To introduce myself - my name is Howard and I live in the Hudson
Valley,N.Y. a beautiful area about an hour and a half north of New
York City. I recall when I first started appreciating lieder in the
early 1960's I was in a record store in Manhattan and a woman checking
out mentioned that F.D. is a singer who never makes a mistake. This
aroused my curiosity , so I bought an LP of Schubert lieder. From
then on, I was hooked. Over the years since then, I became an F.D.
fanatic, buying every recording of his I could including his massive
Schubert set first in LP , then on CD. He opened a new world of sheer
beauty for me, enhanced my life more than I could describe in words.
I saw about 10 performances of his in Carnegie Hall, have a book of
his paintings, his biography and autobiography, his DVD's as well as a
video of Die Wintereise. .I do have to admit I am not nearly the
opera lover as I am a lieder lover- so I would think there are opera
performances I may not have- but as for lieder, I have most if not all
that's been available. I run a free chamber music series and have for
20 years in a Victorian village called Montgomery , and have just
presented our 100th concert. We have had a season of lieder- 5
concerts- featuring superb local talent. I think this was the first
time anyone in my region has programmed a whole season of lieder, and
it was great. Getting back to F.D., I believe aside from a few
composers he was the greatest , possibly the most intelligent musician
of the 20th century.
Howard Garrett