“As she talks, her lips breathe spring roses: I was Chloris, who am now called Flora” – from “Fasti”, a six-book Latin poem written by the Roman poet Ovid and published in 8 AD. Detail from “Primavera” by Sandro Botticelli. Painted ca. [read more…]
Child prodigy and youngest of 12 children, Reynaldo Hahn (1874-1947) was a Venezuelan, naturalised French, composer, conductor, music critic, diarist, theatre director, and salon singer. Best known as a composer of songs, he wrote in the French classical tradition of the mélodie. The fine craftsmanship, remarkable beauty, and originality of his works capture the insouciance of la belle époque.
Accompanist and brilliant writer Graham Johnson describes the song beautifully:
“À Chloris is beyond doubt the summit of Reynaldo Hahn’s art as a pasticheur, and [read more…]