In her Festival debut, soprano Emily Pogorelc—hailed by BBC Music Magazine as a “sensational” artist who’s “rapidly becoming a star on the European opera scene”—joins forces with the internationally acclaimed pianist Julius Drake for an evening of evocative and deeply expressive song. This captivating recital explores themes of love, longing, and farewell through the music of four renowned composers, each bringing a unique voice to the art-song repertoire.

Gustav Mahler’s Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer) takes listeners on an emotional journey through the pain of lost love, weaving folk-inspired melodies with sweeping, symphonic textures. Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Abschiedslieder (Songs of Farewell), written in the wake of World War I, capture a young composer grappling with both personal and global upheaval, channeling his longing and nostalgia into some of his most poignant songs.

Hugo Wolf’s selected Lieder offer exquisite musical settings of German poetry, brimming with passion, nuance, and harmonic daring. The program concludes with Benjamin Britten’s On This Island, a dazzling song cycle set to texts by W. H. Auden, blending lyrical beauty with biting irony and dazzling pianistic writing.

An evening of extraordinary artistry awaits as Pogorelc and Drake bring these works to life with their signature depth and sensitivity.

Program:

MAHLER Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer)

KORNGOLD Abschiedslieder (Songs of Farewell), Op. 14

WOLF Selected Songs

BRITTEN On This Island, Op. 11

Approximate length: 1 hour