Mezzo-soprano Natalie Lewis and pianist Myra Huang invite audiences on a journey of remarkable range and emotional depth, spanning the Romantic heartland of Brahms and Mahler to the profound American spiritual tradition. The program opens with Brahms's irresistible Zigeunerlieder — his exuberant settings of Hungarian Romani poetry that crackle with rhythmic fire, tenderness, and an almost improvisatory sense of abandon — before turning to the orchestral richness of Mahler's songs, works of searing introspection and visionary scope that seem to contain entire worlds within them.
Huang, whose accompaniments are marked throughout by elegance and keen musical intelligence, proves an ideal partner across every idiom on this rich and deeply satisfying program.