Friederike

Many vinyl records are invaluable documents of their time. No series shows this as clearly as the Cologne recordings in the enthusiastically received Electrola Collection, now newly-named the Cologne Collection. Lehar's sensitive singspiel concerning the affair between the young Goethe and the 17-year-old Friederike Brion avoids the gestures typical of operetta and combines a historic style with simple songs and carefully nuanced instrumentation.