George Lloyd

Started by Thom, April 14, 2007, 12:37:44 PM

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J.Z. Herrenberg

Quote from: aligreto on December 24, 2021, 08:35:39 AM
This latest activity in this thread showed me that I had neglected to post my listening thoughts on Lloyd's Symphony No. 8 here.

So, cross post from the Listening Thread from a while ago:


Lloyd: Symphony No. 8 [Downes]





The wistful woodwinds and strings create a wonderful atmosphere at the opening of the work. This tone becomes prolonged and also somewhat disconcerting and also a little menacing when the dynamics are augmented. The further into it I go the more sinister sounding it becomes. This is all the more unnerving as this is played against a somewhat comical passage which I find unnerving and yet quite engaging and inventive. I do not know what Lloyd is trying to say with this music to be honest but I do like its heightened musical language, its wonderful scoring and its sense of drama and tension. The brass has great bite throughout the movement. 
The slow movement appears like a dream-like sequence of passages layered with different sonorities each yielding up its own individual atmospheric sound picture. Each individual thread weaves itself into a grand plan to create an atmospheric, mysterious and enchanting tapestry.  This I find very inventive, interesting and effective.
The tempo, dynamics and the tone all pick up in the final movement. We have a return to that element of levity that occasionally appears in the first movement and which, likewise, is countered here by a sense of menace. All of this, however, never distracts from the sense of power and drama in a movement that is very well driven throughout with a great conclusion.


Which affords me, in turn, the opportunity to thank you for all your reviews!
Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything. -- Plato

aligreto

Quote from: J.Z. Herrenberg on December 24, 2021, 08:38:56 AM

Which affords me, in turn, the opportunity to thank you for all your reviews!

Thank you kindly. I find it interesting listening to music that I know I would not have listened to ten or more years ago and this is some of it. However, we live and learn!
For whatever they are worth I should point out that I write as I listen, particularly if it is a first listen. I like to capture my initial thoughts.

aligreto

Lloyd: Symphony No. 9 [Lloyd]





The opening movement is very upbeat, buoyant and beguiling. It is quite animated and exciting music and music making. The music moves along relentlessly but it is never over driven. The slow movement is wonderfully atmospheric and sometimes wonderfully quirky or different. Lloyd certainly had different things to say and said them very eloquently as far as I am concerned. This is wonderful writing. The final movement is filled with drama and exuberance as it flits along with great forward momentum. I am not always a fan of composers conducting their own music but I feel that Lloyd is very successful here. There is a wonderful tone or voice emanating from the orchestration via the sonorities and scoring which is quite wonderful to experience. The conclusion is particularly wonderful!

J.Z. Herrenberg

Glad you enjoyed it so much. The Ninth is one of my favourite Lloyd symphonies. It's light, but not shallow, and it lifts the spirit!
Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything. -- Plato

aligreto

Your concise and accurate analysis is much more succinct than my verbose offering.  :)

J.Z. Herrenberg

#445
Quote from: aligreto on December 30, 2021, 12:37:40 PM
Your concise and accurate analysis is much more succinct than my verbose offering.  :)


A very pithy self-demolition.  ;)  Too harsh, though.


P.S. Lloyd's orchestral suite 'Charade' written a year later than the Ninth, inhabits the same stylistic world.



Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything. -- Plato

aligreto

Quote from: J.Z. Herrenberg on December 30, 2021, 08:23:27 PM

P.S. Lloyd's orchestral suite 'Charade' written a year later than the Ninth, inhabits the same stylistic world.

Yes, I had listened to 'Charade' early on in this odyssey and did enjoy it a lot.

aligreto

Lloyd: Symphony No. 10 [Stobart]





This is my first time hearing this work and it was not what I was expecting; but then I do not know what I was expecting.

After acclimatising to this sonic world I began, very quickly, to like what I was hearing. The first movement brought a smile to my face. There is something very pleasant and even a little cheeky about it. The second movement is much more contemplative and it is very engaging. The third movement is also very appealing and I particularly like the quirky nature of this music. I also like the restrained nature of the music; it could also equally have been explosive. The final movement also has plenty of musical ideas, wonderful textures and a very appealing atmosphere to it. I very much like the conclusion of the music. Listening to this work has been a very refreshing experience for me.

Roy Bland

Quote from: aligreto on January 11, 2022, 03:04:12 AM
Lloyd: Symphony No. 10 [Stobart]





This is my first time hearing this work and it was not what I was expecting; but then I do not know what I was expecting.

After acclimatising to this sonic world I began, very quickly, to like what I was hearing. The first movement brought a smile to my face. There is something very pleasant and even a little cheeky about it. The second movement is much more contemplative and it is very engaging. The third movement is also very appealing and I particularly like the quirky nature of this music. I also like the restrained nature of the music; it could also equally have been explosive. The final movement also has plenty of musical ideas, wonderful textures and a very appealing atmosphere to it. I very much like the conclusion of the music. Listening to this work has been a very refreshing experience for me.
Scarce sound quality  I prefer Albany

aligreto

Lloyd: Symphony No. 11 [Lloyd]




   
The opening movement is, for me, a display of the power, drive, orchestrational ability and strength of the musical language of the composer. His is a definite musical voice of its own.
There is a wonderful sense of atmosphere, tension and drama in this music. There is some quite intensely emotional music in the slow movement and it is given a wonderfully expansive reading here.
The third movement is a lively and airy, bright and cheerful affair. It does however have a slightly disconcerting undertone to it which adds aural interest.
The fourth movement is another slow one and it opens with a wonderfully menacing tone and this tone and atmosphere pervades this wonderfully lyrical movement. It had a wonderfully delicate conclusion, however.
I particularly like the opening sequences of the final movement where it opens with a brass fanfare. This is replicated on the strings and repeated and developed wonderfully. As the music progresses that disconcerting tone experienced earlier in the work returns and it is a constant presence. When played on the lower register instruments it is wonderfully menacing. This countered later by a celebratory theme which is relatively short lived. This sequence is then repeated. The music becomes very turbulent as we draw close to the conclusion but once again the tone changes to a celebratory one and the movement concludes on a very positive, assertive and buoyant note. This juxtaposition of contrasting moods and atmospheres is very engaging.
This is a very fine work indeed.

kyjo

Quote from: aligreto on January 20, 2022, 06:45:09 AM
Lloyd: Symphony No. 11 [Lloyd]




   
The opening movement is, for me, a display of the power, drive, orchestrational ability and strength of the musical language of the composer. His is a definite musical voice of its own.
There is a wonderful sense of atmosphere, tension and drama in this music. There is some quite intensely emotional music in the slow movement and it is given a wonderfully expansive reading here.
The third movement is a lively and airy, bright and cheerful affair. It does however have a slightly disconcerting undertone to it which adds aural interest.
The fourth movement is another slow one and it opens with a wonderfully menacing tone and this tone and atmosphere pervades this wonderfully lyrical movement. It had a wonderfully delicate conclusion, however.
I particularly like the opening sequences of the final movement where it opens with a brass fanfare. This is replicated on the strings and repeated and developed wonderfully. As the music progresses that disconcerting tone experienced earlier in the work returns and it is a constant presence. When played on the lower register instruments it is wonderfully menacing. This countered later by a celebratory theme which is relatively short lived. This sequence is then repeated. The music becomes very turbulent as we draw close to the conclusion but once again the tone changes to a celebratory one and the movement concludes on a very positive, assertive and buoyant note. This juxtaposition of contrasting moods and atmospheres is very engaging.
This is a very fine work indeed.

As always, I enjoy reading your impressions, Fergus! Lloyd's 11th is indeed a very fine work, even if there are some moments (particularly in the finale) which can lapse into banality/bombast. What's never in doubt is Lloyd's utter sincerity and his masterfully imaginative handling of orchestration (particularly the percussion section)!
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff

aligreto

Quote from: kyjo on January 20, 2022, 08:17:26 AM
As always, I enjoy reading your impressions, Fergus! Lloyd's 11th is indeed a very fine work, even if there are some moments (particularly in the finale) which can lapse into banality/bombast. What's never in doubt is Lloyd's utter sincerity and his masterfully imaginative handling of orchestration (particularly the percussion section)!

Cheers, Kyle. I regret very much that my inaugural exploration of these symphonies is almost complete.

kyjo

Quote from: aligreto on January 20, 2022, 11:09:33 AM
Cheers, Kyle. I regret very much that my inaugural exploration of these symphonies is almost complete.

Well, now you can look forward to revisiting this wonderful symphonic cycle in the future! ;)
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff

vandermolen

Quote from: aligreto on January 20, 2022, 06:45:09 AM
Lloyd: Symphony No. 11 [Lloyd]




   
The opening movement is, for me, a display of the power, drive, orchestrational ability and strength of the musical language of the composer. His is a definite musical voice of its own.
There is a wonderful sense of atmosphere, tension and drama in this music. There is some quite intensely emotional music in the slow movement and it is given a wonderfully expansive reading here.
The third movement is a lively and airy, bright and cheerful affair. It does however have a slightly disconcerting undertone to it which adds aural interest.
The fourth movement is another slow one and it opens with a wonderfully menacing tone and this tone and atmosphere pervades this wonderfully lyrical movement. It had a wonderfully delicate conclusion, however.
I particularly like the opening sequences of the final movement where it opens with a brass fanfare. This is replicated on the strings and repeated and developed wonderfully. As the music progresses that disconcerting tone experienced earlier in the work returns and it is a constant presence. When played on the lower register instruments it is wonderfully menacing. This countered later by a celebratory theme which is relatively short lived. This sequence is then repeated. The music becomes very turbulent as we draw close to the conclusion but once again the tone changes to a celebratory one and the movement concludes on a very positive, assertive and buoyant note. This juxtaposition of contrasting moods and atmospheres is very engaging.
This is a very fine work indeed.
Another fine review Fergus. This one reminds me, in places, of Khachaturian. It's the only one that I've heard live, conducted by GL himself at the Barbican in London.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

aligreto

Quote from: vandermolen on January 22, 2022, 12:03:11 AM
Another fine review Fergus. This one reminds me, in places, of Khachaturian. It's the only one that I've heard live, conducted by GL himself at the Barbican in London.

Cheers, Jeffrey. That must have been a fine occasion.

aligreto

Quote from: kyjo on January 21, 2022, 08:57:24 PM
Well, now you can look forward to revisiting this wonderful symphonic cycle in the future! ;)

That is certainly true, Kyle, but the wonder of the initial exposure can never really be replicated particularly when one has been so impressed. He has been a major "discovery" for me.

aligreto

Lloyd: Symphony No. 12 [Lloyd]





I have procrastinated for as long as I possibly can with regard to listening to this, the last of Lloyd's symphonies that I have not heard for the first time. I wanted to indulge in the anticipation for as long as I could prior to experiencing the actual [hopeful] pleasure. As it turned out, I was very happy indeed with what I heard.

I liked the very serene, if somewhat poignant opening. That disturbing, disconcerting underlying element is very engaging in the main theme. The juxtaposition of both of these elements is wonderfully explored in the subsequent and atmospheric variations.
Poignancy and lyricism are, for me, the main elements in the second movement. The music is broad and expansive and the scoring is wonderful. It is also very lovingly and delicately presented by the conductor/composer here. He really generates a wonderful atmosphere driving from descriptive feeling through tension and drama and then back again.
The final movement has its own, unique atmosphere and musical language to a large extent. The music is more animated and turbulent and Lloyd drives it all very well. This is sometimes dark, sometimes gay but always dramatic and engaging music. The conclusion, however, has a somewhat resigned and tragic sense to it for me.

J.Z. Herrenberg

Many thanks for this, and more generally, for sharing your Lloyd adventure. Time to listen to that final symphony again!
Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything. -- Plato

vandermolen

Quote from: aligreto on February 02, 2022, 07:54:42 AM
Lloyd: Symphony No. 12 [Lloyd]





I have procrastinated for as long as I possibly can with regard to listening to this, the last of Lloyd's symphonies that I have not heard for the first time. I wanted to indulge in the anticipation for as long as I could prior to experiencing the actual [hopeful] pleasure. As it turned out, I was very happy indeed with what I heard.

I liked the very serene, if somewhat poignant opening. That disturbing, disconcerting underlying element is very engaging in the main theme. The juxtaposition of both of these elements is wonderfully explored in the subsequent and atmospheric variations.
Poignancy and lyricism are, for me, the main elements in the second movement. The music is broad and expansive and the scoring is wonderful. It is also very lovingly and delicately presented by the conductor/composer here. He really generates a wonderful atmosphere driving from descriptive feeling through tension and drama and then back again.
The final movement has its own, unique atmosphere and musical language to a large extent. The music is more animated and turbulent and Lloyd drives it all very well. This is sometimes dark, sometimes gay but always dramatic and engaging music. The conclusion, however, has a somewhat resigned and tragic sense to it for me.
Nice review Fergus. I like the 11th and 12th symphonies in that series. No.12 is one of my favourites and you are right about the ending which is rather moving.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

aligreto

Quote from: J.Z. Herrenberg on February 02, 2022, 08:29:53 AM
Many thanks for this, and more generally, for sharing your Lloyd adventure. Time to listen to that final symphony again!

Thank you. I am pleased that you were happy enough to read the posts and to comment on them. I hope that my enjoyment of these works came through in the writing.