Hi-Res Downloads

96kHz/24-bit FLAC*, Delos DE 3445 (supplied by www.highresaudio.com)

Recorded in a Tennessee Methodist Chapel during March, this is the debut album by a young American tenor, the programme comprising 26 short songs by American composers and with texts (not given in the booklet PDF) by American poets. Some of the names are unfamiliar but there’s Barber, Beach, Bernstein, Carter, Copland (‘Simple Gifts’), Griffes; with Irving Berlin’s ‘Change Partners’ and, by Stephen Foster, ‘Beautiful Dreamer’ and ‘Gentle Annie’ (with cellist Michael Samis – also in the Bernstein items). The balance with piano is good, and you don’t need the words as Bielfield’s diction means you miss nothing. A Juilliard graduate now with a wide-ranging repertoire, Bielfield has a ‘classical’ style which makes the Bernstein and Foster songs a touch too earnest. But a pleasant 72m and the voice tends to grow on you. CB

Sound Quality: 75%

Hi-Fi News Lab Report

These ‘96kHz’ recordings are offered here at 24-bit/88.2kHz and the metadata for track 8 ‘Sure On This Shining Night’ is flagged as mono. The tenor’s voice stretches >16kHz but this does not explain the peaks >30kHz. PM