This is the third album from Ruby Hughes that I’ve reviewed—given her strong showings in Clytemnestra (2020) and follow-up Echo (2022), I eagerly anticipated this release. One of her trademarks is her vibrant programming; eclectic doesn’t begin to describe this set, whose works span almost 500 years and includes a mix of well- and lesser-known composers. And unlike the other two albums where she performed with either a full-orchestra or single pianist, End of My Days features a smaller group, the Manchester Collective, with whom Hughes began her partnership in 2020.
Brian Elias’ Meet Me in the Green Glen is a bold choice for a start, given the absence of any accompaniment. However, when done right (which it is here), we hear Hughes’ vocal prowess in terms of her clarity, diction, and expressiveness. The added haunting nostalgia had me hanging onto every word of John Clare’s beautiful text.
The Manchester Collective too makes a bold entrance with Valencia (track 2). It admittedly took me a couple of listens to process but this revealed Caroline Shaw’s interesting compositional ideas: one is motivic minimalism. Another is texture layering, and it’s here that the performers make sure that each voice from the peppery pizzicato to the strident arco are given their due recognition.
The David Bruce arrangements of two of John Dowland’s laments for voice and string quartet are interesting, though I’m not sure quite as effective as the original for voice and lute. He takes understandable liberties in registration in Flow My Tears (track 8) but I found that the low strings and broader sounds generally didn’t evoke the same type of transparent tone of the original—the violin in place of a strummed lute seems in fact to highlight the vast differences in their timbres. This aside, the performers certainly do their due diligence in creating a highly expressive performance. The shifts between light and dark harmonic colors are to be appreciated, as they really heighten the element of poignancy. Listeners may find the arrangement of Crystal Tears (track 7) better done: here, the string players are able to weave a mellow tapestry against which Hughes plays to her strengths of vocal control and captivating soft dynamics.
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The eponymous End of my Days (track 11) is from a five-song set interestingly titled, “Are You Worried about the Rising Cost of Funerals?” Underneath this rather practical question, Errollyn Wallen’s song actually has a much darker theme about coming to terms with death. I found the interpretation excellent—and strikingly ironic. For such resigned text, Hughes and the ensemble sound decidedly defiant, especially in the steep arches toward the high notes that are filled with palpable desperation. It is in the softer moments, though, where the soprano reveals the acceptance of the inevitable.
My favorite tracks were probably the Jake Heggie arrangements of Debussy’s Chansons Bilitis. I first came across Heggie in a review I wrote in 2020; I was struck by his versatile and visceral compositional language, especially as it involved instrumentation. This is again evident in the work he’s done here. La Flûte de Pan (track 12) has an intimate soundspace and although the performance might not be as fluid as Anne Sophie von Otter’s with pianist Bengt Forsberg, it does bring out the more nuanced side of Debussy’s whimsy. As for La Chevelure (track 12), the there’s more to its seemingly meandering nature: the element of tension and conflict is well-evoked between the strings’ undulating accompaniment and Hughes’ rapture-filled melody. The final Le Tombeau des Naïades is steeped in mystery and the soprano assumes the role of an animated storyteller. As for the final moments in which the ensemble opens up to the major key, listeners might be caught off guard but not in a bad way; the resulting optimism is most comforting.
The sound engineers at BIS balance the voice and instruments sensibly so that the subtleties of both forces come through. Pair that with SACD surround sound and the resulting clarity makes us feel like we’re the only ones sitting in the audience. The song texts and translations are a welcome and meaningful addition to the top-notch performances which I’d recommend without reservation.
End of My Days
Ruby Hughes – Soprano
Manchester Collective
BIS, SACD BIS-2628
Related Albums
Hughes – Songs for New Life & Love | Hughes – Nocturnal Variations | Hughes – Heroines of Love & Loss | Hughes – Mahler Symphony No. 2
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