Caramoor

There are as many ways to assemble a selection of songs for a recital as there are singers and songs multiplied together. Songs can be grouped by composer, by historical period, language or nationality, by poet, by subject matter, or by any combination of these. This evening’s recital has as its theme the culture of a house and a family: the Rosen House at Caramoor and the wide-ranging musical and artistic taste of the couple that created this remarkable place, Walter Rosen and his wife Lucie Bigelow Rosen.

In addition to his success as a banker and passionate art collector, Walter Rosen was a fine pianist, and his wife Lucie became a virtuoso exponent of the first electronic instrument, the theremin, touring widely to give concerts on the instrument and commissioning new works for it. The Rosens performed, themselves, and hosted many artists in concerts in their own music room.

For this program, Charlotte de Rothschild has chosen a wide variety of familiar and little-known works from the repertory of the art song worldwide, reflecting the interests and tastes of the Rosens: their passion for music, their love of beautiful gardens, and their tireless and wide-ranging art collecting (especially the Asian art, as signified by the sources and texts of some of these songs).

© Steven Ledbetter (www.stevenledbetter.com)

The Jade Mountain
Songs inspired by the Rosen collection
Charlotte de Rothschild – soprano, Danielle Perrett – harp