The British Composers Thread

Started by Mark, October 25, 2007, 12:26:56 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 5 Guests are viewing this topic.

Roy Bland


Roasted Swan

I've recently come across a score of "Tristis" for String Orchestra by the composer Frederick Laurence.  As the title suggests its a mournful little piece copyrighted in 1919 so perhaps some kind of memorial for WWI.  Henry Wood thought well enough of it to play it at 5 Proms Seasons in a row 1919-1923 ...... and then it was never heard of again!  A blog about silent movies mentions Laurence's name as arranger of music for a specific film but more intriguingly as "Eugene Goossens' brother-in-law".  Another web page elaborates more;

"Marie, the last to leave the family nest, married Frederick Laurence, a steady and unpretentious man ten years older than she. Frederick started his career as a composer and musical advisor to EMI, but his primary employment was as librarian of the Proms and personnel manager for the Royal Philharmonic and the London Philharmonic."

So perhaps as Proms Librarian Wood was just doing Laurence a favour....?

Roasted Swan

Another interesting score I got hold of recently is Julius Harrison's Cornish Holiday Sketches.  This is a very interesting mid/small-scale work for string orchestra that Harrison wrote in 1938.  Essentially its quite a light-hearted work but beautifully crafted.  The premise is Harrison conceived a simple theme (apparently on a tin whistle during the family holiday!) and then there follows 12 variations and a hornpipe finale (rather Grainger-esque the latter) which depict people and events from the holiday.  So a couple of the Variation titles are; "Kynance Surf" or "The Lady Angela".  It plays continuously for around 12 minutes and is musically interesting.  Not horribly hard but not trite either.  As far as I know - certainly in recent years - there has been no recording/performance but its a piece well-worth having in a string orchestra's repertoire.  Just about the only recording of Harrison is on a Dutton disc which is shared with Hubert Clifford's Serenade for Strings

[img=250x250]https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSgjHsHDPgiUMOZOuWsvC1tc4WFYdlC0SbdPth6f2hOlAJHVlus1WQh73z6MYmSqV4Kmhc&usqp=CAU[/img]

Harrison was mainly known as a conductor so his composition catalogue is relatively small but "Bredon Hill" on this disc and the lush "Prelude Music" both included on this disc are well worth getting to know if you like Bristish music.

Luke

#1243
There's a bit in my book about him, for Bredon Hill, which I paid a visit to because of him. He actually knew the place, which he could see from his window, as opposed to those whose connection with it comes via their Housman settings.

Albion

Quote from: Roasted Swan on March 10, 2023, 11:08:24 PMJust about the only recording of Harrison is on a Dutton disc which is shared with Hubert Clifford's Serenade for Strings



Harrison was mainly known as a conductor so his composition catalogue is relatively small but "Bredon Hill" on this disc and the lush "Prelude Music" both included on this disc are well worth getting to know if you like British music.

Apologies for the sound quality, but here is Julius Harrison's large-scale Mass in C (1936-47), just try to listen through the murk...

https://www.mediafire.com/file/84dglw239gcfamd/Harrison%252C_Julius_-_Mass_in_C_%25281936-47%2529.mp3/file

:)

A piece is worth your attention, and is itself for you praiseworthy, if it makes you feel you have not wasted your time over it. (SG, 1922)

Roasted Swan

The third and final unknown composer/work for strings that I have uneartherd recently is Colin Taylor's "Prelude and Sarabande for String Orchestra".  Taylor was a name completely unknown to me until very recently when his name appears frequently as the school music teacher and later friend, mentor and correspondent of Philip Hesltine aka Peter Warlock. 

Hard to find much/any biographical detail about Taylor although the end of the score is marked "Colin Taylor - University of Capetown".  The piece is quite interesting - part of the "oxford Orchestral Series" mainly aimed at student/amateur groups.  The writing is fairly straightforward but suddenly with really quite "clashy" harmony.  There are a couple of misprints elsewhere in the score so I do wonder if some of the clashes are typos!.  But another example of a slight but rather nice piece completely lost to posterity.....

vers la flamme

Just started reading this;



So far, it's a very thorough survey of English music of the last century. Aficionados of this stuff will surely note that some of their favorite composers are not covered in the survey, which, given that some 60 composers are mentioned in depth in this massive book, says something about how fruitful English music was in this era. A cool read so far.

Roasted Swan

Quote from: vers la flamme on March 16, 2023, 03:04:14 AMJust started reading this;



So far, it's a very thorough survey of English music of the last century. Aficionados of this stuff will surely note that some of their favorite composers are not covered in the survey, which, given that some 60 composers are mentioned in depth in this massive book, says something about how fruitful English music was in this era. A cool read so far.

I've read this book and within its remit it is pretty good.  I would say that remit is as a "digest"  of key biographical and musical information about the chosen composers.  Smith has very little new to say about any of the composers or their music and certainly I don't think he has (neither does he claim to) conducted any primary source research.  The content has all been gleaned from existing biographies/recordings.  It is noticeable with some of the rarer composers he only references music that has appeared commercially recorded.

His choices are pretty centrist - I'm not worried if Composer "A" is in the Top 10 list or not or if composer "Z" is not there at all (although including Andrew Downes but not Eric Coates for example IS a head-scratcher!).  Any compilation like this will always include/miss out contributions others might have done differently.  For me as a book it is most useful to pull off the shelf and read a quick 10 page "refresher" about a particular composer.  By that measure it does a good job.

Albion

Quote from: vers la flamme on March 16, 2023, 03:04:14 AMJust started reading this;



So far, it's a very thorough survey of English music of the last century. Aficionados of this stuff will surely note that some of their favorite composers are not covered in the survey, which, given that some 60 composers are mentioned in depth in this massive book, says something about how fruitful English music was in this era. A cool read so far.

Loving the title!

;D  ;D  ;D

When it comes to British music of the 20th century it's just impossible to take in the sheer depth and range. Even if you know the usual culprits Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Holst, Walton and Britten, there is just such an amazing musical mountain to climb: Bantock, Walford Davies, Coleridge-Taylor, Rootham, Hurlstone, Havergal Brian, Holbrooke, Boughton, Scott, Foulds, Bax, Dyson, Bowen, Bliss, Howells, Moeran, etc. and we're not even into those born post-1900. I sit in a room without shelves and just surround myself with tottering piles of CDs which frequently collapse, but when they do I generally discover discs which I didn't even remember that I had: this repertoire is enormous...

 :o
A piece is worth your attention, and is itself for you praiseworthy, if it makes you feel you have not wasted your time over it. (SG, 1922)

foxandpeng

Quote from: Albion on March 16, 2023, 04:08:00 AMLoving the title!

;D  ;D  ;D

When it comes to British music of the 20th century it's just impossible to take in the sheer depth and range. Even if you know the usual culprits Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Holst, Walton and Britten, there is just such an amazing musical mountain to climb: Bantock, Walford Davies, Coleridge-Taylor, Rootham, Hurlstone, Havergal Brian, Holbrooke, Boughton, Scott, Foulds, Bax, Dyson, Bowen, Bliss, Howells, Moeran, etc. and we're not even into those born post-1900. I sit in a room without shelves and just surround myself with tottering piles of CDs which frequently collapse, but when they do I generally discover discs which I didn't even remember that I had: this repertoire is enormous...

 :o

Not only enormous, but also the richest musical heritage in the world.

*grins cheekily*
"A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people ... then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one's neighbour — such is my idea of happiness"

Tolstoy

Roasted Swan

Quote from: foxandpeng on March 16, 2023, 09:34:03 AMNot only enormous, but also the richest musical heritage in the world.

*grins cheekily*

Discuss.......!

Pohjolas Daughter

Quote from: foxandpeng on March 16, 2023, 09:34:03 AMNot only enormous, but also the richest musical heritage in the world.

*grins cheekily*
Not a tad biased are we?  ;D  ;)

PD
Pohjolas Daughter

foxandpeng

Quote from: Pohjolas Daughter on March 16, 2023, 09:51:55 AMNot a tad biased are we?  ;D  ;)

PD

Well.... maybe.... a little...

Not that I expect anyone to agree 😁

🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

"A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people ... then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one's neighbour — such is my idea of happiness"

Tolstoy

Luke

Quote from: foxandpeng on March 16, 2023, 09:34:03 AMNot only enormous, but also the richest musical heritage in the world.

*grins cheekily*

That might be a cheeky grin but I'm not entirely sure your statement is misplaced. The variety, range, individuality and idiosyncrasy of musical expression emanating from what is after all a relatively small island, once the tap was opened is really quite astonishing.

foxandpeng

Quote from: Luke on March 16, 2023, 11:00:58 AMThat might be a cheeky grin but I'm not entirely sure your statement is misplaced. The variety, range, individuality and idiosyncrasy of musical expression emanating from what is after all a relatively small island, once the tap was opened is really quite astonishing.

Probably a debate for better men than me 😁
"A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people ... then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one's neighbour — such is my idea of happiness"

Tolstoy

San Antone

Has Ronald Corp been mentioned here? 

I have been listening to two recordings of his music by the Maggini Quartet and finding them interesting.  Prior to this he was unknown to me. I have since learned that he is a chorall conductor as well as integral with the New London Orchestra and the London Choral Society.

I mentioned elsewhere how impressed I am with the Maggini Quartet's series of recordings of 20th century British works.

Maestro267

"Das Land ohne Musik" turned out to be pretty false, didn't it?

vandermolen

Quote from: San Antone on March 16, 2023, 12:21:58 PMHas Ronald Corp been mentioned here? 

I have been listening to two recordings of his music by the Maggini Quartet and finding them interesting.  Prior to this he was unknown to me. I have since learned that he is a chorall conductor as well as integral with the New London Orchestra and the London Choral Society.

I mentioned elsewhere how impressed I am with the Maggini Quartet's series of recordings of 20th century British works.
I recall enjoying this CD:
"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).

relm1

Quote from: vandermolen on March 16, 2023, 01:59:16 PMI recall enjoying this CD:

Agreed, I've enjoyed everything I've heard of his.

This album is very good.

Albion

An impressive choral work by Arthur Oldham (1926-2003), "Psalms in Time of War" (1977). Proving that tonal music had (and still has) a lot to say despite the wonders of atonalism, aleatorics and electronics (I love much of the latter stuff but only on a wet Thursday). There's a place for everything (in spite of the horrors of the William Glock dictatorial regime at the BBC during which he bored several Proms audiences to death as punters were scooped up from the gutters outside the Royal Albert Hall having committed mass suicide) and nothing is out-dated if it speaks...


https://www.mediafire.com/file/d2eqahe0g00k9v9/Oldham_-_Psalms_in_Time_of_War_%25281977%2529.mp3/file

 8)
A piece is worth your attention, and is itself for you praiseworthy, if it makes you feel you have not wasted your time over it. (SG, 1922)