After a short bike ride in Utrecht with snow and hail, a train ride to Amsterdam and a walk through wind and rain, I was warmly welcomed by Nico and Babs Witteman, contacts of the Amsterdam chapter. The concert took place in the beautiful home of their fellow contacts Adrienne van den Bogaard and Maarten Boelsma. As the turnout was a bit lower than usual, they had opted for a round seating arrangement, which gave a nice intimate atmosphere.
Jan-Willem Schaafsma and Phyllis Ferwerda opened their programme with the moving song Meine Rose by Robert Schumann. In this, they immediately showed their qualities. They held a loving dialogue, in which the melody lines matched beautifully. It was a beautifully chosen prelude to Schumann's famous Dichterliebe. How wonderful to hear this cycle with a tenor again! Jan-Willem bared his soul with his expressive voice, sounding subtle and powerful where appropriate. Phyllis did not fail to impress in this, letting the grand piano whisper and hum, whine and roar. She addressed the audience briefly before the cycle. She was pleased with the beautiful venue and the intimate setting so befitting the art of song, but wondered if romantic songs were still relevant in the present day. During the break, one audience member said to me, the answer is already in the Dichterliebe state. In the song Ein Jüngling liebt ein Mädchenstates: ‘Es ist eine alte Geschichte, doch bleibt sie immer neu.’ Feelings are of all times.
After the break, the three Métamorphoses by Francis Poulenc, whimsical, virtuosic and above all lyrical. Then four songs by Henri Duparc, the last one being, Le manoir de Rosemonde, sounded eerie and haunting. Jan-Willem and Phyllis closed the recital with four songs by Richard Strauss, in which love was especially enthusiastically sung. Exuberant applause was followed by a surprising encore: Rosemonde by Poulenc on a text by Apollinaire. The duo chose this not only because of its connection to Duparc's song, but also because the infatuation is set in Amsterdam. Poulenc, together with the singer Pierre Bernac, gave concerts in Amsterdam for many years and loved the Amsterdam canals. The encore was right on target here and immediately a thank you for the hospitality offered. Let us hope that the Friends of the Song duos will be able to use this fine Amsterdam venue for a long time to come.
Dinant Krouwel
secretary Friends of the Song
