Nikan Ingabire Kanate Brings Alma Mahler’s Lieder to Life
As a young woman in Vienna, Alma Mahler was an avid composer of lieder and chamber works, writing nearly 50 songs—though only 14 survive today. Her creative ambitions were curtailed, however, when she married Gustav Mahler at age 22, who forbade her from composing.
Known for their refined musical sensitivity, Alma’s songs explore themes of longing, tenderness, and quiet reflection. These two selections—“Laue Sommernacht” (“Mild Summer Night”) and “Bei dir ist es traut” (“With You, I Feel at Ease”)—capture these sentiments, painting an intimate portrait of a quiet moment between two lovers.
“I love their quiet simplicity,” says soprano Nikan Ingabire Kanate, the Edwin B. Garrigues Fellow at Curtis, who will perform both with Curtis Symphony Orchestra in its upcoming concert on March 26. “They paint an expressive picture of a special moment.”
The program also includes selections from Gustav Mahler’s Des Knaben Wunderhorn—performed by mezzo-soprano Carlyle Quinn, tenor Landry Allen, mezzo-soprano Maisy Parker, and baritone Emilio Vásquez—Wagner’s Rienzi Overture, and William Dawson’s moving Negro Folk Symphony.
Below, read on for our one-on-one conversation with Kanate, who reflects on the songs’ meaning, her preparation process, and the experience she hopes to shape for listeners.
Throughout her lifetime, Alma Mahler composed nearly 50 songs for voice and piano. What do you think makes these two selections meaningful to perform?
They’re both themed as intimate, private moments between two lovers. It almost feels secret, which I think is how relationships usually start. You have to put yourself out there, and it stays between the two of you until it blooms into something else. I also think the poems are beautiful. Alma had to give up composing when she married Gustav—I can’t imagine the type of sadness she carried because of that. But, maybe she was writing about their love, too.
Can you talk about your process of preparing and rehearsing these songs? How has this differed from your recent La Passion de Simone performance?
I’ve been working with a wonderful German diction coach here: Ulrike Shapiro. The German language has so many layers to it, and working with a native speaker has really helped. It tends to sit in the lower part of my voice, which I don’t often use—so it’s been good to grow in this way. It’s made the story easy to tell.
Compared to Mahler, La Passion de Simone took a little more time to interpret and internalize. It’s contemporary work, so it takes a little longer to get into your body—which you really need to do before staging it.
Are there any parts or elements of these songs you’d recommend listeners tune into?
I feel like their simplicity paints the picture of their moment: The quietness of being alone together at night and being at peace together. It’s very light in the orchestra with simple vocal lines, too.
What type of experience do you hope to create for audiences as you sing these?
I hope it can still feel intimate, like I’m telling a story. I try to mean everything I say, even if it’s not something that applies to me personally. I try to feel it internally like an actress. You still have to do it when you sing songs, too. I hope audiences can feel the love in these songs as much as I do.
Catch Kanate and the Curtis Symphony Orchestra on March 26 for “Yannick Leads Mahler & Dawson” at Marian Anderson Hall, Kimmel Center. Tickets begin at $28.
