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Paul Carey Jones – baritone
Llyr Williams - piano

Schubert: Der Schiffer; Pax Vobiscum
Lloyd: Sant Gofan
Burtch: Ozymandias; When Satan Fell
Gurney: Is My Team Ploughing?
Lehmann: Myself When Young
Brahms: Auf dem Kirchhofe 
Warlock: The Frostbound Wood 
Williams: Y Mor Enaid; Y Lyn
Ireland: Great Things
Finzi: The Clock of the Years; Proud Songsters
Vaughan Williams: Joy, Shipmate, Joy!  Bright is the Ring of Words
Thomas: Y Bardd

SAIN – SCD2537 [June 2007– 56 mins]

This CD (ENAID - Songs of the Soul) brings together one of the foremost young pianists of his generation with a young baritone making his recording debut.  In fact it’s a musical alliance of some ten years standing, since they enrolled for study at the Royal Academy of Music at the same time, and have given numerous concerts together.

It’s quite clear that this is not one of those recordings where performers have got together on the day  and worked their way quickly through repertoire chosen for them by others.  It is a true collaborative venture, the result of a week of sessions in which they “approached the pieces with open minds” aiming at a “spirit of adventurous dialogue”. 

The result is a sequence of particularly interesting and thought provoking texts*, which link together very neatly.  The musical settings range from “classic” lieder by Schubert and Brahms, to contemporary songs by Mervyn Burtch, with British and Welsh 20th century composers being well represented along the way.

Paul Carey Jones has the sort of voice I could listen to all day, and his diction and timing are exemplary.  Llyr Williams clearly demonstrates why he is fast becoming one of our most sought-after accompanists.   Together they give each song full regard, balancing words and music in performances of character, depth and great sincerity.  

Serena Fenwick

* Texts and translations are not included in the leaflet, but are easily accessed online at www.paulcareyjones.com/indexa.htm