Hubert Klyne Headley (1906-1995)
California Suite (1939)
Piano Concerto No 1 ‘Argentango’ (1941)
Piano Concerto No 2 (1945)
Symphony No 1 for Radio (1946)
Anna Bogolyubova (piano), Russian Philharmonic Orchestra/Dmitry Yablonsky
rec. 2006, Moscow, Russia
NAXOS AMERICAN CLASSICS 8.559300 [63]
Hubert Klyne Headley, born in West Virginia, was another product of Howard Hanson’s Eastman School. He and this disc seem to have eluded this site, at least until now. I hoped to see him given some attention not least because he was a product of the laureate years when the USA produced fascinating composers in profligate numbers.
The three pieces are quite brief apart from the three movement suite which, going by its titles (Golden Gate; Yosemite; Fiesta), can be related to Ferde Grofé and Morton Gould. He ranges through wispy Griffes-like writing as if suggesting the Bridge at dawn but soon Respighian fanfares bespeak majesty and full day in the sun. There’s a Gallic languor and some birdsong about Yosemite. Headley brings us some extroversion in the Fiesta movement placing the writing alongside that of Harl Macdonald but this is always intoxicatingly inflected with Ravel and Chabrier.
The single movement 11 minute First Piano Concerto storms, glitters and croons. If you are looking for an unpredictable companion to the Addinsell Warsaw Concerto, then look no further. It was premiered by Jose Iturbi; no surprise there. It could serve as a rather short companion to Ginastera’s own later Concerto Argentino (1936). The Second is a work about four minutes longer while remaining in the territory of Romantic impressionism. It lays hold on a shade more subtlety and room for the music to expand its horizons. Occasionally one thinks about Copland, too, but in his most accessible pastoral style. Interestingly, it ends without barnstorming.
The Symphony No 1 for Radio was written for French Radio and premiered in Paris. The music with confidence traces its ley lines in majesty rather than superficial display. The writing for harp which is touchingly brought out contrasts with a grandeur that occasionally suggests Barber’s First Symphony
There are some moments where he hangs onto an idea a mite too long but in general what he has to say is worth the listening investment.
The recording and the playing are admirably clear - and carry the impression of conviction. The liner note - indispensable in the circumstances - is by Stan McDaniel.
Rob Barnett
