Arthur SOMERVELL (1863-1957)
Normandy: symphonic variations (1912) [20:56]
Piano Concerto in A minor Highland (1921) [27:16]
Sir Frederic Hymen COWEN (1852-1955)
Concertstück (1897) [19:52]
Martin Roscoe (piano)
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Martyn Brabbins
rec. City Halls, Candleriggs, Glasgow, 13-14 January 2010
The Romantic Piano Concerto - Volume 54
HYPERION CDA67837 [68:06]
I first came across the music of Arthur Somervell some forty years ago. The
local choirmaster and organist had suggested performing that composer’s
The Passion of Christ cantata and had a ‘run-through’ with
the choir. However I believe that the concert was abandoned: it was probably
deemed too ‘modern’ compared to the usual diet of John Stainer
and John Henry Maunder. It was many years later that I heard Somervell’s
A Shropshire Lad (Terfel;
Wilson-Johnson),
dating from 1904: I was surprised to find that it was probably one of the
earliest cycles setting Housman’s texts. However I had to wait until
2005 before hearing an orchestral work - the Violin Concerto in G minor (1930).
It was released on the Hyperion ‘Romantic Violin Concerto’ series
(Hyperion
CDA67420)and was coupled with the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Concerto.
Somervell’s work was, to quote Lewis Foreman, ‘a straightforward
and heart-warming work’.
The liner-notes of this present CD give a good biography of the composer;
however two or three points may be made about Somervell’s life and works.
He was born in Windermere in the Lake District in 1863. After an education
at Uppingham School he studied music at King’s College, Cambridge where
his composition teacher was Sir Charles Villiers Stanford. After a period
of study in Berlin he attended the Royal College of Music under Friedrich
Kiel and Hubert Parry. Somervell’s career was to be in two important
parts - one was as a composer and the other was as a musical educator. He
was appointed Professor of music at the RCM and later became Inspector of
Music at the Board of Education and Scottish Education Department in 1901.
Latterly, he was Principal Inspector for the Board of Education and duly received
his knighthood in 1929.
The second point to bear in mind is that he enjoyed considerable success in
his ‘day’ with a number of important cantatas and oratorios -
The Forsaken Merman, Intimations of Immortality and The Passion
of Christ. However, if he is recalled nowadays, it is largely for his
two major song cycles - A Shropshire Lad and the Tennyson settings
in Maud.
On the other hand, there was a great deal of other music written, including
the Thalassa (Sea) Symphony, a number of light operas including
Thomas the Rhymer and The Enchanted Prince. Other orchestral
works include the Ballad: Helen of Kirkonnel and a suite In Arcady.
Additionally there was a number of chamber works including a Quintet for Clarinet
and Strings.
And thirdly, his musical style was somewhat ‘retro.’ Although
there are echoes of Stanford, Elgar, Parry and even Vaughan Williams in his
music, the main influences would appear to be Mendelssohn and Brahms. His
musical style did not develop greatly during his lifetime of composition.
The Normandy Variations were first performed at the Queen’s Hall,
London on 17 February 1913 with the piano solo part played by the composer’s
friend, Donald Francis Tovey. The London Symphony Orchestra was conducted
by Arthur Nikisch. The composer’s Thalassa Symphony was also
given at that concert.
The Variations are based on a rather dark Normandy folk-tune of some character,
although it did not impress the reviewer of the concert in the Musical Times.
The tune was collected from the village of Varengeville-sur-Mer, near Dieppe.
Lewis Foreman notes the dual structure of this work. On the one hand it is
a set of ‘successive free variations’ however on the other hand
‘listeners will soon be aware of a shadowy outline of what we might
consider a four movement symphony: introduction and Allegro-slow movement-scherzo-finale’.
Whatever the value of the ‘theme’ the composer has managed to
create a varied and interesting work that has much to hold the listener’s
attention. There are passages of great beauty, especially in the ‘slow’
movement. Both the orchestration and the piano part are well contrived and
always musically interesting.
I find the Piano Concerto in A minor Highland dating from 1921 a little
bit more problematic. This is not to say that there are not some lovely moments
in this work. Certainly, the work is well constructed with some good melodies
and attractive writing for piano. However I do worry a little about the use
of tunes that seem to be ‘highlan’’ folk-tunes. At times
there seems to be just a little bit too much of the ‘scotch snap’
about this work: it is almost like a parody of Scottish music. Lewis Foreman
assures the listener that all the themes are original although they are ‘based
on such strong traditional Scottish elements as to make one constantly find
the title of a familiar tune is on the tip of the tongue’.
The first movement is massive and vacillates between ‘pesante’
dance tunes and a romantic ‘second subject’. It is really a set
of variations; yet again it does appear to have a sonata form structure. The
opening of the slow movement is ‘misty’. However the composer
has suggested that this is more ‘Scottish’ than ‘Highland’.
There is a lovely pentatonic melody which dominates much of the musical development
of this movement. Actually, this is heart-achingly lovely music that would
‘bring a tear to a glass eye.’ As a Scot myself, I find this music
is really a tone poem that paints a picture of a ‘lowland landscape’
possibly the Solway - Somervell would have known that area as a Westmoreland
lad - or the Clyde Estuary on an autumn day. It is certainly a deliciously
romantic mood that reminds this particular listener of many happy days with
remembered friends in Scotland. The finale is a successful balance between
the vitality of dancing and the continuation of the romance. It is a great
way to bring this concerto to a conclusion.
I guess that my overall impression of this Piano Concerto is that it has the
qualities of film-music. It could be used as a soundtrack to a piece of highland
jiggery-pokery such as Brigadoon or the Gathering of the Clans.
That does not make it a bad piece of music: it just suggests that it is a
wee bitty full of ‘clichés.’ However, in spite of one or
two reservations, I will return to this largely impressive and often beautiful
work in the future. It is a good connection with my Scottish roots and brings
many memories back to this sentimental Scot.
If someone had suggested forty years ago that any work by Sir Frederic Hymen
Cowen should be recorded as a part of a major series of piano concertos (and
concerted works) they would have been laughed out of court. Cowen was even
further down the list of ‘worthy but ultimately ‘boring’
English composers that included Stanford, Parry and Macfarren. In 1990, Marco
Polo records broke this jinx by presenting The
Butterfly’s Ball and the Scandinavian Symphony. A few
years later the now defunct ClassicO
label issued Symphony No.6 The Idyllic. Both CDs showcased a composer
who was worthy of further exploration.
Interestingly the seventeen-year old Cowen wrote a Piano Concerto in A minor.
Unfortunately, along with his first two symphonies the score has been lost.
Some thirty years later, in 1897, he composed his Concertstück
for the Polish pianist Paderewski. I think that this is a really impressive
work that defies the listener (and critic) to explain why it has been lost
to view for many years. One cannot help thinking that if this work had been
by Liszt it would have been well established in the repertoire.
The music is written as one continuous movement, however there are clearly
‘marked’ sections, including a good cadenza. The heart of the
work is the ‘tempo tranquillo’ that is beautifully written and
is often touching. There are many gorgeous episodes throughout the work that
exploits the soloist’s skill and with attractive and often sensitive
orchestration. The end of the work builds up to an exiting ‘prestissimo’
before ‘the final dash to the end contains brilliant passagework which
goes on and on as if neither side is willing to give up.’
This is an important release for enthusiasts of British music and for those
listeners who specialise in romantic piano concertos. Everything about this
CD is exceptional. There is the excellent playing by Martin Roscoe and the
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra conducted by Martyn Brabbins. This is a committed
performance of three works that are not really in the public domain. Listeners
have nothing to compare these premiere recordings with, but I am convinced
that they are definitive realisations of works that have been forgotten for
far too long. The sound quality impressed me, with every nuance of the piano
discourse being clearly heard. The liner-notes by Lewis Foreman are, as usual,
a model of their kind. Everything the listener needs to understand for an
intelligent appreciation of these works is presented.
Finally, this is the 54th volume from Hyperion’s most welcome
series of Romantic Piano Concertos. Already they have produced fine performances
of works by Parry,
Stanford,
Bowen,
Bache,
Holbrooke
and others. One thing is certain; there are plenty of other piano concertos
hidden in the musical libraries. For example concertante works by William
Baines, Rosalind Ellicott and Harry Farjeon, to name but three.
John France
Hyperion's
Romantic Piano Concertos series reviews
An important release for enthusiasts of British music and for those listeners
who specialise in romantic piano concertos.