Chamayou records all 48 of Mendelssohn’s Songs Without Words
Bertrand Chamayou has recorded all 48 of Mendelssohn’s *Songs Without Words*, bringing a singing quality and light, flowing touch to the piano miniatures. The review welcomes the release because the complete set is less often recorded than its best-known pieces, and says Chamayou’s relaxed playing makes the music feel both familiar and newly engaging.
Mendelssohn wrote the pieces in eight sets of six over 16 years, with most lasting under three minutes. The review highlights the *Duetto* from Op 38, where the melodic lines seem to pass between two voices, and Op 62 No 6, the lively *Spring Song*, originally titled *Camberwell Green* after a London suburb.
- Chamayou records all 48 piano miniatures.
- His playing is smooth, flowing and songlike.
- The review finds the music familiar yet fresh.
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Felix Mendelssohn was a 19th-century German composer whose piano pieces called Songs Without Words are short, self-contained works built around song-like melodies. He wrote 48 of them in eight groups of six over 16 years; most last less than three minutes.
The title reflects the pieces’ vocal feel, even though they have no sung words. Some suggest a conversation between two voices, while others are more lively; the piece known as the Spring Song was first titled Camberwell Green, after an area of south London.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Mendelssohn: Songs Without Words review – Chamayou makes each piece feel somehow familiar yet fresh”.