Symphonic Music: April 2008 Archives

Granville Bantock
(1868-1946)
Overture to a Greek Tragedy ¹

Joseph Holbrooke
(1878-1958)
The Birds of Rhiannon ²

Cyril Rootham
(1875-1938)
Symphony #1 ²

¹ Philharmonia Orchestra/Nicholas Braithwaite
² London Philharmonic Orchestra/Vernon Handley
Lyrita SRCD269 62:30

A concert comprising Bantock's moody overture, Holbrooke's fairly gentle tone poem, and Rootham's engaging symphony. There are echoes of such composers as Ralph Vaughan Williams, Arnold Bax, a touch of Edward Elgar, even Ernst Moeran. The heart of the half-hour symphony is its beautiful slow movement with similarities to Vaughan Williams' Pastoral Symphony and occasionally William Walton's 1st.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]

Siegmund von Hausegger
(1872-1948)

Natursymphonie

WDR Rundfunkchor Köln
WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln/Ari Rasilainen
CPO 777237-2 56:37

Scored for a very large orchestra including organ, and a choir, this is an immediately attractive work. There are reminders of Gustav Mahler, Richard Strauss, and Franz Schmidt. The choir appears only in the last movement. Rasilainen has made something of a name for himself in less familiar music such as the symphonies of Kurt Atterberg and Sinding, and is the man for showing this late Romantic work at its best.

[ Available on Multichannel Hybrid SACD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]

Karol Kurpinski (1785-1857): Two Huts
Ignacy Feliks Dobrzynski (1807-67): Monbar
Stanislaw Moniuszko (1819-72): The Fairy Tale
Zygmunt Noskowski (1844-1909): The Steppes
Wladyslaw Zelenski (1837-1921): In the Tatra Mountains

Sinfonia Varsovia/Grzegorz Nowak
Accord 011369-2 66:31

This is an enjoyable collection of orchestral music by mostly little-known 19^th-century Polish composers. The standout is the Noskowski, a 20-minute symphonic poem with memorable themes and sweeping momentum. The mystery is the inclusion in the Zelenski of a theme familiar from Antonín Dvořák's Cello Concerto, which was written 25 years later.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan ]

Jean Sibelius
(1865-1957)

The Wood Nymph, Op. 15 - Ballade
A Lonely Ski-Trail (1925)
Swanwhite, Op. 54
The Wood Nymph, Op. 15 - Melodrama

Timo Keinonen, cello
Lasse Pöysti, narrator
Sakari Tepponen, violin
Pauli Pietiläinen, organ
Harri Karri, piano
Lahti Symphony Orchestra/Osmo Vänskä
BIS BIS-CD815 62:08

The Wood Nymph is early Sibelius but is a powerful orchestral work that had to wait until this 1996 CD for its first recording. Swanwhite is a delicate suite of incidental music with most movements lasting little more than a minute. If you dislike music with narration, the other two pieces are minor short works and it's these that include the narrator.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]

John Joubert
(b. 1927)

Symphony #1, Op. 20 (1956)

London Philharmonic Orchestra/Vernon Handley
Lyrita SRCD322 31:17

South African-born Joubert has spent most of his life in England and the traces of Edward Elgar, William Walton, even Malcolm Arnold, in his music are apparent. Vernon Handley, who has done so much for English music, conducts this for all it's worth. The very short playing time is more than compensated by a reduced price.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]

John Kinsella
(b. 1932)

Symphony #3 "Joie de Vivre"
Symphony #4 "The Four Provinces"

National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland/Proinnsias Ó Duinn
Marco Polo 8.223766 77:12

This is one of the most interesting CDs of the Irish composers series on Marco Polo. The music is frequently exciting with more than a little menace such as in Peter Mennin's "Moby Dick" and Fifth Symphony. Those who are wary of dissonance need not be worried about this music: it's a pity more of Kinsella's symphonies are not available.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan ]

Ernst Mielck
(1877-1899)

Symphony in F Minor, Op. 4
Concert Piece for Violin & Orchestra, Op. 8

John Storgårds, violin
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra/Sakari Oramo
Ondine ODE1019-2 55:49

Mielck's symphony is generally credited with being the first by a Finnish composer, beating Jean Sibelius by a year or two. It's well worth exploring and adds yet another to the list of short-lived composers with thoughts of what else he might have achieved. The Concert Piece is pleasant without being distinctive, but it's the symphony that's the main interest.

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]

Quincy Porter
(1897-1966)

Symphony #1
Poem and Dance
Symphony #2

Sinfonia Varsovia/Ian Hobson
Albany TROY574 60:23

The nearest similarity I can suggest for this music is Walter Piston, with a little William Schuman. The symphonies were written thirty years apart but have a unifying "feel". The Poem and Dance serves as a good contrast. The Polish orchestra sounds more than comfortable with this unfamiliar music.

Read the full Classical Net Review

[ Available on CD: Amazon - UK - Germany - Canada - France - Japan - ArkivMusic - CD Universe ]

[ Sheet music by this composer: Sheet Music Plus ]