Thomas Hampson is the baritone soloist on a new recording, featuring Richard Danielpour’s Songs of Solitude and War Songs, along with the orchestral work Toward the Splendid City. War Songs, a song cycle with texts by Walt Whitman, was commissioned by the Nashville Symphony in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War.

The album was recorded with the Nashville Symphony, under the baton of Giancarlo Guerrero, and is now available for pre-order via Amazon.com and iTunes. Enjoy a podcast from Naxos which previews the recording, including video clips.

“The Nashville Symphony Orchestra immersed itself in the music of Richard Danielpour . . . Its program . . . featured the world premiere of Danielpour’s War Songs, which marks the 150th anniversary of the Civil War’s end this year. Also on the bill was Danielpour’s Songs of Solitude, written a decade ago to honor the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Baritone soloist Thomas Hampson performed both of these orchestral song cycles with deep feeling and a welcome degree of high drama.. . . one couldn’t have hoped for a better performance. Much of the vocal writing was scored for the baritone’s highest register, and Hampson sang this music with a vaporous, transparent falsetto.”

John Pitcher – Nashville Scene