Song Course

Song Course – Schubert, Britten, Berkeley & Finzi

Directed by James Gilchrist and Anna Tilbrook

James and Anna will welcome singers and pianists who would like to collaborate to develop their understanding of the lieder of Schubert and songs of Britten, Lennox Berkeley and Finzi. A repertoire list will be published in advance and those taking the course are asked to indicate which songs from the list they would like to concentrate upon. James and Anna will work at times together with the whole group, and at times separately with smaller groups, sharing their combined and individual experience of working with this repertoire. This is a wonderful opportunity for singers and pianists, both those in pre-formed duos and those looking to form new partnerships, to explore this rich and varies repertoire with two of the finest musicians performing this music today. Immerse yourself in a week of summer song.

Suggestions for the Song Class at The Music Summer School and Festival

English songs and Schubert
This list includes some of the best-known songs, as well as some less familiar.

A note about KEYS. Sometimes, there’s only one published key, but often composers have produced editions in various keys. “High Voice” means (generally) sopranos and tenors, “Low voice” mezzos and baritones. Very occasionally, editors (confusingly) use the terms to mean sops-and-altos and tenors-and- baritones respectively, but in general it’s just about transposition.  If you’re a singer, find the key which works well for you, but spare a thought for the accompanist. They can’t, having learned it in one key, suddenly play it in another. In this list, you should be able to find songs that sit higher or lower in the voice and so which suit you.

If you want to bring anything else, please do! This list is provided as a guide, and we hope that you’ll find lots to interest you!

Where to find scores. The Schubert will all be available free on IMSLP (https://imslp.org/) in the excellent Mandichewski edition. The English music will not be, and you might have to buy it or find it in a library. There is an excellent collected edition of the Britten folksongs, and similarly of all the Finzi. Both these and the Rebecca Clarke are published by Boosey and Hawkes. Berkeley is published by Chesters. So all that would now be available in Musicroom (https://www.musicroom.com/). Do be careful if buying whether you’re buying HIGH or LOW voice, especially of the Britten folksongs and the Finzi editions.

English repertoire:

Britten Folksong settings
Down by the Salley Gardens
Little Sir William
The trees they grow so high
Oliver Cromwell
O Waly Waly
Early One Morning
At the mid hour of night
The last rose of Summer

Britten
On This Island

Berkeley
Songs from the Chinese
Auden settings

Rebecca Clarke
Down by the Salley Gardens
The Seal Man
Shy One
Infant Joy
Greeting
June Twilight
Eight O’Clock

Gerald Finzi
Let us Garlands Bring (for lower voices –  ie altos and basses)
Til Earth Outwears (for higher voices – ie sopranos and tenors)

German repertoire:

Franz Schubert
Gretchen am Spinnrade
Heidenröslein
Der Wanderer
Frühlinsglaube
Nur wer die Sehnsucht kennt
Der Tod und das Mädchen
Wanderers Nachtlied
Der Fischer
An Schwager Kronos
Der Einsame (Wenn meine Grillen schwirren)
Im Abendrot
Im Frühling