Rufus Wainwright has dabbled with Elizabethan fare in the past, referencing Shakespeare's "Sonnet 43" on 2010's All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu, and he's returning to the Bard for inspiration on a brand new record titled Take All My Loves.
The album is due out on April 22 via classical label Deutsche Grammophon, just one day before the 400th anniversary of the playwright's death. The material hears Wainwright teaming up with Marius de Vries, who previously collaborated in 2009 on a Robert Wilson-directed production called Shakespeare's Sonnets at the Berliner Ensembler.
Additionally, Take All My Loves features musical contributions from Florence Welch, Anna Prohaska and Wainwright's singer-songwriter sister Martha Wainwright. Extending the list of cameos beyond the realm of music, Siân Phillips, Helena Bonham Carter, Carrie Fisher and William Shatner each make appearances as well, providing recitations of Shakespeare's classic poetry.
And despite the old source material, Wainwright hopes to imbue it with his modern brand of piano-pop. "For me, recording this album has been a marriage made in heaven, as it combines my love of classical music with my love of pop music," he said in a statement. "It's literally historically fun. And made all the better by working again with Marius."
You can see the full list of songs listed below; note that "When Most I Wink (Sonnet 43)," "For Shame (Sonnet 10)" and "A Woman's Face (Sonnet 20)" are reinterpretations of tracks that appeared on All Days Are Nights.
Take All My Loves: 9 Shakespeare Sonnets:
1. "Sonnet 43" recited by Siân Phillips
2. "When Most I Wink (Sonnet 43)" ft. Anna Prohaska
3. "Take All My Loves (Sonnet 40)" (recitation by Marius de Vries)
4. "Sonnet 20" recited by Frally Hynes
5. "A Woman's Face (Sonnet 20)" ft. Anna Prohaska
6. "For Shame (Sonnet 10)" ft. Anna Prohaska
7. "Sonnet 10" recited by Peter Eyre
8. "Unperfect Actor (Sonnet 23)" ft. Martha Wainwright (recitation by Helena Bonham Carter)
9. "Sonnet 29" recited by Carrie Fisher
10. When in Disgrace with Fortune and Men's Eyes (Sonnet 29)" ft. Florence Welch and Ben de Vries
11. "Sonnet 129" recited by William Shatner
12. "Th'Expense of Spirit in a Waste of Shame (Sonnet 129)" ft. Anna Prohaska
13. "All Dessen Müd (Sonet 66)" ft. Christopher Nell and Jürgen Holtz
14. "A Woman's Face – Reprise (Sonnet 20)"
15. "Sonnet 87" recited by Inge Keller
16. "Farewell (Sonnet 87)" ft. Anna Prohaska
The album is due out on April 22 via classical label Deutsche Grammophon, just one day before the 400th anniversary of the playwright's death. The material hears Wainwright teaming up with Marius de Vries, who previously collaborated in 2009 on a Robert Wilson-directed production called Shakespeare's Sonnets at the Berliner Ensembler.
Additionally, Take All My Loves features musical contributions from Florence Welch, Anna Prohaska and Wainwright's singer-songwriter sister Martha Wainwright. Extending the list of cameos beyond the realm of music, Siân Phillips, Helena Bonham Carter, Carrie Fisher and William Shatner each make appearances as well, providing recitations of Shakespeare's classic poetry.
And despite the old source material, Wainwright hopes to imbue it with his modern brand of piano-pop. "For me, recording this album has been a marriage made in heaven, as it combines my love of classical music with my love of pop music," he said in a statement. "It's literally historically fun. And made all the better by working again with Marius."
You can see the full list of songs listed below; note that "When Most I Wink (Sonnet 43)," "For Shame (Sonnet 10)" and "A Woman's Face (Sonnet 20)" are reinterpretations of tracks that appeared on All Days Are Nights.
Take All My Loves: 9 Shakespeare Sonnets:
1. "Sonnet 43" recited by Siân Phillips
2. "When Most I Wink (Sonnet 43)" ft. Anna Prohaska
3. "Take All My Loves (Sonnet 40)" (recitation by Marius de Vries)
4. "Sonnet 20" recited by Frally Hynes
5. "A Woman's Face (Sonnet 20)" ft. Anna Prohaska
6. "For Shame (Sonnet 10)" ft. Anna Prohaska
7. "Sonnet 10" recited by Peter Eyre
8. "Unperfect Actor (Sonnet 23)" ft. Martha Wainwright (recitation by Helena Bonham Carter)
9. "Sonnet 29" recited by Carrie Fisher
10. When in Disgrace with Fortune and Men's Eyes (Sonnet 29)" ft. Florence Welch and Ben de Vries
11. "Sonnet 129" recited by William Shatner
12. "Th'Expense of Spirit in a Waste of Shame (Sonnet 129)" ft. Anna Prohaska
13. "All Dessen Müd (Sonet 66)" ft. Christopher Nell and Jürgen Holtz
14. "A Woman's Face – Reprise (Sonnet 20)"
15. "Sonnet 87" recited by Inge Keller
16. "Farewell (Sonnet 87)" ft. Anna Prohaska
