German-born Daniel Behle initially studied trombone and music education before taking vocal classes taught by his mother, Renate Behle. He sings both opera and Lieder, and is a laureate of several international vocal competitions. Norwegian pianist Sveinung Bjelland studied at the Mozarteum in Salzberg and at the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin. He has since been awarded numerous prizes and has appeared as soloist with leading Norwegian orchestras. The Dutch hornist Ab Koster has played as French horn and natural horn soloist with leading orchestras and chamber groups throughout Europe.

If you prefer your Schubert Lieder to be more emotionally restrained and with only slight strophic distinctions, and if you want to add the rarely heard but most rewarding Auf den Strom to your collection, the Daniel Behle and Sveinung Bjelland disc is a good one to have as well.

The chief impression given by Behle is one of precision, both musically and vocally. His voice keeps a focused pitch from top to bottom; whether at pianissimo or at top volume in his highest notes (as in his cries of “Ade!” in “Die böse Farbe”), Behle never wobbles or creates any discomfort for the listener. His clean vocalism makes a specialty of mezza voce dynamics, and the songs in which the piano’s bass register stays high, such as “Morgengruss” and “Tränenregen,” bring out his delicacy most effectively. Behle’s faithfulness of articulation makes every grace note and embellishment a special event, and he is matched in these details by the graceful pianism of Sveinung Bjelland. The recording’s producer, Martin Sauer, deserves a mention for perfectly capturing the musicians’ intimacy, maintaining warmth on the group sound without ever turning the room into an echo chamber. 

An indication of this recital’s smarts is the inclusion at cycle’s end of the song with horn “Auf dem Strom.” The miller, upon losing his miller girl to a huntsman, has just been serenaded in the key of E major by the stream that led him to her originally. “Auf dem Strom” continues the journey in that same key out to sea, where the singer hopes to gain another glimpse of the lost beloved. Not only is it stunningly performed by the three musicians, but it seems to raise this well-known cycle’s sights over the horizon into the realm of the eternal.

Behle, who studied with his mother, the dramatic soprano Renate Behle, has a beautiful, light lyrical tenor voice, suave in pianissimo, agile in faster passages and with surprisingly powerful fortes. Ungeduld (tr. 7), which he also sang on his debut disc, has all the intensity needed to express the eagerness and impatience. Tränenregen (tr. 10) is so flexible and natural in expression and Mein! (tr. 11) has true élan. But even more impressive is his restrained singing in songs like Der Neugierige (tr. 6), where his legato is so well controlled and his half-voice is ravishingly beautiful. Die liebe Farbe is sung like a caress and Trockne Blumen begins like a whisper. But it is not only the technical execution that impresses. He also has something to say about the songs, though he avoids the too explicit word-painting that has characterized Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau’s readings. Behle lets the words make impact through clear diction and unforced naturalness. In this respect he has so much in common with Jan Kobow, whose recording of this cycle has been my favourite since it was first issued. Kobow decorates the vocal line with some embellishments but not excessively so. He is also accompanied by a fortepiano which gives a crisper background. Sveinung Bjelland, playing on a modern instrument is however just as good and the only interpretative quirkiness—if that is what it is—is some quite heavy ritardandi. But this is very much a matter of personal taste and is in no way a hindrance to enjoying the music. Speeds are fastish without being rushed. I compared timings with Christian Elsner in the Naxos complete Schubert cycle and with one or two exceptions Behle was the faster, Elsner taking almost one and half minutes longer for the last song Des Baches Wiegenlied.

It was a brilliant idea to include Auf dem Strom, a very good song too rarely encountered in recital and on recordings. The main reason is the need for an extra musician, and what else can the horn-player perform, unless he plays some horn sonata? The horn part is quite testing and is not just some nice background embellishment. There is a parallel in Der Hirt auf dem Felsen where the clarinet, the voice and the piano form a chamber music trio. The mellower French horn matches well the tenor voice and Behle sings with glow and power.

The recording is spotless and with good liner-notes and the sung texts with English translations printed in the booklet this is a high-quality product. There is no shortage of good recordings of Die schöne Müllerin and if we concentrate on only tenors the list is impressive: from Aksmore....

Review By Göran Forsling ,MusicWeb International,December 2010

A year and a half ago I reviewed Daniel Behle’s debut recital and had only praise for it. I concluded the review thus: ‘A recording of Die schöne Müllerin is scheduled for June this year (2009). I can hardly wait for its release.’ Well, here it is and it was worth waiting for.