Edwin Crossley-Mercer Baritone In the young generation of French singers, Edwin Crossley-Mercer is an outstanding baritone discovery. He has already played in some of the most distinguished opera houses in Europe: His venues included the DNO in Amsterdam, (as Albert in La Juive by Fromental Halevy) and the Opéra Comique in Paris (as Claudio in Béatrice et Bénédict by Hector Berlioz). He also appeared as Schaunard in La Bohème at the Komische Oper in Berlin, a part which he had already played in the course of the 2008-2009 season. In the 2010-2011 season he made his Paris Opera stage debut by appearing as Harlekin in Ariadne auf Naxos by Richard Strauss at the Opéra Bastille, where he is already re-engaged for roles in future seasons in Arabella, The Merry Widow and Carmen. Edwin Crossley-Mercer performed the part of Jean Jacques Rousseau in he world premier of the opéra JJR citoyen de Genève by Philippe Fénelon, staged by Robert Carsen.  After having attended the Conservatory in the French town of Clermont-Ferrand, he went on to the ‘Centre de Musique Baroque de

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"En distinction de chant, en précision d’expression, en simple beauté de voix, le jeune Edwin Crossley-Mercer nous fait renouer avec la grande école des barytons français, un souvenir du premier Gérard Souzay passe dans ce timbre, c’est tout dire."

Concert Classique, Jean-Charles Hoffelé Dec 11th 2010

"Chez les jeunes officiers, notre préférence ira à l’impeccable Guglielmo du séduisant Edwin Crossley-Mercer, chanteur raffiné, au legato admirablement maîtrisé, qui rend sympathique un personnage auquel il confère aussi une bonne dose de lyrisme."

ClassiqueInfo, Richard Letawe Oct 14th 2010

"Anciens de l’Académie du Festival, Judith van Wanroij et Edwin Crossley-Mercer ont l’exact profil physique et vocal de Despina et Guglielmo. Lui, timbre superbe, verbe fier, ligne gaillarde, elle, parfaite styliste et idéalement piquante"

Altamusica, Mehdi Mahdavi Jul 22nd 2008

"...un Edwin Crossley-Mercer (...) , dont l’instrument épanouit sa pâte veloutée, mûre pour les demi-dieux, avec un naturel confondant. "

Altamusica, Mehdi Mahdavi Nov 19th 2011

"APPLAUDIR Paris. Auditorium at the Musée d’Orsay, May 11, 2010. Franz Schubert: die Winterreise. Edwin Crossley-Mercer, baritone; Semjon Skigin, piano After having won the «Concours International Nadia et Lili Boulanger » in 2008, a victory won “hands down”, and having received copious acclaim in Rouen recently in Thierry Pécou’s opera « l’Amour Coupable », Edwin Crossley-Mercer, the French-Irish Baritone, who remains greatly attached to the recital as an art, decided to take on the monumental Lieder task of Schubert’s Winterreise. For such a young singer, the challenge was unquestionably a risky project, for he is not yet thirty years old. Consequently, it is only right that the scintillating success of this recital should be hailed with the enthusiasm it deserves, because he did far more than just succeed in the challenge of this undertaking. From the very outset, the singer exhibited his comprehension of this Lieder cycle and fully identified himself with it as it stands out fearfully challenging, dark and replete with personal agony. He drank the dregs of every single word, gave it the required colour, ensuring that every thought held its subtlety, so that it was smithed and chiselled accordingly; his exceptional maturity of his artistic development showed that he did not overlook any facet or leave anything to chance. Every emotion came across as having been personally perceived and experienced within the very depths of his own body, and yet the singer never allowed his emotion to outstrip him, by maintaining constantly balanced vocal control, the hallmark of only the most distinguished of artists. Such a degree of artistic perfection in one so early in his career left the spectator speechless. It is a rare event indeed to be able to say unhesitatingly that a singer’s vocal technique or dramatic characterization is beyond reproach, but in this instance one can only bow and accept, and relish the musical quality of the fortes in their silken smoothness, the delicate piani and the ever-present elegance. Identical praise must be given to Semjon Skigin, the Russian pianist, whose delicacy of execution was exquisite and of the kind most rarely encountered, with a fully rounded out, all-embracing resonance of musical enchantment. It is an extremely rare occurrence too, in this work, to hear such a dramatically driven pianist, delivering a rubato, both responsive and unfailingly accurate, possessed of constantly resilient sudden surges. He is a true master of his art, with the ability to rethink the presentation of the Winterreise cycle, weaving a new musical web to match the baritone’s voice, so that the singer seemed to be borne along by his accompanist, each one remaining attentive to the other, each one kaleidescoping into the other’s art to achieve perfect osmosis, resulting in a musical achievement of overwhelming proportions. The public was spellbound and extended an undisguised ovation to both the young baritone and his accompanist. In his encores, Edwin Crossley-Mercer broke with tradition by daringly choosing a style which provided a sharp contrast with darkness of the Schubertian Winterreise and ventured into French melodies. Adapting quickly to the French aesthetic so singular, so intimate and fragrant, the audience fell spellbound to the magic of the moment. Romance by Debussy, Clair de lune by Fauré, et lastly Elégie by Massenet were the three miniature portraits which the young singer chose to offer his public with such obvious enjoyment and pleasure; they were magnificently delivered, with a fully comprehensive mastery in the vocal range containing colour variations and a fine distinction and natural elegance of diction, which yet again, left the audience speechless. Semjon Skigin continued to provide his velvet-smooth accompaniment to sustain and maintain Edwin Crossley-Mercer for the second time in a flawlessness performance. This sumptuous recital marked the discovery by the Parisian public of an astounding artiste of immense promise and indubitably headed for an exceptional career. Paris. Auditorium du Musée d’Orsay, May 11, 2010. Franz Schubert : Winterreise. Edwin Crossley-Mercer, baritone; Semjon Skigin, piano "

Classiquenews.com, Nicolas Grienenberger May 23rd 2010

"A critical review of the Winterreise recital at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris May 11, 2010. A great storyteller - Edwin Crossley-Mercer sings Schubert The public attending had been prepared for this plunge into the Winterreise by the stealthy arrival of the season’s last frosts, foreshadowed in Paris by harbingers of rain, wind and cold, which created a climate that lent itself naturally to Schubert’s music. Edwin Crossley-Mercer, the young French baritone who has been very much in view in both France and in Germany, singing not only the baroque repertoire but also major opera roles, decided to face this famous cycle accompanied by Semjon Skigin, the Russian pianist. Edwin Crossley-Mercer’s diction was a paragon of clarity, whilst he displayed total identification with, and commitment to the Schubertian visions of glaciated tears, illusions and inner tumults, which provided a perfect match to the accompaniment of an excellent pianist who paid the keenest attention to the inflectional contours of the text. The singer had no hesitation in dramatizing the words, sometimes to the limits of the theatrical dimension. Nonetheless, the gestures accompanying the singing never once encroached upon the quality of the vocal line, which constantly maintained its unity and fineness of timbre with sumptuous bass notes and projected top notes held in perfect control. The rich palette of colours matched the wavering moods and the wide spectrum of feelings flooding the narrator’s thoughts. After a journey such as this towards emptiness, the unexpected encores were devoted to French music: Romance by Debussy ; Clair de lune by Fauré; and Elégie by Massenet. The encores were a confirmation of the artistic greatness of this performer, who, at the age of twenty-eight, is in full possession of an unparalleled experience of stage-sense. However, it should be emphasized that he was taught by such masters as Thomas Quasthoff, Udo Reinemann, Julia Varady and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, to name but a few. "

Michel Le Naour May 12th 2011

"« Edwin le magnifique » Edwin Crossley-Mercer, David Frey : Lieder de Schubert Festival de Saint Denis, Maison de la Légion d’Honneur, 3 juin. Par Frédéric NoracLa France est prodigue en belles voix de baryton. Nous en avons donné à tous les répertoires d’opéra, italien, allemand, et au nôtre bien sûr, mais le Lied nous a toujours quelque peu échappé, à quelques très minimes exceptions près. Edwin Crossley-Mercer est l’une d’elles. Ce chanteur paraît tellement chez lui dans le répertoire germanique qu’on en oublierait presque qu’il est bien de chez nous, même si l’Allemagne lui est une seconde patrie musicale, puisque c’est là qu’il a débuté et s’est imprégné de cet art si particulier dont son récital Schubert était perfusé de bout en bout."

Musicologie.org, Frédéric Norac Jun 3rd 2012

"Edwin Crossley-Mercer et David Fray au Festival de Saint-Denis - Apnée schubertienne David Fray est, depuis quelques années, régulièrement invité par le Festival de Saint-Denis et, pour l’édition 2012, il s’est associé au jeune baryton Edwin Crossley-Mercer (photo) dans un florilège de lieder de Schubert. L’entente est parfaite entre deux artistes totalement accordés à cette musique entre drame, charme et légèreté douce-amère. La voix pleine aux riches harmoniques, la présence scénique et la noblesse de ton du chanteur participent de cette impression de bonheur parfait relayé avec tact, poésie et sens de la phrase, par un pianiste amoureux du chant. Les pages les plus sombres (Doppelgänger, Fahrt zum Hades, Der Zwerg, Der Wanderer), comme la grâce des mélodies (Abschied, An Silvia) sont portées par une interprétation où l’élégance et l’introspection le disputent à l’évidence et au naturel. Captivé par la qualité de ce récital, le public reste silencieux et concentré avant de libérer sa joie. En ces temps où l’on pleure la disparition de Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau et où l’on s’attriste de l’éloignement de la scène de Thomas Quasthoff – deux maîtres qui mirent le pied à l’étrier à Edwin Crossley-Mercer –, ce concert totalement abouti réconforte le mélomane. "

Michael Le Naour Jun 7th 2012

"We are likely to hear a great deal more of this superb artist in coming years."

Donald Rosenberg, The Plain Dealer Mar 4th 2013

"(...) Crossley-Mercer, whose baritone is an instrument of lustrous individuality and suppleness. He is capable of scaling the voice down to a focused whisper or projecting with stentorian force. Words are paramount to Crossley-Mercer, as are inflections that heighten the drama in each song. The 30-year-old baritone, singing everything from memory, opened with works by Beethoven and Brahms. There were moments when his approach in this repertoire brought to mind the probing intellectuality and subtlety of the late German baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, with whom Crossey-Mercer studied in master classes. But these performances were no acts of imitation. Crossley-Mercer brought distinctive touches to the six odes to love and nature in Beethoven's "An die ferne Geliebte,"altering vocal colors and employing physical gestures to enhance the moods. In six songs by Brahms, Crossley-Mercer applied warmth to placid lines, dreamy nuances where the texts portray a blissful world and ecstatic potency to passages of amorous flight. (...)"

Donald Rosenberg, The Plain Dealer Mar 4th 2013

"Crossley-Mercer. Remember the name."

Donald Rosenberg, The Plain Dealer Mar 4th 2013