William Alwyn

[vandermolen]

A great selection. I might suggest before moving on give Mrs Alwyn aka Doreen Carwithen a listen. A Chandos CD of her Piano Concerto amongst other pieces is excellent.

+1

[Daverz]

Lyra Angelica is lovely and would be a lot better known if it were by Ravel or Poulenc. Probably as good as any harp concerto out there, which isn't admittedly a crowded field. But I suppose that's my point - I struggle to say how it sounds like Alwyn more than like Ravel, just as I struggle to say how the symphonies sound more like Alwyn than late Vaughan Williams, or Malcolm Arnold.

It doesn't sound like Ravel to me.  Does this struggle really affect your enjoyment of the music? 

[vandermolen]

I think that Alwyn has quite a distinct style. Although quite different, the composer that he reminds me of a bit is Bax. I think that because he composed a lot of film music and that works like Symphony No.1 (which I enjoy greatly) sound quite 'filmic' has lead to some disparagement of his concert music. Personally I've never regarded the fact that a symphony, for example, sounds like film music as criticism. Also I don't think that Alwyn sounds like late VW or Arnold.

[Maestro267]

Bax sounds far more like Ravel than Alwyn does, to me personally. If anything, Alwyn sounds a bit like Walton to me. Not that comparison with other composers should dissuade anyone from listening to and enjoying Alwyn's music on its own terms.

[vandermolen]

Bax sounds far more like Ravel than Alwyn does, to me personally. If anything, Alwyn sounds a bit like Walton to me. Not that comparison with other composers should dissuade anyone from listening to and enjoying Alwyn's music on its own terms.

Yes, I think that you're right about the Alwyn/Walton comparison.

[springrite]

Yes, I think that you're right about the Alwyn/Walton comparison.

A slightly less imperialistic-sounding Walton...

[vandermolen]

A slightly less imperialistic-sounding Walton...

Also true.

[Irons]

A slightly less imperialistic-sounding Walton...

Made me smile and is actually true.

[kyjo]

I'd say Alwyn is the love-child of Bax and Walton!

Although I enjoy Alwyn's music a good deal, I can sympathize with Figaro's view. IMO his music doesn't really have that instantly recognizable stamp that VW, Walton, Britten, Bax, Arnold, Lloyd, and Tippett have. That's, of course, not to say that he didn't write some powerful, beautiful music. My favorites of his are the Symphonies 2 and 3, Lyra Angelica, PC no. 2, VC, and the opera Miss Julie.

[Symphonic Addict]

I don't need that a composer has to have a super distinctive voice to find him/her great or enjoyable. I love Alwyn's music. The last works I heard from him were the string quartets, and quite rewarding they are. Not easy music most of them, but eventually they have substance and intrigued me a lot. Other works that are not mentioned yet I like are the 3 Concerti Grossi and the Elizabethan Dances.

[Symphonic Addict]

I'd say Alwyn is the love-child of Bax and Walton!

I also hear bits of VW in some works.

[kyjo]

I don't need that a composer has to have a super distinctive voice to find him/her great or enjoyable.

I agree. In fact, it's sometimes the case that when certain composers have a very distinctive style, their music can become somewhat predictable to me, especially when I listen to it often.

[aligreto]

Cross post from the Film Music Thread


Alwyn: Film Music [Hickox]





This is actually my first introduction to this composer. I am impressed thus far with his orchestration skills.

I will read this thread as a precursor to further exploration of this composer.

[vandermolen]

Cross post from the Film Music Thread


Alwyn: Film Music [Hickox]





This is actually my first introduction to this composer. I am impressed thus far with his orchestration skills.

I will read this thread as a precursor to further exploration of this composer.

'Odd Man Out' is a magnificent score Fergus. I consider it to be one of Alwyn's finest works. There is a kind of 'doomed processional' about it which I find very moving.

[aligreto]

'Odd Man Out' is a magnificent score Fergus. I consider it to be one of Alwyn's finest works. There is a kind of 'doomed processional' about it which I find very moving.

I am just beginning my exploration of a heretofore unknown composer to me, Jeffrey, and I am impressed thus far.

[vandermolen]

I am just beginning my exploration of a heretofore unknown composer to me, Jeffrey, and I am impressed thus far.

I like all of the symphonies Fergus and much else besides and find the Violin Concerto to be an extraordinarily underrated work.

[Mirror Image]

Alwyn's music has always been in my memory thanks to the figure skater Michelle Kwan and her knockout performance at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano:

https://www.youtube.com/v/UdYPFKO0X1k

I still find the Lyra Angelica one of the most exquisite pieces of music I know. Also, unlike Kyle, I do find that Alwyn has his own unique compositional voice. A lot of the times you'll find this in a composer's harmonic language.

[vandermolen]

Alwyn's music has always been in my memory thanks to the figure skater Michelle Kwan and her knockout performance at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano:

https://www.youtube.com/v/UdYPFKO0X1k

I still find the Lyra Angelica one of the most exquisite pieces of music I know. Also, unlike Kyle, I do find that Alwyn has his own unique compositional voice. A lot of the times you'll find this in a composer's harmonic language.

What an amazing display! I see that we get a bit of Satie interspersed with the Alwyn, but what a great choice of music. Thanks for posting it John.

[foxandpeng]

I am just beginning my exploration of a heretofore unknown composer to me, Jeffrey, and I am impressed thus far.

I am yet to be convinced by Alwyn, and suspect that repeated listens may be required to appreciate the evident lyricism that others note in his work. Have just completed a first hearing of symphonies 2 and 5 with DLJ Naxos, and whether it is because I have been hearing the symphonies of Alla Pavlova earlier today (2, 4 and 1) and Imants Kalniņš (particularly 4, 6 and 7) which are clearly attractive and emotionally memorable, this hasn't made a huge impact. Perhaps context is important, and I need to come at them again without the lyrical immediacy of these works clouding my appreciation. The Baxian comparisons haven't broken upon me yet, but that is likely to be unfamiliarity and ignorance on my part rather than a lack in the works themselves.

[Mirror Image]

What an amazing display! I see that we get a bit of Satie interspersed with the Alwyn, but what a great choice of music. Thanks for posting it John.

You're welcome, Jeffrey. Kwan was one of the greats. I was never a huge fan of the Winter Olympics, but I always loved figure skating.