Praised for her “impeccably pure and iridescent voice” (Financial Times), soprano Adrianne Pieczonka is primarily known for her vocally opulent and interpretively intense performances in operas by Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner – though her vocal and stylistic versatility enables her to be at home in dramatic roles by Verdi, Puccini and others.

In this – her first release with Delos – she blesses us with a captivating and varied program of songs by Strauss and Wagner. Particularly fond of the art song genre (and of the soprano voice), Strauss created 158 of them throughout his long life, and many of his dozen songs heard here are among his true masterpieces. The opera specialist Wagner, on the other hand, wrote far fewer songs than Strauss. Best-known among them are the five songs of the ecstatically romantic Wesendonck-Lieder, also considered a masterpiece among Lieder cycles.

Adrianne delivers this varied and sumptuous fare with conspicuous emotional depth and luxuriant vocal tone. Collaborating with technical finesse and interpretive sensitivity is pianist Brian Zeger, one of the great piano collaborators of our time.