HENSEL: LIEDER (CD RECORDING)

In January 2023, 6 artists headed to Leipzig to record HENSEL: LIEDER at the Mendelssohn-Haus. This album, released in June 2023 by First Hand Records takes the listener on a chronological journey through Fanny Hensel’s life in song featuring only those pieces that did not receive public recognition during her time. The recording also includes 17 premiere recordings, the highlights being the Christoph Heinrich Hölty settings from 1827-8. The singers were Tim Parker-Langston, Stephanie Wake-Edwards and Jennifer Parker. The pianists were Genevieve Ellis, Jâms Coleman and Ewan Gilford. The beautiful album artwork was commission by Kirsty Matheson, who painted this picture in response to Fanny Hensel’s ‘Sehnsucht [H-U 192]’ & ‘Ich wandelte unter den Bäumen’.

#HENSEL

When Hensel Songs Online was launched in 2021, the scores of nearly a hundred songs composed by Fanny Hensel were accessible for the very first time. Since its launch, Fanny Hensel’s music has been viewed in more than 75 countries by thousands of users.

#HENSEL is a project that will undertake the next significant challenge - performing the unheard songs from Hensel’s output. After the release of HENSEL: LIEDER, which featured 17 premiere recordings, there are remaining 89 songs that have never been recorded and are therefore going unheard.

#HENSEL is a global collaborative effort, inviting musicians around the globe to engage in DIY audio and video recordings of them performing these unsung songs. The recordings will be linked through Hensel Songs Online and your performances will help bring to life this still underperformed repertoire. All videos are hosted at this Youtube playlist.