Brahms: Lieder und GesANnge op. 32 / 5 Gesänge op. 72 / 5 Lieder op. 94

"A notable solo début for the Yellow Label from a young master of Lieder and a programme that impresses for its imaginative selection of Brahms and Liszt."
(Gramophone, UK, June 2000)

"Thomas Quasthoff's disc is ... thoroughly recommendable for the Brahms songs, ... beautifully sung and communicated, ... meaningfully partnered by pianist Justus Zeyen. ... Quasthoff's ... ability to shape a phrase through both variations in dynamics and use of the words in exemplary."

The German bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff is recognized as one of the most interesting lieder and oratorio singers of today. At the age of 13 he began to study singing with Professor Charlotte Lehmann as well as music theory and history with Professor Huber-Contwig in Hanover. Since then he has received a number of international awards, including the First Prize in the ARD INTERNATIONAL MUSIC COMPETITION in Munich (1988), the SHOSTAKOVICH PRIZE in Moscow (1996), the HAMADA TRUST/SCOTSMAN FESTIVAL PRIZE (Edinburgh International Festival, 1996) and the ECHO PRIZE 1998, which is awarded by German media. Since 1996 he has been Professor in the vocal department of the Music Academy in Detmold. Thomas Quasthoff has been engaged by many of the world's leading orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Wiener Philharmoniker, Staatskapelle Dresden, Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Orchestre de Paris, London Philharmonic and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, working with such renowned conductors as Claudio Abbado,

Sir Colin Davis, Seiji Ozawa, Sir Simon Rattle, Mstislav Rostropovich and András Schiff. In the 1998/99 season, Thomas Quasthoff collaborated with orchestras and conductors of the highest calibre. In America, he appeared in very successful performances of Mahler's Des Knaben Wunderhorn with the New York Philharmonic under the direction of Sir Colin Davis and in Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde with the Boston Symphony and Seiji Ozawa. In February 1999 he sang Brahms' Ein deutsches Requiem with the Chicago Symphony under the direction of Daniel Barenboim in both Chicago and Berlin. In Europe, Thomas Quasthoff appeared with the Berlin Philharmonic and Sir Simon Rattle (Mozart arias), the Concertgebouw Orchestra under the direction of Bernard Haitink (Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust), the Deutsche Symphonie-Orchester Berlin with Michael Gielen (Bach's St. Matthew Passion) and sang Britten's War Requiem at the Evian Festival with the London Symphony Orchestra under Mstislav Rostropovich. In recital, Thomas Quasthoff has performed Schubert's Winterreise to great public acclaim in Paris, Vienna, Salzburg, Munich and on tour in Japan. He made his New York recital debut in January 1999. He has also given notable lieder concerts featuring works by Brahms, Mahler, Strauss and Pfitzner at the Konzerthaus in Berlin and the Philharmonie in Cologne. During the Summer of 1999, Thomas Quasthoff made his debuts at the Ravinia, Tanglewood and Mostly Mozart festivals singing Mozart arias with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra. Highlights of his 1999/2000 season include his Carnegie Hall debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Seiji Ozawa singing Britten's War Requiem and a U.S. recital tour with concerts in Toronto, Atlanta, Berkeley, Los Angeles, Ann Arbor and at the Kennedy Center. In Europe he will sing in performances of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony under the direction of Sir Simon Rattle with both the Vienna Philharmonic and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra as well as the Brahms Requiem with Kurt Masur and the London Philharmonic. The singer will also give recitals in the cities of Vienna, London, Berlin, Amsterdam and St. Petersburg among others. Thomas Quasthoff's first recording for DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON was Mahler's Des Knaben Wunderhorn with Anne Sofie von Otter, Claudio Abbado and the Berlin Philharmonic. During the Summer of 1999 he signed an exclusive agreement with the label. His first release under the new contract was his debut recital album on DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON, featuring works by Brahms and Liszt.

(Fanfare, USA, July/August 2000)