Quickening

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The strongest item is the four delicate, sensitive settings of Ivor Gurney…The result is a not unattractive, slightly anonymous lyricism…With reasonable sound, this is a pleasant, unchallenging... — Gramophone Magazine, January 2018 More…

Release Date: 8th Sep 2017
Catalogue No: NV6121
Label: Navona Records
Length: 64 minutes

Hugill: Winter Journey

Work length14:22

$3.00

$3.90

$5.25

Johnny Herford (baritone), William Vann (piano)
Recorded: 14-15 November 2016
Recording Venue: Potton Hall in Suffolk, UK

Winter Journey: No. 1, Morning

Track length5:51

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Winter Journey: No. 2, Afternoon

Track length4:26

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Winter Journey: No. 3, Evening

Track length4:05

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Hugill: 4 Songs to Texts by A.E. Housman

Work length12:34

$4.00

$5.20

$7.00

Johnny Herford (baritone), William Vann (piano)
Recorded: 14-15 November 2016
Recording Venue: Potton Hall in Suffolk, UK

4 Songs to Texts by A.E. Housman: No. 1, He Looked at Me

Track length3:24

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

4 Songs to Texts by A.E. Housman: No. 2, He Would Not Stay for Me

Track length1:32

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

4 Songs to Texts by A.E. Housman: No. 3, Because I Liked You Better

Track length2:25

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

4 Songs to Texts by A.E. Housman: No. 4, A.J.J. (When He's Returned)

Track length5:13

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Hugill: When Summer's End is Nighing

Work length4:28

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Johnny Herford (baritone), William Vann (piano)

Hugill: Quickening

Work length18:30

$6.00

$7.80

$10.50

Anna Huntley (mezzo-soprano), Rosalind Ventris (viola), William Vann (piano)
Recorded: 14-15 November 2016
Recording Venue: Potton Hall in Suffolk, UK

Quickening: No. 1, Song

Track length3:24

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Quickening: No. 2, Bitter for Sweet

Track length3:14

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Quickening: No. 3, Two Pursuits

Track length2:41

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Quickening: No. 4, Remember

Track length3:32

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Quickening: No. 5, Withering

Track length1:17

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Quickening: No. 6, The First Spring Day

Track length4:22

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

Hugill: 4 Songs to Texts by Ivor Gurney

Work length14:14

$4.00

$5.20

$7.00

Johnny Herford (baritone), William Vann (piano)
Recorded: 14-15 November 2016
Recording Venue: Potton Hall in Suffolk, UK

4 Songs to Texts by Ivor Gurney: No. 1, Song

Track length2:24

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

4 Songs to Texts by Ivor Gurney: No. 2, Requiem

Track length5:17

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

4 Songs to Texts by Ivor Gurney: No. 3, To His Love

Track length3:27

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

4 Songs to Texts by Ivor Gurney: No. 4, Song and Pain

Track length3:06

$1.00

$1.30

$1.75

About
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About

British composer Robert Hugill’s new release QUICKENING is an enthralling and intimate showcase of contemporary art song. Across the album, Hugill demonstrates an exceptional sensitivity to text and melody, both of which shine through his clear and lyrical musical language. The four sets of songs on the album are consummate modern lieder, and one can easily imagine hearing them at a private vocal recital alongside the Romantic song cycles of the nineteenth century. Hugill’s songs employ a classic approach to vocal writing, and are defined by smooth melodies and supportive accompaniments that establish the setting for the text and vocalist. To this end, Hugill works with fascinating texts on this album, many of which lead to interesting and unusual musical structures. An excellent example of this is the song, “To His Love”, from the set Four Songs to Texts by ivor Gurney. Here, instead of fitting the poetry to a traditional song form, Hugill composes something more closely representative of the text’s narrative, resulting in the sudden quieting of the piano so the song’s last lines are sung in as intimate a setting as possible. The album’s titular work, Quickening, stands out both for its defined form and its instrumentation of mezzo-soprano, viola, and piano. The songs in Quickening flow continuously from one to another, and, with the addition of the accompanying viola, Hugill is able to exploit a variety of textures that are inaccessible in his songs for voice and piano. There is also an attractive lightness to Hugill’s writing for mezzo-soprano, which makes the sound world of the song cycle more inviting. Throughout QUICKENING, both Hugill’s music and the performances of baritone Johnny Herford, violist Rosalind Ventris, mezzo-soprano Anna Huntley, and pianist William Vann convey the essential delicacy and intimacy of a salon-style vocal recital. As a result, the listener cannot help but walk into the world of each song cycle and dream of hearing them in a homey space of their own. Hugill’s songs mark the modern extension of the nineteenth century lieder, art songs that should be in one’s home. Consider the intimacy of these works and the kinds of spaces they evoke. Hugill’s songs respond to there individual texts, so consider the changes in mood and structure across each of the album’s song cycles, as informed by the specific songs’ texts. A striking feature of this album are the settings of the contemporary poems by Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop of Canterbury.

Reviews

January 2018

The strongest item is the four delicate, sensitive settings of Ivor Gurney…The result is a not unattractive, slightly anonymous lyricism…With reasonable sound, this is a pleasant, unchallenging way to spend an hour.

Quickening

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