Returning Home in Review
Joanna Hyunji Kim, Soprano and E-Na Song, Piano
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
June 16, 2022
The young Korean /American soprano Joanna Hyunji Kim presented an impressive recital at Weill Recital Hall on June 16, 2022. Dr. Kim studied at Ewha Woman’s University in South Korea and the Eastman School of Music. She called her recital “Returning Home,” in response to her belief that, in her words, “there is always an ultimate home for us all to find true peace.” This recital was postponed two years because of the pandemic.
Lovely and graceful in ivory satin, Dr. Kim radiated inner as well as outer beauty. Her voice is rich and powerful, her interpretation sensitive and intense, and her musicianship impeccable.
The evening began with Schubert’s charming song, Seligkeit. The piano dynamic at the beginning of the second verse of this strophic song was particularly effective. Although the texts of all the songs were translated, this title, which means “Happiness” was not- a small oversight. Further along in the program this happened again with Vilse, by Sibelius.
Next we heard a heartfelt rendition of Schumann’s of Heiss mich nicht reden, from Goethe’s Mignon. It was a pleasure to hear Schumann’s setting of this famous poem, which is more dramatic than Schubert’s more frequently performed version of the same text. Another Mignon song, Kennst du das Land, this time in Hugo Wolf’s setting, concluded the set. The bravura piano part gave the excellent pianist, E-Na Song, an opportunity to shine
We moved from Lieder to Chanson for a set of Baudelaire poems set by Debussy. There was another glitch in the program, which I feel obliged to point out. The set was titled Cinq Poèmes de Baudelaire, although actually only four songs were performed. Dr. Kim’s sensitive musicianship and convincing acting were displayed in these atmospheric compositions.
The first half concluded with four Sibelius songs, sung in Swedish. Their tunefulness was a pleasant contrast to the ethereal harmonic vocabulary of the French set.
After the intermission came a group of three songs by Tom Cipullo (b. 1956) on poems by Lisel Mueller (1924-2020) from a set of six songs titled Of a Certain Age. In these poems, a woman of mature years looks back on a life richly lived. The texts range from the bittersweet and nostalgic to the humorous and tragic. The well-wrought music is compelling, at times moving, and at other times witty. The middle song, Fugitive, was one of the high points of the evening, employing the extremes of a soprano’s vocal and dynamic range (including whispering) and operatic dramatic intensity. Unlike many singers of foreign birth, Dr. Kim’s English diction was flawless and could be understood even without the aid of the text provided in the program.
After this impressive English set Dr. Kim left the stage and returned with violinist Soo Yeon Kim and cellist Heewon Lee. The four women performed an enjoyable set of contemporary songs listed in the program as Korean Art Song, which were sung in the original language. The program tells us that Dr. Kim’s doctoral lecture-recital was on Korean diction and art song. This lecture-recital was presented in 2020 at the Harvard Graduate Music Forum Conference. The first two songs were by Wonji Lee (b. 1979) and the third by Kyu-Yung Chin (b. 1948). Destined, by Lee, which began the set was particularly gripping. The ninety minute recital ended with Un- Young La’s setting of the The Lord is My Shepherd (Psalm 23). So effective was this composition that even without any knowledge of Korean, this listener knew where she was in the familiar text. Ms. Kim’s adoring audience gave her and her colleagues a well-deserved standing ovation.
