This CD is a celebration of the
centenary of the American conductor, composer and author Leonard Bernstein.
Prima Facie has reissued his Variations on an Octatonic Scale, for recorder and
cello (1988/9) along with an interesting selection of music by other composers
including John McCabe, Alun Hoddinott, Robert Crawford and David Ellis. At the
end of my review I note the source CD of each work.
The opening track features one of
the last works composed by Bernstein. The piece was written as a gift for
Helena, daughter of the film and television director Humphrey Burton. She is a
competent recorderist.
The world premiere of the
Variations on an Octatonic Scale was given at St. Catherine's Church, Port
Erin, Isle of Man on 2 July 1997. The soloists were John Turner, recorder and
Jonathan Price, cello. The theme was derived from Bernstein’s ballet score Dybbuk (1974). The same ‘tune’ was
later used in the composer’s Concerto for Orchestra: Jubilee Games (1989). The Variations is a fascinating little piece that
explores some of the furthest reaches of recorder technique, including flutter-tonguing,
low registers and overblowing.
Peter Hope’s Fantasia on John
Dowland’s ‘Flow my Tears’ (2011) is interesting. It is a timeless work that is
well-able to counterpoint the original instrumental sound of Dowland with
something more astringent from the 21st century-and points between. There
is even a rapturous jig. But the surprise twist is the introduction of a
blues-inspired middle section. Somehow all this stylistic diversity holds
together and creates a memorable piece of music that is faithful to Dowland’s
original lament and the vicissitudes of our own day. Instrumentally, the work
makes use of descant, treble and tenor recorders which test the soloist to the
extreme. A little masterpiece.
I did wish that Robert Crawford’s
Variations on a Ground, for recorder and string quartet went on longer that its
four and a half minutes. Based on a six-bar ‘ground-bass’ formed from all
twelve notes of the chromatic scale, this is a work that exudes invention and
is a masterclass in the musical development of his ‘theme.’
These Variations were originally
written in 1993 for recorder and piano and dedicated to John Turner and Peter
Lawson. It was reworked in 2012 in the present arrangement, and was premiered
at St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh on 29 October 2013. This is a challenging work
that is both intense in its working-out and deeply lyrical. It was to be
Crawford’s last completed work.
Every year John Turner sends a
‘musical’ Christmas card to his friends and colleagues: it is an event that I
always look forward to. And Xmas treat is literally the score of a carol
printed on the card, with Seasonal Greetings! In fact, last year a CD from Divine
Art (dda
25161) was issued featuring many of these remarkable carols. David Beck
took the tune of one of these and reinvented it as ‘Carol Variations’ for
recorder and harpsichord. This was soon followed by the present version
featuring string quartet. It is a lovely little piece that begins and ends with
the composer’s harmonisation of the tune. In-between, are five charming
variations including a beautiful ‘siciliano.’ The work was completed in 2011.
Alun Hoddinott’s ‘Lizard Variants’
was inspired by a poem of Gwyn Thomas. It is written for solo recorder. This
piece is written in a complex arch form and explores a wide variety of
instrumental techniques and effects from the soloist. It was composed in 1998
in honour of Sir John Manduell’s 70th birthday. It is a demanding
tour de force.
This poem was the inspiration for
three further works by Hoddinott: Lizard for piano (1997), the song cycle Tymhorau
(Seasons) op. 155b and Lizard: concerto for orchestra, op. 181 (2003).
David Ellis is a composer who
deserves more recognition. The few works that I have heard, including the Symphony
No.1, are impressive and interesting. The Elegiac Variations, op.66 for
recorder, viola and cello, written in 2001 is a case in point. This is a set of
highly contrasting variations that exhibit intensity and depth of feeling. Written in ternary form, the middle section is
vivacious whilst the opening and closing music is true to the title. They were
written for John Turner.
A few months ago, I reviewed
Peter Dickinson’s imaginative ‘Translations’ for recorder, gamba and harpsichord (1971)
(PRIMA FACIE PFNSCD009). This is a challenging piece devised specifically
for David Munrow. Most often associated with early music, Munrow was keen to
promote contemporary works for early instruments.
I noted in my review that I am
not a passionate early music enthusiast (I like my Bach played on the piano,
rather than the clavichord or harpsichord!). On the other hand, Dickinson’s
eclectic ‘take’ on the medium is ‘right up my street.’ Look out for the
avant-garde tropes of the late sixties and seventies lining up with ‘pop’ melodies,
jazz and even rock riffs. It is my favourite piece of ‘early music’!
I would not normally associate
John McCabe with the ‘cow and gate’ movement in music. Certainly, I would not
have expected a ‘Meditation on a Norfolk Ballad.’ Yet, all is not quite as
‘pastoral’ as the title would suggest. True, the music is based on
deconstructed phrases from the folksong ‘The Captain’s Apprentice’ which was
collected in Norfolk by RVW in the early years of the 20th century
and used effectively in that composer’s Norfolk
Rhapsody. McCabe has created a penetrating score that underlies the tragedy
of the death of the apprentice, the subsequent mutiny of the crew and the
inevitable justice to the ship’s captain. This is not just a setting of the folk-tune,
but a complex representation of the musical material: it creates a deeply felt
miniature tone-poem. A work that deserves to be better known.
The oldest piece on this disc is
Richard Arnell’s Quintet ‘The Gambian.’ It dates from around the time that The
Gambia gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1965. Apparently, the
Reverend John Faye, High Commissioner sang a tune which was written down by
Arnell and then entered in a competition for a new national anthem. They lost.
The Quintet uses this ‘improvised’ tune as the theme. The Quintet (recorder and
string quartet) opens with a rhapsodic introduction, followed by a set of
variations and concluding with a ‘chorale.
It is a particularly attractive work that belies its prosaic genesis.
The most remarkable work on this
CD is the final track: David Forshaw’s ‘Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird’,
for recorder and string quartet. I understand that it was originally written in
1996 for recorder and piano and was subsequently transcribed for recorder and string
quartet around 2000. Poetry aficionados will guess that the inspiration for the
work is derived from American poet Wallace Stevens’s (spelt Stephens in the
liner notes) poem of the same title. The liner notes explain that the music is not
an ‘attempt to imitate the song of the blackbird’ nor is it divided into 13
sections. The composer has not totted up the songs to ensure a baker’s dozen
have been sung. The title is merely ‘a catalyst to the development of the
music.’ This is an ebullient work which explores a ‘random placement of
differing musical cells’ evoking, rather than creating, a scientific recording
of birdsong.
As always, John Turner plays this
music with enthusiasm, sensitivity and technical brilliance. The members of the
Camerata Ensemble and The Manchester Chamber Ensemble both directed by Richard
Howarth and New World Ensemble led by Andy Long make a splendid contribution to
these works. The recording is ideal.
The liner notes are assembled by
John Turner, presumably from the original CD releases. They are most helpful
and provide a brief note on each composer and their contribution to this
disc. The only downside to this CD is
the track-listing on the rear cover. This is very difficult to read, due to the
use of white text on a variegated background.
John Turner is dedicated to
promoting recorder music of all eras, however, he is specially to be commended
for his sterling achievement in introducing many ‘modern’ works to the
repertoire. ‘Wandering Pathways’ is
splendid collection of music that will interest, amuse, move and satisfy
listeners who enjoy this unique instrument.
Track Listing:
Wandering Pathway
Leonard BERNSTEIN
(1918-90) Variations on an Octatonic Scale, for recorder and cello (1988/9)
Peter HOPE (b.1930):
Fantasia on John Dowland’s ‘Flow my Tears’ for recorder and string quartet (2011)
Robert CRAWFORD (1925-2012):
Variations on a Ground, for recorder and string quartet (1993/2012)
David BECK (b.1941)
Carol Variations, for recorder and string quartet (2011)
Alun HODDINOTT (1929-2008)
Lizard: Variants, op. 166 no. 2, for solo recorder (1998)
David ELLIS (b.1933)
Elegiac Variations, op. 66, for recorder, viola and cello (2001)
Peter DICKINSON (b.1934)
Translations, for recorder, gamba and harpsichord (1971)
John MCCABE (1939-2015)
Meditation on a Norfolk Ballad for recorder and string quartet (2013)
Richard ARNELL (1917-2009)
Quintet (The Gambian), op. 107, for recorder and string quartet Op. 107, for recorder
and string quartet (1966)
David FORSHAW (b.1938)
Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird, for recorder and string quartet
(1996/2000)
John Turner (recorders), Jonathan Price (cello), Richard Tunnicliffe
(gamba), Harvey Davies (harpsichord).
Camerata Ensemble &The Manchester Chamber Ensemble/Richard
Howarth, New World Ensemble/Andy Long
PRIMA FACIE
PFCD091
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