Annelies

composer: James whitbourn

arianna zukerman, westminster williamson voices, the lincoln trio, bharat chandra, james jordan

“If Anne could be with us tonight, I know she would shed tears of joy and pride, and she would be so happy—happy the way I remember when I saw her last.” These words were spoken by Bernd Elias, Anne Frank’s first cousin, before the first performance of Annelies. His is a remark that stops you in your tracks, because it is easy to forget that Annelies (Anne’s full name) was a real person, with friends and family, and not just a historical figure. She was a happy person, and a hugely talented girl. Today, she would still be only in her 80s had she lived. In her room in hiding, she had a photograph stuck onto her wall of Princess Elizabeth (of the UK), now Queen Elizabeth II, one of the famous people she loved to admire. It is sobering to remember that the British monarch is several years her senior and at the time of this recording still carries out her royal duties. Anne Frank should have been a younger contemporary of hers…

I believe the fruits of this immersive preparation can be heard in the choral sound on this disc and shines through in the honesty of the singing. All these vocal artists are complemented by outstanding instrumental playing from the Lincoln Trio and the clarinettist Bharat Chandra. Their commitment to the chamber needs of this piece and their ability to engage with the young voices of Westminster Choir College as members of a chamber ensemble, are some of the qualities that made the recording sessions so rich for those involved.

In the end, though, it is the text itself that is of such strength that it finds a way to leave the indelible mark of that young girl whose wisdom and perception can teach us all.

James Whitbourn

Full program notes about the recording

Listen to the album

Album works

Annelies (Chamber version)
I. Introit - Prelude
II. The capture foretold
III. The plan to go into hiding
IV. The last night at home and arrival at the Annexe
V. Life in hiding
VI. Courage
VII. Fear of capture and the second break-in
VIII. Kyrie - Sinfonia (Help us, rescue us from this hell)
IX. The dream
X. Devastation of the outside world
XI. Passing of time
XII. The hope of liberation and a spring awakening
XIII. The capture and the concentration camp
XIV. Anne’s meditation

Label: Naxos
Release date: January 2013

Album Reviews

“The first major choral setting of The Diary of Anne Frank takes the teenager’s remarkable and penetrating observations, written whilst hiding in an Amsterdam attic, as the basis of its extraordinary and moving libretto. Whitbourn’s music for this work has been described as “woundingly beautiful” (The Daily Telegraph). He reflects sounds of the Westerkerk bells and tunes heard on the radio in the Annexe, along with representations of Anne Frank’s Jewish and German heritage, details that add to a score “whose respectful understatement is its greatest strength.”
The times