The latest volume in Stone Records’ complete survey of Wolf’s songs follows the same pattern as previous releases: young singers are brought together with the excellent pianist Sholto Kynoch, founder of Oxford Lieder, under the auspices of which this live recording was made. The sound is clear and alive, the presentation exactly what one would want, with full texts and translations, plus a detailed essay from Richard Stokes that explores the composer’s relationship with Eichendorff. The tracks are in sensible order, too, with Wolf’s six ‘unofficial’ settings of the poet coming ahead of the 20 that featured in the published sets.

Kynoch’s accompaniments are beautifully sensitive, flexible and transparent throughout, and all three singers engage intelligently with the texts. Katherine Broderick’s performances, for example, often have an infectious twinkle in their eye – her ‘Die Zigeunerin’ has a wonderful, slightly unhinged quality to it – which largely makes up for the slightly acidic edge in her powerful soprano, and the fact that it can’t manage a great deal of purity and steadiness high up. Pure, clean tenor tone doesn’t feature much in Nicky Spence’s singing but his vivid way with the poetry offers similar recompense. I have few complaints, by contrast, about David Stout’s robust, resonant baritone, a pleasingly rich and chewy voice used with style; his contributions are the highlight of the disc.

These are all refreshing and unfailingly engaging performances, then, even if the competition from Hyperion, featuring Stephan Genz, Bernarda Fink and Roger Vignoles, probably remains the more complete recommendation.