The British Composers Thread

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

There's also a sister organization, the PMS Consort, which specializes in early music, especially music in menstrual notation from manuscripts like the Ivrea Kotex.

[lukeottevanger]

Dame Ethel would not be amused. Though I'm now having terrible thoughts about that famous story of her conducting with a toothbrush...

[Dundonnell]

There's also a sister organization, the PMS Consort, which specializes in early music, especially music in menstrual notation from manuscripts like the Ivrea Kotex.

Don't understand    Don't want to understand

[vandermolen]

Dame Ethel would not be amused. Though I'm now having terrible thoughts about that famous story of her conducting with a toothbrush...

Quote from the spirit of Dame Ethel  0:)

"We are not amused"

[vandermolen]

BBC Music Magazine has a nice CD of "Visions of England" this month featuring Delius's Brigg Fair, VW's On Wenlock Edge, Butterworth's Six Songs from A Shropshire Lad and Finzi's Let Us Garlands Bring.

[vandermolen]

Is anyone familiar with Rebecca Clarke's music? I just heard her Viola Sonata and I am just bowled over by the brilliance of this work. Utterly fantastic - by turns lyrical, passionate, vibrant and nostalgic this must surely rank amng the best viola sonatas out there... I have just seen that there is a cello verson too. Must get onto that and also the Rhapsody for cello and piano...

Morpheus for viola and piano is a beautiful celtic/impressionistic sounding lament. I also have heard the lovely Passacaglia on a an old English Theme for cello and piano.

I cannot recommend these piece enough - I love making discoveries like this!

On 11th November I went to an Armistice day recital of war-poetry/prose and music given at a local arts centre. In fact I only went as the violinist of the trio performing is a friend of my wife. However, I enjoyed what turned out to be a very moving evening which ended with 'The Last Post' played beautifully on a solo cello. There was some interesting music including the last movement of Shostakovich's Piano Quintet, the slow movement of Stanford's Piano Trio No 3 and an especially beautiful piece by Rebecca Clarke-the slow movement of her Piano Trio (1921). I liked this so much that I dashed out (as one does) to buy the recording of this work on ASV. Very strongly recommended.

I have just noticed that it is snowing here 

[drogulus]

     At a Spectrum Singers concert last night I heard the Hymn for St. Cecelia by Herbert Howells from a poem by Ursula Vaughan Williams. It was extraordinarily beautiful with more than a little resemblance to something RVW might have written himself. I also heard the Hymn to St. Cecelia by Britten with an Auden text, and works by American composers Daniel Pinkham and Norman Della Joio, along with interludes consisting of Gabrieli and carols from various composers. It was altogether a pretty satisfying and substantial night of highly varied music, worth going out in the cold to hear.

[Kuhlau]

BBC Music Magazine has a nice CD of "Visions of England" this month featuring Delius's Brigg Fair, VW's On Wenlock Edge, Butterworth's Six Songs from A Shropshire Lad and Finzi's Let Us Garlands Bring.

Very much enjoyed that disc. Not the best interpretation of On Wenlock Edge, but the Butterworth songs are rather moving.

FK

[vandermolen]

Very much enjoyed that disc. Not the best interpretation of On Wenlock Edge, but the Butterworth songs are rather moving.

FK

Yes, I agree. It was an enjoyable disc.

[schweitzeralan]

I figured that, as we had a thread similar to this on the old forum (it was restricted to the 20th century, but I'm throwing this one wide open), we ought to have one here. So feel free to discuss works and recordings by and of:

Alwyn
Arne
Arnold
Bainton
Bantock
Bax
Bliss
Boughton
Bridge
Britten
Byrd
Clark
Delius
Dunstable
Elgar
Field (we'll admit this one)
Finzi
Handel (we'll admit this one, too)
Gurney
Harty
Holst
Howells
Ireland
Litolff
MacMillan
Moeran
Mundy
Nyman (yes, he counts )
Parry
Purcell
Quilter
Rawsthorne
Rodney Bennett
Rubbra
Somervell
Stanford
Sullivan
Tallis
Tavener (the long-haired one)
Taverner (the long-dead one)
Tippett
Tye
Vaughan Williams
Walton

... and Warlock (to name but a few from my own shelves*).




* Yes, I'm well aware this list isn't exhaustive.

So many fine British composers, so much available on  litanies of recordings. I owe it initially to Chandos (plus a few other companies, to be sure) which exposed me to all the symphonies of Bax way back in the sixties. For years I could never communicate with friends or colleagues on the value and seriousness of so many British composers.  Obviously there's interest out there who many not necessarily be conservatory graduates.  Thank the gods for classical music on CD's.

[The new erato]

I like Boyce and Blow, to mention two lacking from the initial list. Blows Venus and Adonis is a delightful little masterpiece.

[Maciek]

Blows Venus and Adonis

Omitting that apostrophe seems wrong somehow.

[The new erato]

Omitting that apostrophe seems wrong somehow.

Good one,  - though it would be worse if it were Blows Adonis and Venus, not to mention Suks version.   

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Naughty Erato... 

[Dundonnell]

Shame on you all

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Shame on you all

But I was planning to call Erato Erota.  0:)

[Maciek]

Ah, you showed admirable self-restraint then!

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Three cheers for Frederick Delius and Havergal Brian (it's their birthday)!

[Lilas Pastia]

But I was planning to call Erato Erota.  0:)

Reminds me of a line in Thomas Mann's Zauberberg: Maroussia, one of the characters of the novel refers to Beethoven's "erotische sinfonie" 

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Reminds me of a line in Thomas Mann's Zauberberg: Maroussia, one of the characters of the novel refers to Beethoven's "erotische sinfonie" 

"Sinfonia Erotica"