’s never any trace of archness or affectation, though her sensitivity to the texts acquires an added level of depth in Triptyque (check out the central poem, “Lunaire”), with its ravishing nature imagery. Serge Baudo accompanies like the pro that he is, and the sound strikes me as slightly better than Dan Davis described it, at least on my system. It doesn’t get much better than this. [3/24/2008]
