Kathleen Ferrier was Britain’s greatest lyric contralto, a superstar not only in England but internationally through her recordings and frequent appearances on radio in Europe and North America. Her tragically early death at 41 in 1953 – which coincidentally threatened to overshadow the Queen’s coronation year – was mourned worldwide. Her recordings of music from the baroque era – during a period well before the “historically informed” trend knocked much of the emotional wind out of the repertoire’s sales – were particularly popular, and remain essential listening for anyone interested in vocal art at its finest. Her artistic collaborators include not only the two predominant British maestros of the era, Adrian Boult and Malcolm Sargent, but Reginald Jacques, an important chamber music champion of the post-WWI era.
Rosette – Highest Rating “In 1952 Kathleen Ferrier made her last and perhaps greatest record… four arias each of Bach and Handel. The [engineers] ensured the utmost fidelity.”
– Penguin Guide
“This is a recording that honours all concerned and in which Ferrier shows the English art of oratorio singing at its finest. She is in superb voice and is accompanied with scrupulous artistry by [Sir Adrian] Boult and the L.P.O. … The finest thing of all is ‘All is Fulfilled’… The hushed way [she’ sings ‘This mournful night’ and the sudden broken utterance ‘It is finished’, dwell long in the memory. Having listened to contraltos singing ‘Return, O God of Hosts’ at competitions, I can pay no higher compliment to Ferrier than to say I felt I was hearing it for the first time. … It is rare that a disc gives such satisfaction in almost every respect.”
– Gramophone
