In the Twilight (The Royal Academy of Music Bicentenary Series) Cassandra Wright & Harry Rylance

• Samuel Barber (1910 - 1981): Knoxville:
• 1Barber: Knoxville: Summer of 1915, Op. 2414:22
• Joseph Marx (1882 - 1964): Nocturne:
• 2Marx: Nocturne03:31
• Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918): Apparition, CD 57:
• 3Debussy: Apparition, CD 5703:27
• Edvard Grieg (1843 - 1907): Sechs Lieder, Op. 48:
• 4Grieg: Sechs Lieder, Op. 48: No. 5, Zur Rosenzeit02:31
• 5Grieg: Sechs Lieder, Op. 48: No. 6, Ein Traum02:02
• Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897 - 1957): Vier Abschiedslieder, Op. 14:
• 6Korngold: Vier Abschiedslieder, Op. 14: No. 1, Sterbelied03:59
• 7Korngold: Vier Abschiedslieder, Op. 14: No. 4, Gefaßter Abschied03:28
• Samuel Barber: Four Songs, Op. 13:
• 8Barber: Four Songs, Op. 13: No. 4, Nocturne03:31
• 9Barber: Four Songs, Op. 13: No. 3, Sure On This Shining Night02:35
• Total Runtime39:26

Info for In the Twilight (The Royal Academy of Music Bicentenary Series)

For her first album on Linn soprano Cassandra Wright has recorded a programme that offers a musical exploration of various facets of human nature. In the Twilight encompasses composers as varied as Barber, Joseph Marx, Debussy, Grieg and Korngold. In Cassandra’s own words, ‘Samuel Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915, which was the initial inspiration for this collection of songs, evokes the innocence and wonder of childhood through its enchanting description of a carefree summer evening. The exploration of human longing is reflected in two richly coloured works written by the 23-year-old Korngold, who was profoundly impacted by the First World War and his forbidden romance with a young actress. Continuing towards the more hopeful and optimistic nature of night and dreams, we explore uplifting songs by Marx, Grieg and Debussy.’ This luminous album, with pianist Harry Rylance, is part of the Royal Academy of Music Bicentenary Series.

Cassandra Wright, soprano
Harry Rylance, piano

Cassandra Wright
is an Australian soprano currently based in Germany where she is a member of the ensemble at Theater Freiburg. In the 23/24 season she performs the roles of Anne Trulove (The Rake’s Progress), Tebaldo (Don Carlos), Erste Dame (Die Zauberflöte) and Janine/Ofwarren in the German premiere of The Handmaid’s Tale. Next season at Theater Freiburg, Cassandra will sing Morgana (Alcina), Jano (Jenufa) and Bibi in the European premiere of Ellen Reid’s Pulitzer Prize-winning chamber opera P r i s m. Next season she will also make her debut at Bühnen Bern, singing Gutrune and Dritte Norn in Götterdämmerung directed by Ewalina Marciniak.

In the summer of 2023, Cassandra was engaged by Glyndebourne Festival as a member of their chorus after graduating from the prestigious Royal Academy of Music that same year. During her studies, she performed various roles including Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, Anne Trulove in The Rake’s Progress, Rosmene in Imeneo, and Arianna in Lamento D’Arianna.

On the concert platform, Cassandra has notably performed Knussen’s ‘Songs and a Sea-Interlude’ from Where the Wild Things Are at Royal Festival Hall with members of the London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Edward Gardner, Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with the Academy Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Wilson, and a recital of Schubert Lieder at Wigmore Hall with the Academy Song Circle.

Awards include the Royal Academy of Music Bicentenary Scholarship, the Australian Music Foundation Nora Goodridge Emerging Artist Award, Tait Memorial Trust and Knights of the Round Table Award. In the UK, Cassandra was a semi-finalist in the 2021 Kathleen Ferrier Awards, the winner of the 2022 Royal Over-Seas League Music Overseas Prize, and the Bampton Young Singers’ Competition.

Cassandra is also an alumna of the Georg Solti Accademia, and she completed her undergraduate studies in Australia at the Queensland Conservatorium. This July, Cassandra will release her debut album with Linn Records and pianist Harry Rylance featuring works by Samuel Barber, Greig, Debussy, Korngold, and Marx.

Booklet for In the Twilight (The Royal Academy of Music Bicentenary Series)