The Hyperion Schubert Edition 9 / Arleen Augér, Graham Johnson
This highly varied and interesting program includes four songs which Schubert set in their original Italian, along with one of his most famous and most popular vocal works,The Shepherd on the Rock, with its lovely piano and clarinet accompaniment. (Actually, it ought to be "cliff" and not "rock," which makes the title sound like a cocktail rather than a typical specimen of German Romantic poetry, but "rock" is the commonly accepted translation.) The late Arleen Augér sings this music with all of her customary ease and finesse, and Graham Johnson's accompaniments are just right.--David Hurwitz