…Vidal's setting of "Chant d'exil"… provides the emotional high-point of the recital. This beautiful song, in which the poet regrets his exile from his homeland, is given a heartfelt rendition by Wolff and his accompanist, Trung Sam, who provides sterling support throughout. This is a lovely disc in which Wolff proves himself worthy of comparison with the past great baritone interpreters of the mélodie.

Victor Hugo notoriously hated it when anyone tried to set his work to music. Opera composers, by and large, ignored his protestations, though others tended to be a bit more circumspect. This exceptional recital by bass-baritone Konstantin Wolff and pianist Trung Sam chronicles the attempts of francophone song composers to grapple with Hugo's poetry both during and after his lifetime. It's a disc of surprises and occasional failures. Hugo clearly inspired most composers to give of their best, as well as to stray, on occasion, into unfamiliar territory: Saint-Saëns is represented by a clutch of unknown songs that should be repertory pieces, and Fauré gets uncharacteristically angry over the political implications of L'Absent. Lalo, as one might expect, turns Hugo into an impishly blatant eroticist, while Reynaldo Hahn is altogether more fin de siècle and discreet. Only Paul Vidal's settings seem inappropriately delicate. The wide vocal range of Liszt's famous Oh! Quand Je Dors, lies a bit awkwardly for Wolff, who otherwise sings with a virile, articulate elegance that is absolutely right both for the music and for Hugo's poetry. As an accompanist, Sam is spectacular, but never intrusive.