“Each lied is like a mini-opera”, Christoph Prégardien once said. “As an interpreter, I face the challenge of having to create a mood within a short period of time, an atmosphere that can help the audience gain a better grasp of the piece’s content.” Evolution and decay, transformation through time: those are the subjects of the lieder by Schubert, Schumann, and Wolfgang Rihm which Prégardien and pianist Lorenzo Soulès have selected for their vocal recital. Schubert set nine poems by Ernst Schulze to music, and “An mein Herz” and “Im Frühling” are two of the most well-known among them. Based on poems by Heiner Müller, Wolfgang Rihm’s lieder cycle “Ende der Handschrift” evokes the disenchantment of modern man. Schumann found a kindred spirit in poet Justinus Kerner. Regarded as one of today’s most outstanding lyric tenors, Christoph Prégardien is probably an ideal interpreter, capable of finding the appropriate narrative perspective to interpret Schumann’s Kerner songs. Prégardien always lays emphasis on clarity of diction and a wide range of emotional expression. As a sensitive, congenial musician, he finds an ideal artistic partner in Lorenzo Soulès at the piano.