Arnold Bax: Legend for viola and piano (1929)

Just what the lore was behind Arnold Bax's Legend for viola and piano, is uncertain. It may be some tale from Ireland, so beloved by the composer. Or maybe from the dark forests of Scandinavia. Then again it could be the moors and mountains of the Western Highlands of Scotland. More likely there is no story, just a mood picture.

The Legend was completed during July 1929, whilst Bax was living at 155 Fellows Road, Swiss Cottage, London. The manuscript was dedicated to the American patroness, Mrs Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge who commissioned it. Sadly, her name was misspelt ‘Elisabeth’ on both the holograph and the published score. The latter was first issued in 1930 by Murdoch, Murdoch, and Co.

Bax had been working on his Symphony No.3 in London and Arisaig, Inverness-shire. It is full of vibrant colour and stormy, rhythmic drive, which captures his evocative, often mystical style. Much of it was written “in polar conditions in a dingy, unheated [North Scotland hotel] room working in an overcoat,” Other achievements in 1929 included the first recording of his Viola Sonata, with Lionel Tertis, and the premiere performance of his Symphony No.2 on 13 December in Boston, USA.

The overall impact of the Legend is straightforward. It is in a single movement, lasting for around ten minutes, and ostensibly in E minor, though with considerable chromaticism. The piece develops in three sections. It is characterised by rich harmonies and expressive melodies for both the viola and the piano. The Legend is a balance between Bax’s dreamy longing and episodes of disturbing malice. Throughout, he evokes a deep sense of narrative and wide-ranging emotion, which was typical of the composer. Yet, there is a dense, sinister atmosphere at times in this piece, especially at the beginning. This introverted mood gradually dissipates as the work progresses, before coming to a positive and satisfying conclusion.

The first performance of Legend for viola and piano was given at the Aeolian Hall, London on 7 December 1929. The soloists were Lionel Tertis, viola, and Arnold Bax, piano.

The Times (9 December 1929, p.10) reporter was not impressed by the organisation of the recital. He considered that “it certainly would have been better to have played the Mozart Sonata (K.305) later instead of at the beginning, to give Mr. Tertis time to feel completely at home: for once his playing did not show the expected clarity and ease.” Another reason was “the fact that…[the Mozart Sonata’s] delicate character would have stood out better against the general atmosphere of solemnity created by Brahms, op. 120, No.1.”  Other music heard at this recital included John Ireland’s Sonata No.2 in A minor and his The Holy Boy as well as the Tartini–Kreisler Fugue, W. H. Reed's Rhapsody, and a Fantasia by York Bowen for four violas. In this latter number, Tertis was assisted by Rebecca Clarke, Dorothy Derbyshire-Jones, and Winifred Copperwheat. Turning to the Legend, the unsigned critic, (possibly H.C. Colles) felt that “Mr. Bax's work is well laid out, and it was well played, and its rather gloomy mood might perhaps have been more acceptable with brighter and more cheerful surroundings.”  Overall, during the recital there was “less opportunity than usual in this scheme of admiring the remarkable variety of tone which Mr. Tertis can obtain from his instrument, and it must be confessed that the sombre colouring which prevailed did rather tend to become monotonous.”

The Daily Telegraph (9 December 1929, p.6) critic Ferruccio Bonavia, considered that “The first performance of Mr. Arnold Bax's Legend…added considerably to its interest; for, if original compositions for other instruments are far from common, original compositions for viola are exceedingly rare.” He stated that “As could be expected from so distinguished a composer, the Legend exploits effectively the genius of the instrument without, however, placing this before musical and aesthetic considerations. The solo part is far from easy, but there is no opportunity for acrobatics. The tests to which the interpreter must submit are of a different nature; tone quality, phrasing - these are the chief requisites of this highly imaginative work which Mr. Tertis appeared to understand in perfection. The piano part was played by the composer himself, and both composer and interpreter were warmly applauded by the audience.”

John White (2006, p.114) quoted Rebecca Clarke’s diary, where she lamented the “Poor audience and he (Tertis) didn’t seem very happy.” He then quotes a review from the Musical Times (January 1930, p.69) “The new Legend for viola and pianoforte by Arnold Bax which Mr. Lionel Tertis introduced at his concert at Aeolian Hall on December 7 [1929], is in one continuous movement. A first, and single hearing impresses it on the memory as being in the rich style of shifting harmonic colour that Bax now most often uses. The viola part, played in this instance with Mr. Tertis’s astonishing mastery and exquisite control of tone, is free and dramatic.”

Listen to Arnold Bax’s Legend for viola and piano on YouTube, here. The performers are Martin Outram (viola) and Julian Rolton (piano) on Naxos: 8.557784

Bibliography:
White, John, Lionel Tertis: The First Great Virtuoso of the Viola, The Boydell Press, 2006