William Wordsworth: Three Pastoral Sketches, op.10 (1937)

One of my musical discoveries of 2019 (so far) is William Wordsworth’s (1908-88) Three Pastoral Sketches, op.10. This has been released on the second volume of Toccata Records (TOCC 0526) survey of the composer’s orchestral music. Other works on this disc include the Piano Concerto in D minor, op.28 (1946) and the Violin Concerto in A major, op.60 (1980).

Although I knew of the existence of these ‘Sketches’, I never imagined that I would hear them. I am beholden to Paul Conway and his excellent CD liner notes for the background to this music.

The first thing to say is that Wordsworth has not created a ‘cow and gate’ score. There is nothing here that Elisabeth Lutyens at her most acerbic would have objected to. The word ‘pastoral’ can have several meanings. Often used to represent the ‘pleasant, traditional features of the countryside’ it can also refer to the songs of ‘Arcadian’ shepherds. But maybe Beethoven’s definition is the one that most applies to Wordsworth’s score. The German master wrote that his eponymous symphony was ‘more the expression of feeling than painting.’ This allows for a representation of nature in its smiling or angry mood and everything in between. Witness the storm movement (IV) of Beethoven’s Symphony. Is this a tempest in the heart or one conjured up by Nature?

William Wordsworth’s Three Pastoral Sketches is the composer’s earliest ‘acknowledged’ orchestral score. It was composed in 1937, shortly after he finished studies with Donald Tovey at Edinburgh University. The three movements allude musically to ‘aspects of the English countryside.’ The opening ‘Sundown’ has an impressionistic feel. Conway notes that this movement is based on two contrasting melodies: a limpid downward melody for solo flute, soon joined by horns and violins, which is balanced by a ‘stately chorale like theme’ first heard on the woodwind. This movement rises to a powerful climax, before subsiding into near tranquillity. Wordsworth has managed to create a vivid impression of the sun setting over the countryside. 

The second Sketch, ‘The Lonely Tarn’ suggests the remoter parts of the Lake District, with its misty, eerie mood. Listeners will be reminded of ‘Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age’ from Gustav Holst’s The Planets with its ‘hypnotic alternating chords.’ Warmth is brought to ‘The Lonely Tarn’ by a gorgeous arabesque for flute, which is continued by the violins, however the movement ends in sadness. The last Sketch, ‘Seascape’ may well look towards Scotland for its inspiration. As noted, Wordsworth had spent three years studying in Edinburgh. Presumably he got a chance to indulge in a little tourism. Paul Conway notes the that online catalogue at the Scottish Music Centre includes a reference to a score of the Sketches with the title of the finale listed as ‘Mountain, Wind and Sky’. I was unable to find this in the catalogue.  ‘Seascape’ begins and ends mysteriously but contains a stormy middle section. Conway has suggested that the alternative title may be more appropriate to the mood of the music. I tend to agree. For me this is an ideal musical portrait of the West Coast of Scotland on a somewhat variable day. On the other hand, all notion of tartanry’ is avoided: there are no ‘Scotch Snaps’ and pentatonic tunes.

Brian Wilson, reviewing the Toccata CD for MusicWeb International (August 2019) wrote that ‘yet again [the] Toccata [label] rescues a composer whose music has been unjustly neglected…’ Wilson thinks that ‘no excuses need to be made for any of the performances; all three make strong arguments for the composer.’ Turning to the ‘approachable’ Three Pastoral Sketches he understands that ‘though clearly in the English pastoral tradition, they certainly don’t qualify for the old slur that all such music smells of cow pats.’ He recommends that anyone who enjoys Herbert Howells’s orchestral music will thoroughly relish these three pieces.

I think that William Wordsworth has written a work that describes ‘landscape’ over a wide range of the country: ‘Sunset’ in the Home Counties, ‘The Lonely Tarn’ in the more remote parts of the Lake District and finally ‘Seascape’ or ‘Mountain, wind and sky’ somewhere in the Western Highlands. Is my fancy running wild? Possibly, but this imaginary construction works for me. This often-impressionistic early work is well-written, is musically imaginative and exploits the relatively limited orchestral resources with great skill. It is above all, a colourful score.

William WORDSWORTH, Orchestral Music, Vol. 2: Piano Concerto/Three Pastoral Sketches/Violin Concerto Liepāja Symphony Orchestra/J. Gibbons Toccata TOCC 0526