Tenor Soloist in DAS LIED VON DER ERDE

New York Philharmonic

“The magnificent tenor Russell Thomas was right out front and fully radiant from the very beginning... The higher he rose in his range, the more naturally thrilling his voice seemed to become. When Thomas summoned the bird twittering, "Spring is here!" his timbre gave us something to get excited about. His drunkard exhibited no forced swagger — just the revelry of heightened sensory appreciation.”
–Joshua Rosenblum, Opera News

“In “Das Lied,” for the most part Mahler achieved striking transparency in his orchestration. The problematic exception comes in the exuberant, thickly scored opening song, “Das Trinklied vom Jammer der Erde” (“Drinking Song of Earth’s Sorrow”). Even heldentenors have trouble cutting through the glittering symphonic sound. But on Sunday the hearty young tenor Russell Thomas had no trouble soaring over the chamber ensemble.”
–Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times