RECORDING OF THE MONTH     CHOPIN Waltzes and Impromptus Vladimir Feltsman £11 post free World-wide VIVALDI The four seasons London Mozart Players/Juritz £12 post free World-wide BEETHOVEN Symphonies 4 and 5 LSO/Yondani Butt £12 post free World-wide

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Alan RAWSTHORNE (1905-1971) Symphonies: No. 1a (1950) [22’56]; No. 2, ‘A Pastoral Symphony’b (1959) [19’47]; No. 3 (1964) [32’03] abLondon Symphony Orchestra/aSir John Pritchard, bNicholas Braithwaite; cBBC Symphony Orchestra/Norman Del Mar. With bTracey Chadwell (soprano). Rec. acKingsway Hall aon March 25th, 1975, cin April 1967; bin Watford Town Hall on August 25th-26th, 1993. ADD/bDDD Original recordings of Symphonies Nos. 1 and 3 made in association with The British Council; Symphony No. 2 recorded with the support of The Rawsthorne Trust. LYRITA RECORDED EDITION SRCD291 [74’47]

Peter Donohoe’s recording of the Rawsthorne Piano Concertos on Naxos last year was as good an indicator as any of the stature of this composer. The present Lyrita disc stands as the ideal complement. John McCabe, himself a notable composer, provides insightful booklet notes. Perhaps Rawsthorne’s finest quality is that his music can sound recognisably English without moving towards the idealised indulgence that can mar music from that country. The First Symphony (the first performance of which was conducted by Sir Adrian Boult) provides ample evidence of this in the second movement, Lento, while the first movement is highly energetic, very inventive and superbly scored. The predominant 5/8 rhythm of the Scherzo gives the music a restless, shifting quality. The Second Symphony makes use of a soprano soloist in the finale (making reference, perhaps, to Mahler’s Fourth – or Vaughan Williams’ own ‘Pastoral’). The poem, by Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey (1516-1547) is reprinted in the booklet. Tracey Chadwell is excellent, her clarion clarity a real bonus, and Braithwaite conjures up the requisite mysterious atmosphere (there is some superb trumpet playing during the course of this movement also). Yet the weight of argument lies in the first movement, which nevertheless emerges as gentle and assured. The Scherzo is labelled ‘Country Dance’ – its lilting wind phrases are immediately appealing. The language here is spiky (yet not so much as to invoke Stravinsky, for example) and Nicholas Braithwaite ensures that the LPO are on top form. The Third Symphony is the longest of the works on this disc. Dedicated to the composer’s wife, Isabel, it is in many ways the finest of his symphonies. Perhaps surprisingly, there is a twelve-note row in operation (as McCabe points out, though, it all still sounds like Rawsthorne). The first movement is certainly more challenging and more complex than anything on the disc so far. The second movement, too, speaks of more expressive worlds than hitherto (and certainly deeper than its indication, ‘Alla Sarabanda - Andantino’, might seem to imply). The finale is a virtuoso tour de force that the BBC Symphony Orchestra rises magnificently to: the argument is sometimes quite thorny and intense. Well worth hearing – do try to listen also to the Naxos Rawsthorne Piano Concertos disc if Rawsthorne’s music appeals. Highly recommended. Colin Clarke The Lyrita catalogue     Advertising Rates Visitor stats MusicWeb International has over 40,000 Classical CD reviews on offer Discs received Having a problem Donating? Gerard Hoffnung Concerts & The Bricklayer Story   New Releases New Releases   MusicWeb sells the Polish catalogue CDAccord £10.50 post free W-W MusicWeb sells the Arcodiva catalogue £12.00 post free W-W £11.75 post-free world- wide MusicWeb can now offer you discs from the following catalogues: Prices include postage [Acte Préalable £13.50] [Arcodiva £12.00] [Avie from £6.25] [British Music Society £12.00] [CDACCORD from £13.50 ] [ClassicO £12.50] [Hallé from £11] [Heritage £10] [Hortus £14.99 ] [Lyrita ONLY £11.75 ] [Nimbus Special prices] [Northern Flowers £13.50] [REDCLIFFE £11 ] [Sheva £11] [Tactus £11.50 ] [Talent from £12.00 ] [Toccata Classics £10.50 ] Musicweb Special Offers Monthly Best Buys     Google Ads - for information about privacy matters, click here.  Amazon Musicweb International is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com

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