George Sand is like the epitome of Parisian intellectualism: a writer, feminist, socialite, and revolutionary whose ideals resonate with compassion and societal optimism that made her an aspirational figure to the progressively oriented middle-class. Her legacy is manifold, and her alliance with spearhead musicians, including Chopin and Pauline Viardot, has greatly influenced her esteem among like-minded posterity. Sonya Yoncheva, for instance, pays homage with her new album.
“George” – as the title reads – is published on Yoncheva’s very own label and Naive, and in a slightly eclectic twist, sets out to resurrect the Romanticist mindscape of French literature’s grande dame. The goal: to “awaken people to the arts as if you were taking care of a small child” (attributed, in the booklet, to Sand). Liebestraum, And December Night This didacticism noticeably departs from the operatic program of previous recitals.
Unfortunately, its variegated mix of songs, piano pieces, and prose musically forms a less than cohesive ensemble, though thematically, of course, they all tie to the title-giving persona of George Sand. I am therefore hesitant to debate whether Leoncavallo’s “Nuit de décembre” justifiably has its place next to the magisterial “Casta diva in E major” by Chopin. Famously, in matters of taste, there can be no dispute; yet it is a self-evident truth that in a 45-minute recital, peripheral associations alone might not be enough to convey a sense .
