Customer Reviews

The end of an affair - By: Mondoro, 12 Sep 2008
A closely observed personal drama: a woman replaced by a (presumably) younger model has failed to take her own life (Track 13), but eventually comes to terms with reality. She demands, pleads, cajoles, even pities her former lover. The drama is heightened by the vagaries of the Parisian phone system: the phone link is broken repeatedly, with unwanted calls from strangers, some not very sympathetic with her plight. There are moments of sheer pathos when her former lover does not ring back to complete the call- has she gone too far (track 20)? And then there is the almost unbearable sadness of the closing pages (track 22), where the woman asks her ex-lover to hang up - the affair is over, although she still loves him, as she says five times followed by a final crashing chordin the orchestra.

Poulenc has set this slightly shortened version of Cocteau's narrativein his familiar bitter-sweet idiom, his gift for melody & interesting harmonic progressions making this one of his most dramatic works. It has attracted a variety of fine performances, including this one. Felicity Lott is not only a very fine singer; her French is impeccable; she conveys the full gamut of meaning & emotionsin a work that makes a real impact, revealing the woman's very soul for us to see. As some critics have said, Lott's version is perhaps a little refined: her woman obviousll comes from good bourgeois stock, & lacks the sheer earthiness of Julia Migenes' version. This is not the real issue, surely. Dumped lovers come from all classes. They express their emotions differently,in different words & actions, but their situation is the same.

After the wringing drama of Voix Humaine come the bonne bouche to cheer us up: another would be suicide, but this after a life of adventure & interest, related this time with a smile.

A favourite disc.