Surely there has been
no greater interpreter of Parry’s music
than Sir Adrian Boult? In Boult’s hands,
the music emerges as finely sculpted
and, perhaps even more important, as
truly great music.
This is immediately
evident in the performance of the Overture
to an Unwritten Tragedy, Parry’s
very first published work. Allegedly
the tragedy in question was actually
Shakespeare’s Othello, with the
long-breathed melodies representing
the heroine Desdemona. It is given a
dramatic performance here by the LSO
under Sir Adrian.
An English Suite
is gentle in the extreme. It is a well-crafted
sequence of dances performed here with
the utmost delicacy and care (try especially
the second, ‘In Minuet Style’, as the
perfect example of this). The Saraband
is possibly more explosive than may
be expected, yet it contrasts well with
the light ‘Caprice’ that follows. Predating
An English Suite is another work
for strings, Lady Radnor’s Suite.
Superbly crafted and understated in
emotion, its highlight is the Slow
Minuet, here given as rapt a performance
as is imaginable by Boult and the LSO.
Parry wrote the incidental
music to the Aristophanes play The
Birds in 1883. The bride in the
play is welcomed by a Chorus of Birds
(here the Trio section). The main body
of the movement is dominated by a characteristic
melody that speaks of lofty dignity
(it might as well have been marked ‘nobilmente’).
Finally, the Symphonic
Variations, is one of Parry’s better
known works. There is a Brahmsian influence
at work in this single-movement work
(the variations may be subdivided into
five sections but run together as one
– Parry used the word ‘Symphonic’ in
the title to emphasise the high degree
of continuity). Boult gives a multi-faceted
reading that is attentive to the score’s
every need. Textures are miraculously
elucidated and Parry’s imagination is
shown in the best possible light. It
is, in fact, amazing just how large
Parry’s canvas seems when one considers
the total duration is only just under
thirteen minutes.
The recording quality
throughout is superb. Its warmth is
particularly appealing and, indeed,
apposite.
Colin Clarke
The
Lyrita catalogue
aLondon Symphony Orchestra, bLondon
Philharmonic Orchestra/Sir Adrian Boult. 