On Saturday 1st February 42 Cambridge and Oxford alumni , with their spouses, partners and friends, and some members of the Cercle Münster, were entertained at the Cercle Münster by an outstanding performance of Schubert’s song cycle “Winterreise” by Alexander Gebhard (tenor) and Grégoire Baumberger (piano).
Franz Schubert’s Winterreise, composed in 1827, stands as a monumental achievement in the art song repertoire, encapsulation the Romantic era’s preoccupation with instrospection, nature, and existential longing. Set to 24 poems by Wilhelm Müller, the cycle traces a solitary wanderer’s bleak emotional and physical journey through a wintry landcape, mirroring the poet’s exploration of despair and alienation. Written during Schubert’s final year as he grappled with illness and financial struggles, Winterreise reflects the composer’s profound connection to the burgeoning Romantic ideals and the socio-political turbulence of post-Napoleonic Europe, marked by repression and yearning for individual expression. Schubert’s innovative harmonic language and stark piano writing complement Müller’s evocative imagery, forming a work of extraordinary psychological depth. We were invited into the intimate world of a soul in crisis, a timeless exploration of human vulnerability and resilience.
Alexander Gebhard’s very fine expressive tenor voice conveyed brilliantly the emotion and torment of Müller’s poetry and Schubert’s beautiful if tragic score. Schubert raised the importance of the pianist to a role equal to that of the singer, and Grégoire Baumberger’s powerful yet sensitive interaction with Alexander showed their complete shared understanding of the intensity of the work. The piano’s rhythms, tremelos, clusters of notes, sharp accents expressed the moods of the poet, and supplied rich effects in the nature imagery of the poems, such as the rushing storm, the crying wind, birds singing, dogs baying, the post horn calling.
The performance was enthusiatically received by the audience.
Following the recital, we enjoyed an aperatif in the bar where we discussed how much we had enjoyed and appreciated the performance, before we went into the dining room for an excellent dinner. Lively conversation continued over the meal. By all accounts, a most enjoyable evening!
Many thanks to the Oxford University Society of Luxembourg, and in particular Jan Könighaus, for organising this event, and for inviting the Cambridge Society to take part.
Alexander Gebhard is a British-German tenor from Luxembourg, who recently completed his studies on the MA programme at the Royal Academy of Music with Prof. Raymond Connell and Prof. Jonathan Papp. His broad repertoire in concert, song, and opera ranges from baroque masterpieces, via classical and romantic repertoire to compositions of the 20th and 21st centuries. He began his musical education at the Conservatory of Luxembourg with the “Pueri Cantores” Boys Choir and was recently awarded the “Prix Supérieu” in vocal studies under the guidance Marie-Reine Nimay-Weiring. He holds an MPhil from the University of Oxford and a BA from the University of Cambridge where he was a junior, senior and choral scholar with the Choir of Trinity College. He is a native speaker of English, German and Luxembourgish, and fluent in French and Italian.
Grégoire Baumberger studied in France and Belgium. His musical training centred on perfecting his instrumental and musical skills, as well as the sustained practice of chamber music and the study of writing. He was lucky enough to be taught by two great mastere, Jean Martin and Abdel Rahman El Bacha. These encounters were fundamental for him. In addition to teaching at the Conservatory if Luxembourg, Grégoire gives solo recitals on a variety of programmes, both thematic (Beethoven, Schumann, Schubert, French music around Debussy, Ravel and Poulenc, Liszt) and cross-disciplinary (Portrait of the 18th century, Musical Europe between 1910 and 1920, etc).
