Kathleen’s Song Book with Dame Sarah Connolly and Joseph Middleton

THIS beautifully crafted recital was given to mark the retirement of Kathleen Evans BEM, after twelve supercharged years as Chair of Leeds Song - the organisation known until April 2025 as Leeds Lieder.

Kathleen has enabled and overseen the broadening of successive Leeds Song Festivals, year-round recitals and extensive community outreach work. A Leeds Song Young Artists Programme is fostering the next generation of lieder singers and the livestreaming of events now reaches a worldwide audience.

All of these wonderful things and many more, have happened on Kathleen’s watch. So what better way to celebrate her achievements than with a dedicated recital of 25 songs, performed by one of the world’s greatest singers partnered by Joseph Middleton, acclaimed pianist and artistic director of Leeds Song.

Kathleen's Song Book was entirely curated by Kathleen herself - lieder that she has performed, or that she would like to have performed, or quite simply, those songs that she adores.

Dame Sarah Connolly and Joseph Middleton opened with a contrasting selection of Franz Schubert lieder. Ganymede - How is the radiance of the Morning - a sensuous song of awakening. This was followed by Die Junge Nonne -The young Nun - how the wild storm rages through the treetops! Lastly, one of Schubert's best loved lieder - An die musik - To Music, beloved art.

Next, came Robert Schumann's Widmung (Dedication) followed by his wife Clara's setting of Friedrich Rückert - Liebst du um Schönheit (If you love for beauty). Five songs of Johannes Brahms included Verzagen (Despondency) and Von ewiger Liebe (Eternal Love). Henri Duparc was represented by L’invitation au voyage, Extase, and Chanson Triste.

Kathleen Evans and Joseph Middleton share a mission to expand the art song repertoire. Accordingly, British composer David Matthews (born 1943) had dedicated to Kathleen and composed for this evening’s renowned artists, exquisitely wrought settings of Three Hopkins Sonnets, by Gerard Manley Hopkins - the Windhover - to Christ Our Lord, the Candle Indoors and As Kingfishers Catch Fire.

An utterly enthralling evening ended with Gustav Mahler’s heavenly Rückert setting, Ich bin der welt abhanden gekommen (I am lost to the world) which unfailingly moves Kathleen and, I suspect many more, to tears. Dame Sarah and Joseph’s encore was in lighter mood - O Waly, Waly - a charming folk song arrangement by Benjamin Britten.