The resurgence of British
Light Music in recent years has encouraged
a spate of recordings, to which these
performances make a worthwhile addition.
In fact this is a second volume, inspired
no doubt by the success of its predecessor
(Warner Classics 2564 61438-2) review.
The recording, produced
by Tony Faulkner in London’s Cadogan
Hall, is both warm and atmospheric,
and the climaxes pack a punch when they
arrive. The general production standards
are high, as they were in the previous
volume. There is a well planned and
nicely designed booklet, again containing
clear and informative notes by George
Hall. The latter are the more important
because some of the names will be unknown
to all but specialists.
Some of the music is
interesting rather than inspired, so
collectors wanting to test the water
and try a single disc of this fare might
turn instead to Ronald Corp and the
New London Orchestra on Hyperion. Their
performances of the more dramatic music
perhaps have a little more bite and
intensity than Wordsworth’s.
However, the playing
of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
is exemplary, and the string tone is
particularly warm and rich whenever
required; which is often. Like any other
area of the repertoire, the field of
light music offers abundant opportunities
for discovery. For example, The Grasshopper’s
Dance by Ernest Bucalossi used to
be popular before the Second World War,
particularly with brass bands. But its
appeal is probably all the greater with
the instrumental variety of an orchestral
performance.
The advantages of performing
this music with a top class orchestra
can of course be felt in every piece,
but one that gains hugely is Geoffrey
Toye’s The Haunted Ballroom.
The subtle shadings of dynamic from
the strings of the RPO achieve just
the atmosphere the composer must have
attended. For this is a truly ghostly
waltz.
There is some pointed
wit, too, in Robert Farnon’s infectiously
appealing Jumping Bean and Frederic
Curzon’s The Boulevardier. While
on the face if it, Peter Hope’s Mexican
Hat Dance might seem a banal opening
number, encountering the music in such
a well-played version dispels such doubts,
and the results are enjoyable. And that,
in fact, is the crucial message about
this enduringly enjoyable music. It
is a satisfying aspect of the musical
development of recent times that this
repertoire has come back into contention
after years of neglect. There is plenty
here both to delight and to warm the
heart.
Terry Barfoot
British
Light Music Composers - Philip Scowcroft's
Garlands
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Barry Wordsworth
