Pleasure certainly, but I would say pleasure of a mild kind, attends this recital – until the last group, and then one sits up, smiles happily and goes out to bring whoever is available in to listen. These are the Quattro arie scozzesi, namely (in order): “The Piper of Dundee”, “When the kye [cows] come hame”, “Within a mile of Edinburgh Town” and “My heart’s in the Highlands”. And they are as delightful as they are unexpected. Here Respighi is found in the role of precursor to Britten. He preserves the traditional tunes and adds a markedly original piano accompaniment reflecting some quality he has found and wants to bring out in the songs themselves. Each has its flavour, rhythmic or harmonic, sometimes with a touch of genius as, I think, in the third verse of “Within a mile”. The singer, too, does well, bringing spirit and a creditable Scots accent, along with a not inappropriately raw voice which mellows for the Burns song.

The soprano here is Andrea Catzel and these songs are her single contribution, the tenor Leonardo de Lisi singing the D’Annunzio settings. The tessitura of these is mostly baritonal; de Lisi copes well but the beauty of his well schooled voice is more apparent when the higher range comes into play. The first half of the programme falls to Elisabetta Scano, a soprano whose tone, though clear enough, lacks variety and richness. These are subtle songs, flexible in their treatment of the verses and calling for refinement of shading in both singer and pianist. They nevertheless remain essentially Italian in feeling, especially in their melancholy: a warmer voice is wanted to do them justice. Reinild Mees is the sensitive pianist, the informative writer of introductory notes, and the record producer.