John Ireland (1879-1962)

[Mark]

I must investigate.Thanks Mark.

Try this:

[lukeottevanger]

As I said on the old forum, those quartets are very nice indeed, but they are early works, and Ireland's mature style - which is the chief draw, for me - isn't there yet. I would strongly urge the Chandos chamber music set, plus Legend, the Piano Concerto and some of the piano pieces, on anyone trying to get a flavour of Ireland for the first time.

[Bonehelm]

I love his quartets. Symphonies though, I still prefer Mahler or Bruckner 

[Pierre]

I'm listening to Roderick Williams's new album of Ireland songs - absolutely beautiful. 'Summer Schemes' from Three Songs to Poems by Thomas Hardy is my current fave: a language clearly drawn from Ravel's early style (e.g. String Quartet), yet with an individual poignancy. Highly recommended:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/English-Song-18-Roderick-Williams/dp/B001716IYS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1215350941&sr=1-1

[vandermolen]

I'm listening to Roderick Williams's new album of Ireland songs - absolutely beautiful. 'Summer Schemes' from Three Songs to Poems by Thomas Hardy is my current fave: a language clearly drawn from Ravel's early style (e.g. String Quartet), yet with an individual poignancy. Highly recommended:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/English-Song-18-Roderick-Williams/dp/B001716IYS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1215350941&sr=1-1

Thanks for link Pierre. I heard Roderick Williams  give a fantastic performance as 'Pilgrim' in Vaughan Williams's 'Pilgrim's Progress' in London. The reviewer in the Times said that Roderick Williams's 'gave the performance of his life'. He is a great singer.

[Guido]

Somebody just sent me a link to this wonderful recording of the Cello Sonata played by the composer and Antoni Sala. Great stuff.

[vandermolen]

Interesting looking new release:

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2009/June09/Ireland_CDHLL7523.htm

[vandermolen]

Wanting to buy his Piano Concerto...should I go for the Parkin w/Thomson on Chandos, or Parkin w/Boult on Lyrita?

BBC Radio 3 chose Ireland's Piano Concerto for its comparative survey of recordings this morning.  The CD below was their No 1 choice (closely followed by the Hyperion recording (Piers Lane/David Lloyd-Jones) with the original Delius Piano Concerto). The Dutton CD is very good due to the excellent couplings:

[tjguitar]

I actually have the original release on Conifer. The new cover looks better though!

[mr_espansiva]

The best moment in the piano concerto is waiting for the single 'ding' on the triangle in the finale - perfect!

[Scarpia]

There was Ireland talk on the board and I decided to listen to the cello sonata again.  What a wonderful work.  The form of the work is a standard as it gets.  A yearning, searching first movement, a more tranquil, slow movement, a diabolical finale with moments a repose, with a group of themes and motifs pervading the entire structure.  But Ireland has such an individual voice, there is nothing standard or routine about the music itself.  After listening through I had to cue it up and listen a second time.  It is one of those pieces which has an "unfathomable" feel to it, which gives the impression that no matter how well you know it there is something yet to be discovered.

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[Mirror Image]

I like a few Ireland works, but I find most of his music uninspired.

[Luke]

You finding them uninspired doesn't mean that they are, though, of course

The recent Ireland talk stemmed from me, I'm afraid, an avid fan of his music. It's a small output, it's limted in range, there are similar moods and motives recurring very often. All that only deepens its appeal, to me. He is a composer of the strongest individuality - as I said on the WAYLT thread, he has one of the most immediately recognisable and personal styles of any composer I know, and that is something that I've always valued highly. For that reason I will always rate him extremely highly as a composer. When one factors in his utterly superb technique (he was as refined and fastidious a composer as Ravel, and in many ways is the closest British equivalent, I think, technically as well as in approach) and his often deeply inspired muse, the best of Ireland is as fine a thing as I can imagine. I listed the pieces I thought finest a day or two ago - they are mostly in the piano music and the chamber music; among the orchestral pieces the two concertante piano works stand head and shoulders above the rest.

But enough for now...

[karlhenning]

You finding them uninspired doesn't mean that they are, though, of course

The recent Ireland talk stemmed from me, I'm afraid, an avid fan of his music. It's a small output, it's limted in range, there are similar moods and motives recurring very often. All that only deepens its appeal, to me. He is a composer of the strongest individuality - as I saidn on the WAYLT thread, he has one of the most immediately recognisable and personal styles of any composer I know, and that is something that I've always valued highly. For that reason I will always rate him extremely highly as a composer. When one factors in his utterly superb technique (he was as refined and fastidious a composer as Ravel, and in many ways is the closest British equivalent, I think, technically as well as in approach) and his often deeply inspired muse, the best of Ireland is as fine a thing as I can imagine. I listed the pieces I thought finest a day or two ago - they are mostly in the piano music and the chamber music; among the orchestral pieces the two concertante piano works stand head and shoulders above the rest.

But enough for now...

I found that post so notable, I pulled the trigger on that Chandos disc with the pf cto

[Luke]

A very fine choice. I envy you hearing it for the first time!

My current Ireland binge has extended to me buying some of the books of Arthur Machen, who was a prfound influence on the composer, and on Legend in particular. I absolutely adore that work.

[Luke]

Somebody just sent me a link to this wonderful recording of the Cello Sonata played by the composer and Antoni Sala. Great stuff.

Just saw this - oddly enough, I was listening to that today. Agreed, the playing itself is wonderful, but I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who didn't already know and love the sonata - the recording is just awful, the piano distance and muffled, the cello too upfront and shrill, and because of this the whole work passes by as if on one level, climaxes going past almost unnoticed. The Chandos is the way to go, to start with...

[karlhenning]

. . . "My family originates from here". Like Woods, Hill, etc but less specific...

If you want odd names, check out some US athletes. One of them is called LaTasha Colander.

My family originated from there . . . .

[karlhenning]

Wow, was I disoriented about this composer!

. . . and I like him the better as I finds him!

[JerryS]

A very fine choice. I envy you hearing it for the first time!

My current Ireland binge has extended to me buying some of the books of Arthur Machen, who was a prfound influence on the composer, and on Legend in particular. I absolutely adore that work.

I first encountered Ireland through the Machen connection. Ireland is wonderful at conveying the mystical atmosphere so common in Machen's works. This collection (there are three volumes) contains Machen's most important short fiction.

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Add Machen's The Hill of Dreams  and you'll have an excellent collection. I wouldn't bother with the short novel  The Green Round.

[cilgwyn]

Don't forget 'The White People'!