This CD has three key elements. Firstly there are three
works that have been swept up from previous reissue projects at Lyrita.
These include the Comedy Overture, Beckus the Dandipratt by Arnold,
Chagrin’s Helter Skelter and Warlock’s Serenade for Frederick
Delius. Contrasts – the highlight of this CD - by
David Morgan was from an LP devoted to his music (SRCS 97). Incidentally,
I wonder what has happened to the same composer’s Violin Concerto from
that disc? And thirdly there are two new offerings from the Lyrita archive:
Pierson's Macbeth and the Rawsthorne’s Cortèges
have not been issued on this label before.
The first work is by the largely forgotten composer
Henry Hugo Pierson. This was written in 1869 at a time which traditionally
has been regarded as a downbeat period in English musical history –
‘The Land without Music’[see].
This work categorically disproves the sentiment of that myth. Pierson,
originally spelt ‘Pearson’, was born in Oxford in 1816. After a good
classical education at Harrow School and Trinity College, Cambridge
he studied music in England and Germany. In 1844 he accepted the post
of Professor of Music at Edinburgh University. However most of his life
was spent in Germany, where he died in Leipzig in 1873. He wrote a number
of works in different genres, but he is perhaps noted for his choral
music, songs and stage works. Grove mentions only a handful of pieces
for orchestra besides the present work. These include a Romantic
Overture, Hamlet: funeral march, and a handful of overtures,
including Romeo and Juliet and The Maid of Orleans. The
Romeo and Juliet Overture was recorded on Hyperion CDH55088.
There are a number of things that need to be
said about this present work. Firstly, although the composer annotated
his score with quotations and ‘stage directions’ it is not necessary
to follow the plot of ‘The Scottish Play’ to appreciate this work. Secondly,
the orchestration is impressive; without going overboard it is fair
to say that Pierson was manifestly a master of his art. Thirdly, this
is a major work lasting some twenty minutes. At the back of my mind
was the fear that the interest of the music could not be maintained.
Somehow the residual prejudice that exists about ‘Victorian’ music made
me doubt whether the invention and integrity of this composer’s tone
poem would hold up. The reality is that from the first note to the last,
Pierson holds our attention and interest. There are considerable mood
changes to catch the imagination - from the witches’ incantations through
Lady Macbeth’s death. We also hear the marching English army and a musical
representation of the ‘dagger’ scene. The only problem is that much
of this music is frankly quite beautiful as opposed to sinister or macabre:
and one would be tempted to put Duncan, Banquo et al to one side
and just enjoy the tunes. Yet the piece does work as a tone poem
and well deserves our attention. It is, in reality, a minor masterpiece
and the sooner we hold up our hands and recognise this, the better.
Pierson, along with Macfarren, Sullivan, Corder and possibly Prout are
considerable composers in their own right and must not be relegated
to also-rans under the overpowering shade of Sir Edward Elgar.
Pierson sample
I have never heard David Morgan’s Contrasts
properly. Let me explain. I did have the original vinyl LP in my collection
– but I bought it second hand. I guess someone must have had it on the
beach, because the sound quality is dreadful. Try as I did, I could
not clean the sand from the groove. The Violin Concerto awaits my pleasure
for the same reason. I cannot imagine why someone would want to use
this album as a Frisbee on Morecambe Beach – but that seems to have
been the case. A bad buy! So I was delighted to hear Contrasts
on CD. And what a wonderful work I have missed.
I know virtually nothing about the composer. I do
know that he studied with the late Dr Alan Bush and Leighton Lucas.
Morgan was born in 1933 and has written a Sinfonia da Requiem,
the above mentioned Violin Concerto and a number of chamber and
instrumental music. He does not feature in New Grove. Therefore, I depend
on Paul Conway’s programme notes for my understanding of this work.
David Morgan composed Contrasts in the autumn
of 1974. He dedicated it to the memory of Shostakovich. The composer
has described the composition as "a deliberate contrast in duality:
it consists of two disparate movements, each based on the same two themes,
constantly varied throughout the piece." The first movement is
over sixteen minutes long whereas the second is only five. Yet there
is no apparent formal or aural imbalance.
It could be concluded that this work is in fact a two
movement symphony – there are plenty of precedents for that particular
form. Or perhaps, as Conway suggests, it is a ‘Concerto for Orchestra’.
Whatever the formal underpinning of this work, it is undoubtedly a fantastic
piece. The emotional range is tremendous, without being confusing or
overbearing. The musical style is always approachable without being
simplistic or passé. It is possible to hear bitterness, reflection
and joie de vivre in these pages: it is moving and exciting and enjoyable
at the same time. The balance is perfect: the orchestration is masterly.
I cannot imagine why a work of this calibre and quality is unknown.
I would actually give reams of Shostakovich to possess David Morgan’s
tribute to the elder composer. Finally, I hope that Lyrita will re-release
the Violin Concerto as soon as possible. [since
released]
Lento
Presto misterioso
Allegro energico
It surprises me that Alan Rawsthorne’s Cortèges
is even less well known than most of his works. In spite of some negative
criticism in the Musical Times this is a striking essay that impresses
by the skill of its form and the variety of its instrumentation. The
title was queried by the contemporary MT reviewer "Why in French?"
I am not sure; perhaps the composer wanted to emphasise the ‘funereal’
as well as the ‘triumphant’ – which would be less obvious if he had
called it ‘Processionals’? It is divided into two main parts – the first
is more in the line of a lament and the latter that of celebration –
but not untinged with reflection. sample
Paul Conway notes allusions to Mahler in the first half of the work
and suggests that Rawsthorne was able skilfully to combine epic material
with intimate moments. The second section of this overture literally
sparkles: the mood has changed out of all recognition. sample
The work was described in the Musical Times as a ‘packet of procession
snap-shots, mostly cheerful in our inconsequential English way, but
not very original …" I think this is being disingenuous although
I wholeheartedly agree with the ‘snap-shot’ allusion. This is a good
overture that was quite definitely a work of its era. Conway concludes
his notes by suggesting that this piece is no less appealing than the
better known Street Corner Overture (1944) although he notes,
correctly, that it is more ambitious and wide-ranging.
I remember my friend John coming into the music department
at my ‘High School’ and announcing that Francis Chagrin was dead. Now
I must confess that I had not heard of the composer and was not sure
if ‘it’ was male or female. However I was soon apprised that Chagrin’s
great claim to fame was that he wrote the music to the Colditz Story.
Later explorations have revealed that he composed three symphonies,
a piano concerto and a deal of other music. I have never heard these
‘symphonic’ works and I guess that few people have. It is perhaps difficult
to deduce the value of a composer’s ‘serious’ music from the present
Concert Overture. However, even the most cursory hearings of
Helter Skelter reveals a composer who delighted in fine melodies,
superb orchestration and interesting harmonies. This piece is quite
definitely a crowd-puller and I have often wondered why it does not
feature in concert programmes as a ‘curtain raiser’. Surely Chagrin’s
non-film music is long overdue exploration and revival. sample
Of course, Warlock was a great enthusiast of Frederick
Delius. He wrote an impressive biography on the composer. The Serenade
was written between 1921 and 1922 as a tribute to the elder composer
on his sixtieth birthday. I have always viewed this lovely piece as
being more Delius-like than the man himself ever penned! It is certainly
a fine tribute, yet somehow it cannot be defined as pastiche. There
are elements of Warlock’s art present and correct in a number
of places, yet nothing quite as Spartan as The Curlew is found
in these pages. Gorgeous is not an immoderate adjective to use for this
piece. It has been one of my Desert Island Discs for over a third of
a century! sample
Arnold’s overture was written in 1943 and is generally
considered to be his first definitive work. It is a portrait of a street
urchin. Interestingly ‘dandipratt’ was an archaic name for a waif. The
programme notes point out that although the piece is entitled ‘Comedy
Overture’, Beckus is a deeper piece than the title suggests.
It develops as a set variations on two themes through a number of adventures
and misadventures - some being a little sinister. Beckus could be seen
as a kind of youthful Till Eulenspiegel. The attentive listener
will recognize a number of Arnoldian fingerprints. It is quite definitely
one of the foundation works of the composer’s musical canon. sample
This is a great ‘compilation’ and deserves to be popular.
It balances works that are relatively well known with one that has been
ignored for generations and one that just demands recognition. Most
of the pieces are available elsewhere, and I guess British music enthusiasts
will have these alternative recordings. My bottom line is that this
CD is well worth the price for the Pierson and more especially for the
David Morgan alone. The other five works are attractive and interesting
additions to this ‘must have’ CD.
John France
see also review
by Rob Barnett
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London Symphony Orchestra/Nicholas Braithwaite 