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On her second PENTATONE album Sinnbild, soprano Hanna-Elisabeth Müller presents an enchanting collection of orchestral songs by Richard Strauss, together with the WDR Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Christoph Eschenbach. Culminating in the famous Four Last Songs, the programme explores all forms of farewell – the big and the small – that we go through as human beings. Amidst this melancholia, Strauss’s lush, glorious orchestral writing and his exceptional understanding of the soprano voice offer profound solace to the listener. Hanna-Elisabeth Müller is among the most celebrated lyrical sopranos of our times. Sinnbild is the second album as part of her exclusive collaboration with PENTATONE. The WDR Symphony Orchestra has released several albums with the label, including Beethoven’s complete symphonies (2020) and Hindemith orchestral works (2018), both with Marek Janowski, as well as the Strauss album Aber der richtige... (2018) with Arabella Steinbacher and Lawrence Foster. Christoph Eschenbach is universally acclaimed as conductor and pianist, and makes his PENTATONE debut. “Means to me, in relation to the music of Richard Strauss, a fusion of times and worlds, of reality and dreams, of life and death. As human beings, we are confronted with finitude throughout our lives: we try to understand, fail, start anew, part ways and experience farewells. Rarely are these goodbyes as drastic as in the songs on this album, often they are hardly noticeable. And yet something comes to an end. The heart of this album, the Four Last Songs, symbolises for me all these forms of farewell – the big and the small – that we go through as human beings. “Winterweihe” blurs the clear boundary between life and death. In “Allerseelen”, as well as in Dehmel's famous “Waldseligkeit”, everything strives for a reunion, longs to have another opportunity to experience the moment of love and intimacy before having to say goodbye forever. Together with Christoph Eschenbach and the WDR Symphony Orchestra, I have tried to open the door to this world of sound for the listener.” – Hanna-Elisabeth Müller