Parry is not particularly noted for his piano music. Amongst enthusiasts, the charming Shulbrede Tunes (1914) are the best known. His most significant piece for piano is the Theme and Nineteen Variations written between 1878 and 1885.
The liner notes suggest that Hubert Parry’s Piano Sonata No.1 in F major (1876) may have started life as a “sonatina” produced three years previously. Furthermore, it was originally intended to be dedicated to Lady Pembroke, but was changed to George Grove, the then Director of the Royal School of Music. His relationship with the countess was “strained.”
The Sonata is Beethovenian in its
“classical approach to sonata form.” That said, there are also reminiscences of
Mendelssohn, Chopin, and Schumann throughout the work’s twenty-odd minute duration.
The “Arcadian” opening movement balances a warm first subject with something a
little more pastoral. I loved the Scherzo which is full of puckish delight. It
is unusual in having three “unrelated sections arranged in an arch form.” The
booklet remarks on the trio’s “plodding bass suggesting a ceremonial march
rather like Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance” some 25 years in the future. The
moving Barcarolle recalls Mendelssohn or Schubert and is none the worse
for that. It is profound, lyrical, and imaginative. The finale is a good
old-fashioned rondo, which begins slowly and introduces four themes.
Christopher Howell has noted that it could well have been composed by Cramer or
Dussek and called La Chase. Certainly, there is an element of a huntsman’s
galop in these pages. Despite its “regressive” and derivative nature, this
Sonata works well, is always pleasing to the ear, and succeeds as a
well-structured example of the genre.
The Piano Sonata No.2 in A minor/major was finished in 1876. It was dedicated to Tora Gordon on her engagement to Victor Marshall. Tora was Parry’s close, but platonic friend. The first movement is a kind of modified sonata form, really a rhapsody on two contrasting themes. The liner notes explain that this “flexible approach to form” and the “chromaticism” owes much to Brahms and Wagner. The slow movement, Adagio con sentimento, may nod to Weber and Schubert, but features Wagnerian harmonies. It is romantic and reflective, presented in a complex binary form, with each section having two themes. The Beethovian Scherzo is presented in a lively 6/8 time with one or two novel twists and turns. The finale is a well-constructed rondo, with a genial “refrain” and two contrasting episodes which has many splendid modulations in its progress. There are references to the first and the slow movements towards the end. Once again, if the listener enjoys Schumann and Schubert, they will love this pleasing sonata that is replete with warmth and affection.
Hunt the influence is an easy game to play with Charakterbilder (Seven Ages of Mind) written in 1872. Yet despite echoes of earlier composers, Parry has created a delightfully charming take on romantic piano music. It may be that he was inspired by the soliloquy from Shakespeare’s As You Like It, the “Seven Ages of Man.” That said, he does not replicate the Bard’s sequence in these pieces. The titles were not included in the score, and only became known in a letter from Parry to the dedicatee, the pianist Susan Stephenson. The batting order here begins with the beautiful Dreaming, inspired by a reading of Tennyson’s Lotus Eaters. This is followed by Learning, which uses the technical tool of strict canon – the young man understanding his trade? Yet there is lyricism here and no sense of the didactic. Passion, in binary form, develops from flirtation to urgency in mood. The Age of Striving can be seen in the context of “intellectual freedom” with much of its figuration centring on rising arpeggios in the “trio” section. There are also lots of octaves and thick chords. Things calm down with the lovely Longing. This acts as a foil to the sixth piece, Triumphing. Once again, Parry has deployed powerful octave figurations in the refrain, contrasting with more relaxed ‘dolce’ episodes. It concludes with a powerful and challenging coda. Charakterbilder ends with a quiet and thoughtful Adagio con sentimento. It has been said that this may represent the 24-year-old composer’s “meditation on the far-off inevitability of old age.” Whatever the “programme” of these seven studies, Parry has created a distinctly engaging suite that deserves to be in the pianist’s repertoire.
A delightful addition to this CD set is the Five Miniatures: I think that they are premiere recordings. These were collected and published posthumously in 1926. Sleepy has all the hallmarks of Schumann. It is a delicious little “berceuse” or “romance.” The second, A Little Christmas Piece is a brisk allegro: it was originally entitled Cosy. There is little to remind the listener of the Season in these subtly syncopated rhythms. The Capriccio is played Leggiero molto capriccioso and is really a little toccata with a gentle 6/8 movement. The lingering Pause is, as one commentator suggested, full of diminished sevenths, “of which certain of Parry’s admirers are getting a little tired.” It is a pensive number that explores chromatic harmony and a dotted rhythm. The final Miniature, Envoi, may be the last piece that Parry wrote. It is gently optimistic.
Little information about their
genesis is known, however Sleepy was probably written in 1917, and Cosy
first appeared in the Girl’s Own Paper during 1892.
The informative liner notes are by Lisa Hardy, the author of the commanding study The British Piano Sonata 1870-1945 (The Boydell Press, 2001).
Pianist Richard Deering is an authority on British music and has been “entrusted” with premiere performances by a wide range of composers, including Malcolm Arnold, Malcolm Williamson, Thomas Wilson, Edward Gregson, Edward McGuire, and Brian Chapple. Over the years he has worked with Alan Rawsthorne, Elisabeth Lutyens, Bernard Stevens, and William Alwyn. As well as concertising, Deering’s activities include lecturing, broadcasting, recording, teaching, adjudicating, and authoring.
Current CD projects also include the re-issue of the Pearl LP (SHE 537) taken live from Elisabeth Lutyens’s Birthday Recital in 1976 with works by Lutyens, Michael Blake Watkins, Malcolm Williamson, and Richard Rodney Bennett. Equally important is the remastering of a cassette (BMS 407) featuring the complete piano works of William Wordsworth plus pieces written for Deering by Thomas Wilson and Edward McGuire. His past catalogue includes a recital of English Piano Music on the Saga Label. (SAGA 5445). Composers here included York Bowen, Cyril Scott, Arnold Bax, Frank Bridge, Eugene Goossens and John Ireland.
Overall, this is a splendid new release of piano music by Charles Hubert Hastings Parry. Richard Deering brings consummate skill to these varied works. He assimilates the influences of earlier composers with Parry’s personal skill and creates a satisfying whole. The recording is outstanding, as is the CD documentation. I look forward to his subsequent issues on the Heritage Label.
Track Listing:
Charles Hubert Hastings Parry (1848-1918)
CD 1
Sonata No.1 in F Major, (1876)
Charakterbilder (Seven Ages of Mind) Studies for the Pianoforte: 1. Prelude-Andantino (Dreaming), 2. Con energia (Learning), 3. Con moto (Passion), 4. Allegro (Striving), 5. Espressivo Longing), 6. Allegro energetico (Triumphing), 7. Adagio con sentimento (1872)
CD2
Sonata No.2 in A Minor/Major (1876)
Five Miniatures 1. Sleepy (Dreamily), 2. A Little Christmas Piece (Allegro), 3. Capriccio (Leggiero, molto capriccioso), 4. Pause (Lento), 5. Envoi (Tenderly) (pub. post.1926)
Richard Deering (piano)
rec. 15 July 2023, Wyastone Concert Hall, Monmouth
Heritage Records HTGCD 140-1
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