Franz Liszt is perhaps best known for his flamboyant, virtuosic piano music. His Via Crucis is startlingly contrasting, with intimate, simple, serene melodies, and moments of pain that pushed the boundaries of tonality. It has moments of Gregorian chant as well as Lutheran and Bach chorales. I find it inspiring both as a singer and a composer.

On Palm Sunday I will join pianist Willem Brons, the Leidse Cantorij, and conductor Hans Brons to perform Via Crucis in the Hooglandse Kerk to mark the start of Holy Week.

Sunday, 2nd April, 17:00, Hooglandse Kerk, Leiden, the Netherlands

The event is free, with a collection at the end.

I’ve worked with clarinettist John Macfarlane for several years, and together with pianist Hein Putter we formed Trio Colla Voce. Having played both piano and clarinet as a child, the idea of seeking out repertoire for voice, clarinet and piano was very appealing. There are some gems, some well-known, such as Schubert’s Shepherd on the Rock, and others relatively obscure.

On Wednesday 29th March we will be performing at Leiden University Medical Centre as part of the Boerhaavepleinconcert series. Our programme includes Mozart’s “Parto, parto” from La Clemenza di Tito and Berceuseby the Dutch romantic composer Alphons Diepenbrock, arranged for basset horn and piano (the original is with ‘cello). We are giving what we believe to be the Dutch première of Michael Head’s The World is Mad. John has composed a piece especially for the trio, Stad in Tijd, on the poem by Henk Gombert. There are also two romantic pieces: Alpenlied by Andreas Spaeth and I Lai by Mariano Obiols.

Wednesday, 29th March, 17:00, LUMC Boerhaaveplein, Leiden, the Netherlands.
The recital, which lasts around half an hour, is free to attend.

In 2019, Han-Louis and I recorded a CD of music from and about the First- and Second World Wars. There is a wealth of beautiful music from this era, including love songs, remembrance songs, and songs to raise morale. It is as if the wars, by highlighting the fragility of life and our vulnerabilities as humans, intensified emotions.

We had planned a tour to launch the CD in 2020 which included performances in France, the Netherlands, Belgium, London, and the Edinburgh Festival. Of course, we wanted to promote our work. I also hoped to show that the music and lyrics from different countries express similar emotions: love, grief, pride in one’s culture. At heart, we are the same, even when our countries are in conflict.

Then there came the pandemic, and for two years we worked on other projects, when it was possible, and “Echoes of War” was put aside.

Last weekend we gave a recital in Vaals, a beautiful town in the south of the Netherlands, next to the German and Belgium borders. It was interesting to revisit the repertoire after a few years. Since recording the CD, there has been the uncertainty caused by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. In my personal life, I got married and we have an infant son, and sadly many of our Second World War veteran friends have passed away. All this has changed my perspective on the repertoire. The patriotic songs feel less comfortable. The songs of loss and love are much closer to heart.