Capable of big Wagnerian roles (she has sung Brünnhilde) as well as Richard Strauss and Tchaikovsky, Katherine Broderick here turns her attention to intimate French songs with string quartet, flute or cello as well as piano. Her powers of expression, so vivid and telling on stage, communicate well in this rewarding recital disc of Gaubert, Berlioz, Debussy, Saint-Saëns, Chausson and Caplet. Ravel’s Chansons madécasses – songs of Madagascan life, with flute, cello and piano, burst with exotic drama, and contrast beautifully with the strange inventions of his animal poem settings, Histoires naturelles. Broderick turns every song into a miniature drama, delivered with elegance of line, sensuality and sharp wit, well supported by her excellent colleagues.
