Frederick Delius

[Mirror Image]

Come on,get out those old hissy,mono Beechams Mirror Image! You know you love 'em really!!

And while you're at it;for the full,authentic Beecham sound,why not invest in one of these? They're surprisingly cheap s/h;and as an added bonus,no worries about power cuts and you get to reduce your carbon footprint in one fell swoop!!

I would, but I don't own any Delius on LP. Perhaps one day.

Cross-posted from the 'Listening' thread -

Now:



Listening to Summer Night on the River. Kicking back, closing my eyes, I'm really on a boat on the river just passing along at a leisurely pace until an uneasy feeling flows through me and I feel a sudden chill from the wind. Now, I'm remembering some thoughts from past that leave me quite unrestful and even a bit nervous. This is what I get from this piece. It's as if Delius is reminiscing with us and offering a haunting glimpse of his past perhaps on the river during his early years in Florida.

What do you other Delians make of this work? What message do you think it's trying to convey? A clue for me is that rather gloomy, and eerie, ending.

[J]

Deleted post from J:

Thought I missed this one didn't you? Don't worry I caught it before you deleted it. I will say that 95% you're absolutely right that it's hard to beat the 'old masters' in Delius, but couldn't we say the same thing about so many other composers? I mean I could say "Ah, there will never be a conductor as good as Barbirolli in Elgar again," but the reality is there have been many fine modern conductors in Elgar just as there have been for Delius. Despite your unenthusiastic opinion of Andrew Davis' Delius, which I have to agree that his Appalachia was completely abysmal, on the same recording, he did a fantastic Song of the High Hills. Also on his next Delius installment for Chandos, he conducted a scorching Paris, but I wasn't impressed with the performance of Piano Concerto with Howard Shelley. I still think Philip Fowke has all others beat with maybe Piers Lane coming in a distant second place. Anyway, my point is that while it's true that it seems that the great Delius performances are long gone, I'm not going to keep my ears closed off to the possibility that there will be a great performance forthcoming in the future. After all, this is the future of the composer we're talking about and the only way to bring his music into the 21st Century is to continue to put recordings out of his music. Yes, the 'good old days' are long gone, but I'm not going to completely close myself off to that possible future.

Sneaky of you, yes.  But you're right, I think, - which is why I reconsidered.  One shouldn't want the performance and recording of Delius to become merely a museum display, but rather remain a continuously unfolding living tradition, - though I'm getting old enough now myself to find my attention and loyalties mostly drawn to what's already been done.  I buy and listen to the new stuff that comes along (Holten, Davis, the Naxos & Dutton Epoch discs),  but none of it so far suggests to me these commitments are at all hidebound or misplaced.  I'll admit, however, to never responding very positively to Andrew Davis in anything, and so by now have a cordial bias against that gentleman, - from my perspective the worst of all possible choices for a Chandos series (except perhaps Neemi Jarvi).   Who in the Chandos stable might I prefer?  I don't know.  The loss of Handley, Hickox, and Thomson was devastating for them.   

[Mirror Image]

Sneaky of you, yes.  But you're right, I think, - which is why I reconsidered.  One shouldn't want the performance and recording of Delius to become merely a museum display, but rather remain a continuously unfolding living tradition, - though I'm getting old enough now myself to find my attention and loyalties mostly drawn to what's already been done.  I buy and listen to the new stuff that comes along (Holten, Davis, the Naxos & Dutton Epoch discs),  but none of it so far suggests to me these commitments are at all hidebound or misplaced.  I'll admit, however, to never responding very positively to Andrew Davis in anything, and so by now have a cordial bias against that gentleman, - from my perspective the worst of all possible choices for a Chandos series (except perhaps Neemi Jarvi).   Who in the Chandos stable might I prefer?  I don't know.  The loss of Handley, Hickox, and Thomson was devastating for them.

The reality is there just doesn't seem to be that many conductors interested in Delius' music now with the exception of Holten, Davis, Elder, and Lloyd-Jones. Hopefully, there's another Delian that will emerge from the woodwork to give us a completely new idea on how Delius should sound. Again, my ears are open for whatever comes my way in new recordings.

[cilgwyn]

I see John France calling Eventyr a masterpiece in a Musicweb review of the new Chandos cd,Delius in Norway.
Up there now for anyone who hasn't read it!

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

http://musicb3.wordpress.com/2014/06/06/in-defence-of-delius-introducing-the-deryck-cooke-delius-bibliography/

This might be of interest to the Delians on this board...

[J]

Interesting, yes.  I knew of Cooke's enthusiasm, but hadn't before now read his essay "Delius the Unknown".  It has me believing Cooke could have written the philosophically and psychologically perspicacious study of Delius I've always wished for (as complement to Christopher Palmer's excellent but more musicologically oriented treatment).  In the combination of tough-minded and almost fanatical rationalistic atheism (Delius the man) with a sensitive and yielding all but pantheistic nature mysticism (Delius the composer) he remains an enigma to me.  Nietzsche, of course, is crucial, - set within the 19th century background of European man's progressive loss of faith.  Though hints and incidental reflections abound in the literature, no one up to now has really unpacked in a careful, coherent, and comprehensive way how historical setting and outer influences combined with inner unfolding and creative engagement to make Delius and his music what they are, - and their apparent incongruity less perplexing.  It will probably never happen.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Well said. Yes, Delius is enigmatic in his combination of unbelief and an almost religious feeking for nature. And that his amanuensis, who enabled him to give several works to the world that without him would never have seen the light of day, was a staunch Catholic makes it even more puzzling... Just like you, I fear that no-one in future will try or will be willing to unpack this.

[Mirror Image]

I'M BACK!!!!

[kishnevi]

Quick!  Someone get some Genesis onto his CD player!

[Mirror Image]

Quick!  Someone get some Genesis onto his CD player!

Lol...

[J]

I'M BACK!!!!

Meaning what?  Back to Delius?

Somewhere you disparaged the composer as merely a passing enthusiasm that had run its course, - saying you'd returned to the more tough-minded circle reflecting enduring temperamental affinities.

Can we ever welcome you into the inner sanctum here again? 

It's questionable.

[Mirror Image]

Meaning what?  Back to Delius?

Somewhere you disparaged the composer as merely a passing enthusiasm that had run its course, - saying you'd returned to the more tough-minded circle reflecting enduring temperamental affinities.

Can we ever welcome you into the inner sanctum here again? 

It's questionable.

Welcome me into the 'inner sanctum'? This isn't a secret club, J. This is a composer. I have a complicated history with the composer, but there's one thing that rings true throughout the discourse: I was enchanted with his music the first time I heard it and, according to Fenby, this is enough. This is the test.

[Mirror Image]

Plus, you can read all of my posts about Delius over the past few years, I'm not sure why I let negative opinion rule my own thinking? I simply listened to the naysayers when I should have trusted my own thoughts and opinions to begin with.

[Mirror Image]

For those that missed it, I wrote a review of the Handley recording of Florida Suite and North Country Sketches via Amazon -

Let me first say that it still amazes me after all of these years Delius' music is found unfashionable and tedious to many listeners, but there are still many of us out there that consider him one of the greatest of the 20th Century. One reason why some listeners have trouble with Delius I suppose comes from the fact that his music doesn't follow an formal guidelines. In other words, it's quite a stream-of-consciousness, rhapsodic type of compositional style that doesn't quite quite give itself to listeners so easily and from what I've read this music is quite difficult to pull off well. But one of the most important aspects in Delius' music is the shaping of the musical line and, with this in mind, his music needs a completely sympathetic conductor and one that understands his harmonic language. This is where Vernon Handley steps in.

There is no shortage of performances of either of these works. They have been performed by Hickox, Groves, Mackerras, Beecham, Lloyd-Jones, Holten, etc. What makes these particular performances stand out for me is Handley's excellent attention to, again, the musical line in the music. Many Delius conductors have a tendency to wallow in the lushness of the music, which I suppose can be beautiful in some ways, but this music needs a conductor to give it some kind of shape and form which Handley excels at doing. Both performances of "Florida Suite" and "North Country Sketches" are given outstanding performances from the Ulster Orchestra. The sound is top-notch. This recording was released in 1986.

A little about each work:

Florida Suite -

This work was composed around 1887 I believe during his conservatory days in Leipzig and it's an early work of Delius' when he was still under the influence of Grieg, Chopin, and Wagner, but what makes this unmistakably Delian is it's incorporation of Negro folk melodies and the overall bluesy quality of some of the musical phrasings like the "Near the Plantation" movement for example. This type of innovation predates Gershwin, Jazz, and is something that Delius is never given credit for. Also, this work predated Dvorak's famous "Symphony No. 9, From the New World" by some six years with it's blending of "American" folk music, although Dvorak never actually quoted Native American music in his symphony. What makes the "Florida Suite" stand besides the inventiveness of its' fusion of desperate musical elements is the sheer beauty and simplicity of that the entire work projects to the listener. Some may find this work trite or whatever criticism they want to throw at it, but I think these are the same people that don't want to accept the music's ingenuity.

North Country Sketches -

Composed in 1914, and clearly in Delius' mature style, this particular work was written on the outbreak of World War I and there's a certain understated sadness to this work to my ears. Each movement represents, in my own view, a different time of the year and the movements are as follows:

1. Autumn
2. Winter Landscape
3. Dance
4. The March of Spring

For me, this one of Delius' finest orchestral works. The orchestration is unbelievably good and the "Winter Landscape" movement in particular captures the season's coldness and gives the impression of a desolate landscape where only the icy chill of the wind can give you a feeling of life. The first movement "Autumn" is just gorgeous with lush harmonies and towards the end some modulations that hint at the "Winter Landscape" movement. "Dance" is a fun movement and I think it exemplifies summertime. The heat from the sun isn't far off and people enjoying themselves outside at a dance party of some kind could be what's implied by this movement. The last movement "The March of Spring" is pretty much what the title suggests: spring is here again. Embrace life and live it with passion. "North Country Sketches" contains some absolutely beautiful harmonies, melodies, rhythms, and I really think it gives the listener another feel for the mastery Delius had over the orchestra.

For the new Delius listener, this is a highly recommendable recording. Most long-time Delians will already have these performances in their collection or at least I hope they do!

[Mirror Image]

Now, I don't think a person who doesn't like Delius' music could have written this review.

[Mirror Image]

Here's an interesting upcoming November release from MTT/San Francisco SO:



Features Delius' On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring. This may very well be the only time I've heard of MTT conducting any Delius.

[cilgwyn]

Let's hope this is the start of a trend! Going back further in time I note that there is a cd available from Sony of Ormandy conducting Delius and Vaughan Williams. Delius getting the 'Philadephia sound'! Has anyone heard this I wonder? If it was an all Delius cd I would have bought a copy by now. Not that I don't like VW,of course!
North Country Sketches is probably my favourite orchestral work by Delius if I had to pick one!  I particularly like Beecham's recording on Sony. The mono sound,very good for it's time,seems to add to the feeling of mystery,bleakness and remoteness evoked by parts of this work. Beecham's feeling for the ebb and flow and atmosphere of the piece more than compensates for the mono sound,I might add. For a stereo recording I like the Mackerras recording;although I have to break ranks here and admit that my favourite stereo recording is the emi Groves which isn't usually rated by Delians at all! I like the couplings too. The fact that the Groves recording was the first one I ever heard of this piece might have something to do with it,of course!

[Mirror Image]

Let's hope this is the start of a trend! Going back further in time I note that there is a cd available from Sony of Ormandy conducting Delius and Vaughan Williams. Delius getting the 'Philadephia sound'! Has anyone heard this I wonder? If it was an all Delius cd I would have bought a copy by now. Not that I don't like VW,of course!
North Country Sketches is probably my favourite orchestral work by Delius if I had to pick one!  I particularly like Beecham's recording on Sony. The mono sound,very good for it's time,seems to add to the feeling of mystery,bleakness and remoteness evoked by parts of this work. Beecham's feeling for the ebb and flow and atmosphere of the piece more than compensates for the mono sound,I might add. For a stereo recording I like the Mackerras recording;although I have to break ranks here and admit that my favourite stereo recording is the emi Groves which isn't usually rated by Delians at all! I like the couplings too. The fact that the Groves recording was the first one I ever heard of this piece might have something to do with it,of course!

I hope this MTT recording does signal more conductors to look at the composer's work. I have that Delius/RVW Ormandy disc but it's been ages since I've listened to it. It must not have made much of an impression on me because I don't remember the performances. North Country Sketches is a fine work indeed. I recall several fine performances like Hickox, Handley, and Mackerras. I think I even enjoyed that Groves performance (I believe it's in the 150th Anniversary set on EMI). Another great work that deserves a modern update is Hassan. Are you familiar with this one, cilgwyn? The only stereo performance of the work in its entirety is Handley's on EMI.

[Karl Henning]

Quick!  Someone get some Genesis onto his CD player!

"I know what I like . . . ."

[cilgwyn]

I hope this MTT recording does signal more conductors to look at the composer's work. I have that Delius/RVW Ormandy disc but it's been ages since I've listened to it. It must not have made much of an impression on me because I don't remember the performances. North Country Sketches is a fine work indeed. I recall several fine performances like Hickox, Handley, and Mackerras. I think I even enjoyed that Groves performance (I believe it's in the 150th Anniversary set on EMI). Another great work that deserves a modern update is Hassan. Are you familiar with this one, cilgwyn? The only stereo performance of the work in its entirety is Handley's on EMI.

I have the Beecham performance of Hassan. Reasonably priced s/h copies of the Handley cd appear to be as rare as the proverbial hens teeth! Most of the time it's not even available at all. Currently the only copy on Amazon is ex-library. I suppose everyone wants to hold onto the copy they've got!