After Rain: Danish Songs by Rued Langgaard provides a glimpse into the turbulent life of the Danish composer (1893–1952) whose little-known music is slowly gaining popularity. The album shines a light on his excellent songs for voice and piano––songs that are yet uncelebrated but belong among the most respected in the canon.

Rued Langgaard’s songs are achingly passionate, highly romantic, and psychologically profound, ranging from the most powerful expressions of infatuation in Für Dich! to the most intimate pin-drop moments in Det rinder med Dug. His creative powers are on full display in the atmospheric Aftnen svøber sin Skumringskaabe and Du Natsværmerdronning fine, with bells, veils, and moths in rich imagery. The song Efter Regn explores what happens after rain, when delicate final drops give way to an outpouring of sun, wind, and bottled-up emotions––a poetic metaphor for the countless setbacks Langgaard suffered throughout his life, both professionally and personally. Most of his songs were written in the wake of the summer of 1913 after an affair with a young woman, Dora, resulted in nothing but pain and lasting longing. Nostalgia for the summer of 1913 permeates all genres of his works through his last symphony in 1951, but is most clearly reflected in the flood of songs he wrote between 1913 and 1918. This album is an exploration and discovery of some of Rued Langgaard’s best songs, some never previously recorded, and shares with the world the composer’s talent for creating atmospheres, expressing deep human emotions, and telling universal stories.

American Megan Moore and Danish Francesco Barfoed also make history by delivering one of the first professional recordings of Danish art songs sung by an American singer, helping to make Danish––the least featured Scandinavian language in the repertoire––more accessible to performers around the world.