On this Island
Lynne Dawson (soprano), Malcolm Martineau (piano)
CDA67227
Lynne Dawson is one of Britain's best-loved and most popular singers, especially since her appearance at the televised funeral of Princess Diana. She has taken part in innumerable recordings on many labels, including Hyperion, but has not so far had a disc dedicated solely to her. So here is her first solo CD on which she sings her own selection of English songs with her chosen pianist Malcolm Martineau. As the repertoire list shows, the programme is a widely varied one, with composers from Parry to Britten (whose cycle provides the disc with its title), and it includes several rarely heard songs as well as many well-known ones. Read Drofnatsky's name backwards and you will discover the real identity of the composer of these Edward Lear limerick settings.