In 1938, Gerald Finzi wrote of the folksong: '[ it ] has been to me like food, grammar or counterpoint, it helped build me up,' a statement that could well have passed the lips of countless composers of art music during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The incorporation of folk characteristics into music before this had usually been as a kind of novelty, but the rise of musical nationalism led many to exalt indigenous songs and tunes as the embodiment of their individual native character. The folksong became such a symbol of musical interest that few could resist its appeal; apart from cataloguing existing melodies, the genre provided a perfect idiom through which composers could develop their own musical language.

Anne Sofie von Otter and the pianist Bengt Forsberg present a cross section of work from that fascinating period on a new disc. On first listening, it is striking how these songs show off von Otter's versatility, requiring not only a mastery of six languages, but a range of idiomatic approaches necessary to capture their different national flavours. This alone is a huge undertaking and is one that she carries off with remarkable style.

Both performers match Grainger's ingenious settings with comparable artistry...

The disc begins with Dvorák's Gypsy Songs which, like his Slavonic Dances for piano duet, were written at a time when the popularity for national music of this type was at its height (and which is referred to in the sleeve notes as 'drawing room Slavonicism'). Although technically not authentic in their gypsy nature, they nonetheless contain much of the red-blooded spirit of the style. The performance captures the sadness of Rings ist der Wald so stumm effectively, and the extrovert nature of Reingestimmt die Saiten is arresting, even though it would be preferable if taken at a more daring speed.

Kodály's Magyar Nßpzene provides a truer picture of Eastern European folk songs, juxtaposing infectious rhythmic vitality with heart-felt pathos. As with Benjamin Britten's French Folksong Arrangements, the skill of the arranger is evident in the way that accompaniments are used to heighten the effect of the text; Forsberg handles these with the utmost sensitivity.

One of the delights of this CD is the opportunity it provides to explore lesser-known songs, such as those from Reynaldo Hahn's Venezia. The sincerity with which they are executed makes them irresistible and there are occasions when the singer's upper-register diminuendos leave the listener breathless. In contrast, she seems to revel in the humorous resilience of Che pecà.

It is hardly surprising that the duo should include songs by composers from their native Sweden. Two composers are represented here, Lars-Erik Larsson and Gunnar Hahn, whose songs show a charming simplicity.

The highlight of the recording is the selection of Percy Grainger settings, where von Otter copes admirably with the slightly unusual dialect of some of the lyrics. Both performers match Grainger's ingenious settings with comparable artistry that penetrates to the core of the text.

Vaughan Williams said in a lecture on folksong: "The reason why those early musicians sang, played, invented and composed was simply and solely because they wanted to; and I think the lesson we can learn of them is sincerity." (Michael Kennedy, The Works of Ralph Vaughan Williams, 1964). It is precisely this sincerity which makes the disc such an attractive recording; no doubt those who strove to preserve their musical heritage would be proud that their cause would later have two such emissaries as von Otter and Forsberg.

Gavin Meredith