MusicWeb CD reviews for Saturday June 9th
http://www.musicweb.uk.net/classrev/2001/July01/July01_1.htm
An All-British weekend highlighted by the important release of the John
Veale Violin Concerto
Malcolm ARNOLD (b.1921) The British Music Collection Guitar Concerto
Eduardo Fernandez (guitar)/ECO/Barry Wordsworth English Dances LPO/Boult
Symphony for Brass Instruments Philip Jones Brass Ensemble/Howard Snell
Brass Quintet Philip Jones Brass Ensemble/Philip Jones rec: 1954 (English
Dances); 1970 (Quintet); 1979 (Symphony); 1990 (Concerto). DECCA 468-302-2
[75.03] [RB]
This is a coupling which, while not dazzlingly perfect, offers intriguing
contrast aplenty. The Guitar Concerto is the easy winner
Arnold BAX (1883-1953) London Pageant (1937) Concertante for cor
anglais, clarinet, horn and orchestra (1948-9) Suite from Tamara (1911)
Cathaleen-ni-Hoolihan (1903) Gillian Callow (cor anglais); John Bradbury
(clarinet); Jonathan Goodall (French horn) BBC Philharmonic
Orchestra/Martyn Brabbins rec Studio 7, BBC, Manchester, 17 May 23 June
2000 DDD CHANDOS CHAN 9879 [74.33] [RB]
A warm and well imagined collection with the everyone up to their highest
standards.
Sir Arthur BLISS The Film Music of Sir Arthur Bliss 1. Welcome the Queen.
2. Things to Come Concert Suite arranged and reconstructed by Philip Lane.
3. The Royal Palaces Suite. 4. Caesar and Cleopatra Suite from the
incidental film music edited and arranged by Giles Easterbrook and Malcolm
Binney. 5. War in the Air Theme. Rumon Gamba conducting the BBC
Philharmonic Chandos CHAN 9896 [73:11] [HC]
BBC Philharmonic play with verve, assurance and enjoyment. A magnificent
addition to the expanding CHANDOS Movies Series.
John VEALE Violin Concerto Benjamin BRITTEN Violin Concerto. Lydia
Mordkovitch/BBC Symphony Orchestra/Richard Hickox rec 1999? (DDD)CHANDOS
CHAN 9910 [69.57] [DW]
Apart from the Britten, beautifully played and executed though it is, this
is the 'disc of the year' It sets a standard of sound quality and
performance that will hardly be beaten.
James WILSON (b1922) Orchestral Works. Menorah (Viola Concerto), Op. 122*
[24.54] Concertino, Op. 37 [12.38] Pearl and Unicorn (Violin Concerto),
Op. 20 [26.50] * Constantin Zanidache (vla) ** Alan Smale (vln) National
Symphony Orchestra of Ireland conducted by Colman Pearce Recorded, April
1996 in the National Concert hall, Dublin MARCO POLO 8. 225027 [65.40]
[JQ]
Despite some atmospheric and intriguing scoring I must confess that I was
not greatly attracted to James Wilson's music, still less moved by it.
THEN AGAIN: BRITISH PIANO MUSIC OF THE '80s AND '90s Colin TOUCHIN (b.1953)
: Sonatella (1990) Christopher BEST (b.1958): Then Again Robert RAMSKILL
(b.1950): Jazz Sonatina (1985) Julian HELLABY (b.1956): Medley on Jazz
Standards Julian Hellaby (piano) Recorded Warwick 1998 ASC CS CD39 [c.
65.00] [HC]
Four composers who do not shy away from writing entertaining music in an
accessible, often jazzy idiom.
BOOK REVIEW
MASSENET - A Chronicle of his Life and Times by Demar Irvine Amadeus Press;
398 pages; paperback. First published in 1994. ISBN 1-57467-024-7 $22.95
This important book languished in an unpublished special typewritten
edition in American libraries from 1974 until the author of the Foreword,
Reinhard G. Pauly, discovered it while investigating the existence of an
English version of Massenet's memoirs, Mes Souvenirs.
AND
Arthur Butterworth Writes: The Amateur Orchestra
And advance details: EMI ENCORE A new budget label is coming
Len Mullenger
www.musicweb.uk.net
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