Frederick Delius

[Mirror Image]

The Groves set is superb. It really is! One of the best recordings of a choral work I have ever heard.Something to rave about!
I suppose I'm a bit of a curmudgeon in this respect,but I just don't think they make singers like that any more! But by all means by the Naxos set if you want to. Being a Naxos set,it won't cost the earth!

Groves is the best Mass I've heard. His Requiem isn't too shabby either.

[Mirror Image]

Holmes/Fenby, Little/Lane.

Here a nice interview with Tasmin Little about Delius:



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3653130/Sorry-but-Delius-isnt-soothing.html

Little/Lane is my favorite recording of the Violin Sonatas, though Holmes/Fenby is excellent. Thanks for this link, Johan, I just finished reading it. She's such an inspiring musician.

[Mirror Image]

Today, I've been stuck on two works Legende and Dance Rhapsody No. 2. Any one have any favorite performances of these works? I only know two recordings of Legende: Holmes/Handley and Graffin/Lloyd-Jones. There are several recordings of Dance Rhapsody No. 2. The one that has caught my ear is Fenby's with the Royal Philharmonic. A great performance all around. I think he brings out some textures, especially in the harp that is more subdued in other recordings I've heard.

[Mirror Image]

Was listening to Hassan yet again earlier and I'm really loving this work. It makes me wish Delius wrote more music for theatre. He was a natural!

[Mirror Image]

Eventyr

Not sure if I quote this All Music Guide write-up, but here it is:

With the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, Delius and his wife dithered over abandoning their home in the village of Grez, near Paris, before finally accepting Beecham's invitation to stay at either of his houses; Delius eschewed the London establishment for Watford. After an initial period of anxiety, he could confide in his publisher, Emil Hertzka (January 9, 1915) "...all goes well & I am working very much here as we are living in the country. In the next few months a good number of my works are to be performed here. I hope this terrible war will not last too long." In late February he was with Beecham at Manchester to hear Sea Drift, and on the 24th, the premiere of his Violin Sonata No. 1. The Piano Concerto and excerpts from A Village Romeo and Juliet figured on the program of the Hallé concerts in mid-March. Meanwhile, Delius settled down to work on his Requiem and An Arabesk, and made sketches for Eventyr. After a summer and fall sojourn in Norway, the Deliuses returned to Grez, though nothing more is heard of Eventyr until December 31, 1917, in a letter to his friend, conductor and composer Norman O'Neill, "For the last 16 days we have had arctic cold & cannot keep our house warm... -- I have just finished a new work 'Eventyr' after Asbørnsens [sic] fairy tales for Orchestra & have rather tired my eyes...." In fact, Delius was already in the grip of a syphilitic infection, contracted before the turn of the century, which by 1923 would leave him paralyzed and blind. There is no hint in Eventyr of the vicissitudes surrounding its composition, though -- as in those other works of Scandinavian inspiration, A Song of the High Hills and An Arabesk (both 1911) -- Delius' utterance has taken an astringently muscular turn. Peter Christen Asbjørnsen's collection of Norwegian folk tales and legends, published between 1842 and 1871, is the undisputed source for Eventyr (Once upon a time), but, as Felix Aprahamian noted, "It has been said that...Eventyr is not based on any particular story, but an attempt to convey in music something of the atmosphere of [the] tales. The music itself seems to disprove this, for, so vivid are its colours and contrasts, it hints at a programme as detailed as that of Strauss' Till Eulenspiegel." Eventyr is dedicated to Henry Wood, who conducted its premiere at Queen's Hall on January 11, 1919.

[Mirror Image]

I am a native of north Florida and have several recordings of Delius. This is my favorite Delius especially the Florida Suite. It is truly a great CD.
.

.
Delius based his Florida Suite, composed in 1887, on native American music and African-American spirituals. Dvorak's Symphony #9, From the New World, was composed after the Florida Suite in 1893. I believe that the Florida Suite is equally as delightful as Dvorak's symphony. The Florida Suite is influenced by the native music Delius heard while living on an orange grove near Jacksonville, Florida.

Could this be the first successful merging of African-American music with classical? Obviously, this predates jazz and Gershwin. It's just astounding to think of how original Delius was and how he took such disparate musical influences and merged them together to form a style unlike anything heard before or since. What an inspiring composer this man was and such an underrated master. His time may never come and he may never be fully appreciated, but thank goodness that I KNOW how incredible and innovative he was and that Fenby was right in saying that there will be only a few who truly love this music.

On another note, I've been reading Delius As I Knew Him by Fenby and have been loving every paragraph of this book. Such a fascinating insight into these last, rather bleak years of the composer's life.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

I think you mean 'disparate musical influences'... For the rest, we are in agreement. Delius, as a composer, is of 'mixed race' as it were, with English, German, French, Scandinavian and African-American strains all infusing his style. Being literally of mixed race myself, descended from slaves through my father, and culturally just as much a synthesizer as Delius was, I cannot help but feel in him a great forebear and - brother.

[Mirror Image]

I think you mean 'disparate musical influences'... For the rest, we are in agreement. Delius, as a composer, is of 'mixed race' as it were, with English, German, French, Scandinavian and African-American strains all infusing his style. Being literally of mixed race myself, descended from slaves through my father, and culturally just as much a synthesizer as Delius was, I cannot help but feel in him a great forebear and - brother.

Yes, I meant disparate. It was pretty late in night when I typed that out and I was tired. Not a good combination. Anyway, yes, he achieved such an unusual synthesis with all of these influences. I read a review on Amazon where the person said he sounded like Debussy. Umm...no he didn't. This is usually what somebody says who doesn't know his music too well. There is a constant yearning in Delius' music and the unique chromatic harmonies he used are completely singular to only him.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

I don't know whether Wilfred Mellers said it, or Christopher Palmer, or that I have handily conflated remarks made by both of them... but the difference between Debussy and Delius in their nature music is that Debussy's is devoid of humans (just as it is in Sibelius), whereas in Delius, because of his sensuality, and, yes, eroticism, nature is humanized. Who else could have composed a masterpiece about two loving birds!

[Mirror Image]

I don't know whether Wilfred Mellers said it, or Christopher Palmer, or that I have handily conflated remarks made by both of them... but the difference between Debussy and Delius in their nature music is that Debussy's is devoid of humans (just as it is in Sibelius), whereas in Delius, because of his sensuality, and, yes, eroticism, nature is humanized. Who else could have composed a masterpiece about two loving birds!

So true. What's your favorite performance of On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring, Johan? For me, Handley/LPO on Chandos hands down. The most lush, sensual account on record I know.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Well, John, ever since hearing Beecham's recording on BBC World Service, I found nothing could beat it. Although someone (John Amis to be exact, cilgwyn will know him...) dubbed it On Hearing the Last Cuckoo in Spring, because it is so melancholy. As a Handley fan I don't doubt his reading will be superb, but I haven't heard it yet.


Tonight I'm going to watch the Delius documentary... At last. Shall be reporting back.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

I just watched the documentary. What can I say? It was excellent, the best advertisement Delius could have, something to use for conversion attempts. It demonstrated definitively, as far as I am concerned, Delius's uniqueness and the incomparable beauty of his music. It had the perfect mix of the biographical and the technical, with an almost overpowering selection of choice snippets. I loved it from beginning to end. All the contributors had something to offer, with the only exception of Thomas Hampson, a great singer, but who only said two things, and those weren't very original. I also learned something about the Song of the High Hills I hadn't realised before - that the opening 'represents' a yearning upward towards a clearer view or sky, which is reached after much strenuous climbing. Being a citizen of a very flat country with an enormous sky, I had never visualised it in that way... So - a triumph!

[Leo K.]

So true. What's your favorite performance of On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring, Johan? For me, Handley/LPO on Chandos hands down. The most lush, sensual account on record I know.

I LOVE On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring, I'm at a loss for words about it.

[Mirror Image]

Excellent news, Johan! If that documentary doesn't make the case for Delius, I don't know what will. I thought the contributors had all something different and special to say. They weren't just sitting there tossing one cliche about after another, there was substance in their commentary. I loved those interview segments with Beecham. It was great to witness his wit and intelligence. They don't make conductors like that anymore! I enjoyed how actual works were discussed and commented on rather than simply in passing. When they all spoke about Paris: A Nocturne, they actually expressed an opinion of the music rather than to glaze over it with some superficial remark. Again, there was substance in this film. All in all, a total success and something I'm sure the Delius Society will continue promote and why shouldn't they? Delius deserves this royal treatment.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

They should put it on DVD with extras. I'd buy it.

[Mirror Image]

They should put it on DVD with extras. I'd buy it.

Me too...in a heartbeat.

[Mirror Image]

I LOVE On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring, I'm at a loss for words about it.

One of the most lyrical works of the 20th Century. A masterwork. Summer Night on the River is just as inspired. This is Delius in his mature idiom. Chromatic harmonies, haunting melodies, and superb orchestration. Do you have a favorite performance? As I mentioned, mine is definitely Handley/LPO on Chandos. It doesn't get much better than this for me.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

My last contribution before I turn in (it's almost 2am here) - in the documentary everyone is asked if Delius was an English composer? Christopher Palmer called him a cosmopolitan. I would say he is the first creator of world music.

[Mirror Image]

My last contribution before I turn in (it's almost 2am here) - in the documentary everyone is asked if Delius was an English composer? Christopher Palmer called him a cosmopolitan. I would say he is the first creator of world music.

Yes, a 'world music' composer is more like it. I don't think it's fair or even logical to call him an English composer, especially since Delius himself pretty much loathed England.

[Leo K.]

One of the most lyrical works of the 20th Century. A masterwork. Summer Night on the River is just as inspired. This is Delius in his mature idiom. Chromatic harmonies, haunting melodies, and superb orchestration. Do you have a favorite performance? As I mentioned, mine is definitely Handley/LPO on Chandos. It doesn't get much better than this for me.

Right now, it's Beecham, but more listens to all my versions could change that