Toby Spence - download (MP3 & FLAC)

“What comes across in this anthology is that he wrote just as beguilingly for voice as for orchestra...[Les Espaces du sommeil] is a dark dreamscape hauntingly captured by Christopher Purves, while Toby Spence underlines the Britten-esque associations of Paroles tissées, written for Peter Pears...With music ranging from youth to old age, the disc adds up to a fascinating traversal of Lutoslawski’s style.” Financial Times, 27th August 2011 ****

“Toby Spence brings more muscularity to Paroles Tisées than Pears ever summoned, while Christopher Purves is a wonderfully secure soloist in Les Espaces du Sommeil” The Guardian, 1st September 2011 ****

“Poles may quibble over Lucy Crowe's command of the Śląsk (Polish) dialect. They're more likely, though, to praise the beauty of her singing and the beguiling power of music-making projected by all concerned with this disc. Gardner's understanding of and empathy for the expressive subtleties and rich humanity of this music register clearly and irresistable authority. The BBC Symphony Orchestra is on superb form” Classic FM Magazine

“Lutosławski's sensitivity to aural texture and detail puts him in a category of his own...Gardner and the BBCSO provide glowing, delicately shaded accompaniment throughout.” The Observer, 11th September 2011

“Toby Spence is on mellifluous form here, and Christopher Purves is no less subtle in the nocturnal cycle Les espaces du sommeil...An attractively varied, highly accomplished release.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2011 ****

“Lucy Crowe is in ravishing voice and displays comparable charm and composure in both the rustic Silesian Triptych (1951) and miniature 'Sleep, sleep'...Christopher Purves proves a wonderfully secure exponent in a reading which combines tingling atmosphere and arresting drama to consistently riveting effect. As for the sublimely delicate and exquisitely rapt Paroles tissees, tenor Toby Spence acquits himself with enormous credit” Gramophone Magazine, November 2011

“Taking his cue from Handel's 1751 performances, Edward Higginbottom assigns all the soprano solos to some talented boy trebles from the Choir of New College, Oxford. Otta Jones's contribution to 'He shall feed his flock' and Henry Jenkinson's 'I know that my redeemer liveth' are lovely testaments to Higginbottom's crusading 30 years with his choir.
At best, Higginbottom's choir produces some marvelous moments ('All we like sheep', and one of the finest 'Amen' fugues on disc). Higginbottom's direction does not boil with dramatic intensity but instead simmers along with patience, elegant judgement and articulate tastefulness.
Some familiar music bears ripe fruit when taken a shade slower than has become common in recent times ('Glory to God' is splendid rather than hurried, and all the better for it). Ex-scholar Toby Spence is on fine form in 'Rejoice greatly', and Iestyn Davies's poetic singing is another enjoyable feature, although one might hanker for a more dramatic treatment of 'shame and spitting' ('He was despised'). 'The trumpet shall sound' resounds with David Blackadder's magnificent playing, and the Academy of Ancient Music play Handel's orchestral parts immaculately.
This Naxos release will appeal to those who want an affordable Messiah that is beautifully played, brightly sung, sweetly satisfying and unashamedly English in its sentimental roots.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“This is a very special recording. Not only is it of quite outstanding quality both musically and dramatically, but, being sung entirely by male voices associated with a single institution (all the soloists are past or present members of New College Choir), it probably comes as close as modern conditions permit to a sound that Handel would have recognized.” The Telegraph

“Norrington's approach is pensive, sober and funereal-but it's so well paced that the sense of inevitability underlines man's mortality, and the outbursts when they do come are more effective for their comparative restraint...a reminder that the first performance was in church, not on a concert hall stage.” Andrew McGregor, bbc.co.uk, 8th May 2006

“"Truly it was of frightening greatness," wrote Berlioz after the Requiem 's première. The massed timpani of the "Tuba mirum" produced an "indescribable shock". The chief priest wept uncontrollably, while one of the choral singers suffered a nervous breakdown. Thankfully, there seems to have been no such casualty among the singers in this "live" performance from Stuttgart. The rich, ample acoustics of the Beethovensaal give full value to Berlioz's vast spatial effects, most spectacularly the four brass bands that herald the timpani onslaught in the "Tuba mirum". Yet Norrington's concern for clarity of line and articulation, and the carefully judged balances, mean that we hear far more than usual of Berlioz's brilliant and bizarre orchestral detail. Norrington's dramatic urgency, allied to choral singing of thrilling body and bite, make the apocalyptic movements duly overwhelming. No less moving is the choir's luminous delicacy in the "Quid sum miser" and "Quaerens me" - music of Cistercian purity and austerity - while Toby Spence brings a calm, rapt beauty to the cruelly high solo in the "Sanctus". A magnificent achievement, to be set alongside Colin Davis's recordings of this awesome work.” The Telegraph

“Sullivan’s tuneful score makes for pleasant listening in this recording, planned for the late Richard Hickox, but stylishly conducted by David Lloyd-Jones. A fine British cast is headed by Toby Spence and Geraldine McGreevy, with James Rutherford as the lustful baddie.” Sunday Times, 14th February 2010 ***

“Here at last is a recording...that makes the best possible case for the opera. David Lloyd-Jones conducts with an ideal balance of swagger and lyricism...Anyone who enjoys the serious side of Sullivan, as in The Yeomen of the Guard, will find much to enjoy here” The Observer, 21st February 2010

“That this first fully professional recording so clearly outclasses two previous semi-professional efforts is due above all to David-Lloyd-Jones's dramatic pacing… The three key roles are well cast. Toby Spence admirably balances heroic and lyrical demands... James Rutherford as Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert and Geraldine McGreevy as Rebecca combine to bring the most out of Act 2, Scene 3 - the opera's musical high point.” Gramophone Magazine, March 2010

“Toby Spence is an impeccable Ivanhoe opposite Janice Watson's aristocratic, if effortful Rowena. But it's Geraldine McGreevy and James Rutherford, astonishing as Rebecca and Brian, who will really sweep you away.” The Guardian, 11th March 2010

“We can at last hear what Sullivan conceived - and it's impressive...It deserves the first-rate performance it receives from David Lloyd Jones, a worthy stand-in for Hickox, working with an excellent cast.” BBC Music Magazine, April 2010 *****

“From the lively pomp of the jousting scene, with its brilliant double chorus, to moments of exquisite tenderness and passion, to thrilling battles and powerful drama, this recording makes a compelling case for a monumental work that deserves a modern audience.” Graham Rogers, bbc.co.uk, 9th February 2010

“M is for Mozart, Mackerras and magic. The Australian conductor - surely the world’s most illuminating and rewarding Mozartian - conjures sounds of mercurial brilliance and heart-stopping beauty from the OAE and his all-British cast in this vernacular version of Mozart’s most enigmatic comedy.” Sunday Times, 4th May 2008 ****

“Charles Mackerras, always a rewarding Mozart conductor, directs a taut, urgent account of the opera. Recitatives tumble inevitably into arias. Yet, despite his penchant for mobile tempos, Mackerras is fully alive to Così 's uniquely voluptuous, nostalgic tinta. Crucially in an opera of ensembles, the cast works well as a close-knit team, whether in the concerted numbers or in the recitatives, taken at a natural, conversational pace.” The Telegraph, 3rd May 2008

“This recording lacks an underlying dramatic conviction, despite punchy playing from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment under Mackerras. It's a shame, because Toby Spence, Christopher Maltman, Janice Watson and Diana Montague are nicely matched fair-weather lovers. But the direction seems moot. Lesley Garrett's devilsome maid Despina hams too much to the absent crowd, tonally rather too music-hall for the rest of the recording.” The Times, 12th April 2008 ***

“This is an account of Così which seems to put momentum first. The opening chord, more ferocious than one would expect, gives way to a rattling overture, and tension and pace never let up.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2008 ***

“…the pacing, ebb and flow of the music is near-perfect. In particular, the OAE's woodwind are on ravishing form. Sir Thomas Allen is, a renowned Don Alfonso of authority and warmth… Toby Spence delivers some of the best Mozart tenor-singing I have heard in a long time.” Gramophone Magazine, September 2008

“Sir Peter Moores comments that the phrase 'Così fan tutte' is 'almost impossible to translate' into English. Thus it is that the delivery of Ferrando and Guglielmo's pronouncement, under the cynical tutorship of Don Alfonso, is one of the few lines that have not been translated in this volume of the Opera in English series (Alfonso's exclamation 'Misericordia!' is the other one left intact, and rightly so). Sometimes opera in English sounds too close to Gilbert and Sullivan at their cheesiest, but in a sparkling comedy such as Così fan tutte that is not necessarily a bad thing: in fact this is tremendously enjoyable because it allows Anglophones to concentrate on exactly what the characters are saying. So if Opera in English brings a wider audience closer to the heart of Mozart's and da Ponte's masterpiece, then it can only be a wonderful thing.
Of course, it helps that the music has seldom sounded as glorious as it does in the hands of Sir Charles Mackerras and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Both are consummate Mozartians, and the pacing, ebb and flow of the music is near-perfect. In particular, the OAE's woodwind are on ravishing form. In terms of stylishness, orchestral sound and the sentimen- tal strength of the playing, this Così is on a par with the finest period-instrument versions (Östman and Gardiner), and arguably has more heart than the OAE's previous recording under Sir Simon Rattle (EMI). The three ladies are animated (but not consistently pleasing on the ear), so the three men steal the show vocally: Sir Thomas Allen is, of course, a renowned Don Alfonso of authority and warmth, Christopher Maltman is a suave Guglielmo, and Toby Spence delivers some of the best Mozart tenorsinging in a long time. Although he falls short in softer music, he brings ringing clarity and declamatory emotion to “Tradito! Schernito!” (here “Her ter-reason is poison”).” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Mackerras's sparkling account of this delightful opera comes over surprisingly well in English, for the change of language does not impair the vocal lines...Vocally, Toby Spence, as an attractively ardent Ferrando, is the star of the show, and Christopher Maltman partners him well as Guglielmo.” Penguin Guide, 2010 ***

“This first recording reflects the detail and passion of Vernon Handley's championing of Bantock's kaleidoscopic output, and Stephen Jackson ensures that the choral input is similarly lively and fresh. Toby Spence brings a bright mix of Italianate slancio and English declamation to the Poet, combining well with Catherine Wyn-Rogers's more controlled reading of the Beloved...” Gramophone Magazine, November 2007

“It's a fascinating rediscovery on a huge scale, especially in the detail and depth of SACD surround-sound, seductively performed by Handley's forces, Toby Spence appropriately poetic and Catherine Wyn-Rogers sensuous.” BBC Music Magazine, October 2007 *****

“The London-born Granville Bantock used his early championship of contemporaries – Strauss, Debussy and especially Sibelius, who became a close friend and correspondent – to enrich his own Wagner-nourished sonorities and dramatic ambitions. Because he was British, he fought shy of opera, channelling his gift for theatre into song-cycles (he wrote 40), symphonic tonepoems (he once planned a 24-work cycle), forward- looking multi-media events (Apollo and theSeaman for film projection and orchestra) and oratorios (a 700-page score of Christus).
Writing in the age of Mahler's Eighth and Elgar's three major oratorios, Bantock found 101 quatrains of 12th-century Persian philosophical poetry – in the then widely read (and very free) rendering of Pre-Raphaelite poet Edward Fitzgerald – an irresistible challenge.
He set Fitzgerald's work by feeding his natural gift for effective scoring and mood illustration with his own first-hand impressions of the Mid- dle East. It is to his credit that, throughout the nearly three-hour performance span, genuine symphonic interest rarely flags. His large orchestra calls for two complete, antiphonally placed, string sections, as well as the extra wind and brass that his European heroes were deploying.
The choral part becomes virtuoso in its frequent use of unaccompanied, tricky-to-pitch passages, while three named soloists, the Beloved (mezzo), the Poet (tenor) and the Philosopher (baritone) are continually 'onstage' in roles of operatic length.
This first recording reflects the detail and passion of Vernon Handley's championing of Bantock's kaleidoscopic output, and Stephen Jackson ensures that the choral input is similarly lively and fresh. Toby Spence brings a bright mix of Italianate slancio and English declamation to the Poet, combining well with Catherine Wyn-Rogers's more controlled reading of the Beloved in substantial (and Parsifal-like) duets in Parts 1 and 3 (a highlight and a good startingpoint for samplers). Chandos's sound is suitably lush, occasionally at the expense of the chorus's diction. It's what recordings should be for, and should encourage future festival performances.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“An exemplary performance” Daily Telegraph