Will I ever tire of singing the praises of Hermann Prey in these pages? (OK, not literally singing, I admit—not that I could begin to measure myself against Prey in that regard in any case.) In a word, “no”; but that does not mean my adoration of his voice and art is completely uncritical and undifferentiated either, and this CD is a case in point.

The contents of this disc are drawn from radio broadcasts dating from 1966, 1972, 1977, 1988 (the Beethoven Lieder ), and 1992. Most of the selections are taken from the Sunday Concerts series of the Munich Radio Orchestra, primarily devoted to opera arias and lighter classical fare. The participating conductors of the Munich Radio Orchestra featured here include Roberto Abbado, Kurt Eichorn, Heinz Fricke, Argeo Quadri, and Heinz Wallberg, while the piano accompanist for the Beethoven songs is no less a personage than Wolfgang Sawallisch. Over the 26-year span encompassed here, Prey’s voice remained virtually intact, with the same enveloping, velvety sound, immaculate breath control, intonation, and diction, and unpretentious, good-natured warmth that were always its characteristics. In the three Mozart arias (from Die Zauberflöte, Le nozze di Figaro, and Così fan tutte ) and the aria from Lortzing’s Der Wildschütz , Prey is thoroughly in his element (though he has even better recordings of these items elsewhere), and of course he was without peer in his time in “Largo al factotum” from Rossini’s Il barbiere . His excerpt from Bach’s Christmas Oratorio is likewise beautifully sung, if a bit old-fashioned in style. The Beethoven song cycle held a special place in Prey’s affections. It is rendered here with a tender intimacy that few others singers could ever match, and in Sawallisch Prey has a supremely gifted accompanist (to my mind, Sawallisch was always far better at the keyboard than he was on the podium).

Outside this core repertoire, however, the results are somewhat less felicitous, though hardly to be dismissed. In “Avant de quitter” from Gounod’s Faust his French diction is not up to snuff, while his reading is too emotionally generic and lacking heroism. Likewise, his “Si può?” from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci cruises across a calm sea of beautiful vocalization that does not begin to plumb the depths of the manifold shifting moods and perspectives required. For the emotionally charged world of the Verdian baritone, Prey is simply too darned nice-sounding to be convincing. His tone is too genial to convey the anguished pleading of Germont père in “Di Provenza il mar” from La traviata , and his “Eri tu” from Un ballo scarcely reflects Renato’s bitter thirst for revenge; in its central section, where he is supposed to be expressing pain over the loss of love and friendship, he sounds as if he is singing Schubert’s Ave Maria instead. The inclusion of “They Say That Falling in Love Is Wonderful” from
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Prey was…a superb Papageno, and he does sing ‘Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen’, intimately, like a simple song, minimizing the comedy but emphasizing the humanity of the character. Other notable interpretations are Figaro’s ‘Largo al Factotum’…sung fast and with enthusiasm…and Valentin’s Act 1 aria (‘Avant de Quitter ces Lieux’)…sung without excessive sentimentality but also simply and effectively. © 2012 American Record Guide Read complete review on American Record Guide online

For this BR Klassik release Prey demonstrates his versatility with a selection of songs that range from Bach to Verdi, from Mozart to Berlin and from Lieder to Broadway musicals. There is nothing progressive or difficult in the programme which probably reflects Prey as a sensitive singer who loved melody and traditional classical and romantic music. The opening song Ein Madchen oder Weibchen wunscht Papageno sich! (A girl or a little wife wishes Papageno) is from The Magic Flute. Immediately Prey’s golden baritone is evident together with his expressive powers and impressive diction. From The Barber of Seville Prey’s Figaro’s cavatina Largo al factotum della città (Make way for the factotum of the city), a staple of the repertoire, is exciting and, given its difficulty, extremely well controlled. Valentin’s wonderful cavatina Avant de quitter ces lieu (Before leaving this place) from Gounod’s Faust is full of melody and is sung with real assurance. Toni’s prologue the popular Si puo? Si puo? Signore! Signori! (May I? May I? Ladies! Gentlemen!) from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci is dramatic and masterly.

The Munich Radio Orchestra…provides wholehearted support. They play with total assurance.

The sound quality delivered by Bavarian Broadcasting from the various Munich venues is first class.

Prey is in outstanding voice. This is a disc that I will often return to. © 2012 MusicWeb International Read complete review