'If music be the food of love, then the menu must surely be in English' writes Mark Stone in the booklet accompanying this disc.
Whether 'love' can actually read is probably not a question worth pondering; whether it would want to, another. Nevertheless, this Shakespeare-extension appropriately introduces a musical programme that celebrates the pleasures and pains induced by love. The English tongue is 'extraordinarily seductive' according to Stone (objection!) and, when coupled with 'the mystery of music', it has produced many splendid love songs.
A fair number are included here: there is Dowland, Purcell, Handel, Vaughan Williams, Bridge, Britten, and more. Another critic was correct to wonder, in his review of the disc, about the ordering of songs. Works from the Renaissance and Classical period sit awkwardly alongside those from the twentieth century. Different musical idioms seem to topple over each other, leaving one disorientated, unable to sit comfortably – it is almost a masterpiece of Brechtian alienation.
Mark Stone's beautiful baritone does, however, admirably carry his listener through the works. This is a well-schooled voice, light but rich of timbre, excellently controlled and thoughtfully deployed; Stone's diction is admirable. What I did wish for, however, was a greater variation of colour and a greater expressive range. For all its ability to seduce and arrest, this voice seems to lack the ability to communicate directly.
The 'conversational' songs, for example, miss dynamism and drama; there is little change in delivery between the ecstatic and the mournful pieces. This voice is thrilling when it presses on, fortissimo, but elsewhere delivery is subdued, even tentative. There is a strong sense that Stone sings 'within the bar lines', as it were, his words never quite developing into convincing musical dialogue.
Still, this is not as problematic as I make it sound. Stone's voice is lyrical and beautiful, and he is expertly accompanied by pianist Stephen Barlow, whose widely-spun phrases conjure much drama, and sensitively support the singer. Both voice and piano are crystal clear and prominent in this clean, close recording: an atmosphere of intimacy pervades the entire programme. I simply wish that the elemental passions and bitter disappointments of love were conveyed with more force. If this were the menu, 'love' would have to ask for extra seasoning.
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