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See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | Elgar: Cello Concerto
Paul Watkins is the cello soloist in a recording that showcases some of Elgar’s most popular works. He is accompanied by the BBC Philharmonic and Sir Andrew Davis, a conductor steeped in the English music tradition. Elgar studied the violin from a young age, and had some early hopes of making a career as a soloist. Consequently, he wrote for the strings of the orchestra with a special understanding and flair, not least in a handful of works for strings alone. The showpiece among these is the Introduction and Allegro, written in 1904, for the newly formed London Symphony Orchestra to be included in an all-Elgar concert. The premiere performance was conducted by the composer. Elgar started writing his Pomp and Circumstance Marches in 1901 in the wake of his national successes with the Enigma Variations and The Dream of Gerontius. The Marches vary considerably in mood. The First March gained worldwide fame largely due to the trio melody, which Elgar considered ‘a tune that comes once in a lifetime’, and the Second displays a certain air of urgency with its brazen horn calls and jaunty trio. Also on this disc is Elgar’s intimate and restrained Elegy for Strings. The Cello Concerto in E minor, written in 1918 – 19, was the last major work Elgar completed. Its mood is often described as ‘autumnal’, and highly reflective of the ageing composer’s own state of mind. At the time of writing it, Elgar was concerned about the failing health of his wife and about his own waning popularity; he was deeply disturbed, too, by the horrors of the First World War. Paul Watkins writes of his experience of recording this work: ‘It is a privilege to have the opportunity to add my voice to the many different interpretations of this iconic work. I prepared for this recording by using my experience as a conductor: in other words, to study Elgar’s masterful score as deeply as possible, and to realise how intimately the solo cello is linked to the orchestra throughout. In this respect I feel fortunate to have been working with Sir Andrew Davis. He is the most natural and intelligent interpreter of Elgar I know.’ “Poetic pianissimos, abrupt explosions, finely tapered phrases: each of Watkins’s expressive details immediately reach the listener...There’s also perfect rapport between soloist, conductor and orchestra. Watkins’s ten years of conducting experience comes into play here...time and again the ear is moved and beguiled by Watkins’s quiet ache or varied colours or the orchestra’s sheen and fleet panache.” The Times, 6th April 2012 **** “Watkins' account seems the best to have appeared on disc for years. It has intensity, presence and warmth, which never topples over into sentimentality, and Davis and the BBC Philharmonic accompany with panache; the exchanges in the scherzo are wonderfully deft. The rest of disc is equally fine.” The Guardian, 5th April 2012 ***** “Watkins writes in the booklet that he found it “daunting” to record Elgar’s Cello Concerto...but he rises superbly to the challenge. His playing — of exceptional beauty, refinement and technical address — is all the more remarkable given that he is no longer a full-time soloist.... With Davis, one of the most experienced of all Elgarians, as his conductor, this is a valedictory account of the composer’s last important orchestral work” Sunday Times, 22nd April 2012 “Watkins plays with consummate artistry, his golden-toned and technically flawless contribution striking a judicious balance between classical poise and unexaggerated depth of feeling...Durable rewards guaranteed, then, and the same certainly holds true for Davis's dashingly articulate, meticulously observant and superbly musical handling [of the Marches]...for the two main offerings alone every Elgarian should investigate this release” Gramophone Magazine, July 2012 “there are times when a recording of a popular classic comes along that's so fresh, understanding and heartfelt that it demands to be approached solely on its own terms. Paul Watkins's Elgar Cello Concerto is firmly in that class. Watkins's emotional shading is individual, without it ever sounding as though he's trying to be individual.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2012 **** “Paul Watkins is a sensitive soloist, and he and Davis clearly have a special rapport...The BBC Philharmonic strings are richly full-blooded and rhythmically taught in the Introduction and Allegro. There is a wonderful ebb and flow to the lighter passages, which radiate warmth and geniality” Graham Rogers, bbc.co.uk, 25th July 2012 “Davis, an Elgarian of perception, understands the smallest implications in the light but beautiful orchestration, ideal accompaniment to the cello. Watkins is watchful of the detail in the heartfelt opening statement...Watkins and Davis give [the finale]...a distinct dryness of utterance. Much falls into place with this approach” International Record Review, May 2012 “Watkins does so much more than just play the tunes. His range of colour and expression is tremendous, and the instrument he uses he describes in the booklet as having a “combination of burnished woody timbres and a plangent expressivity, reminiscent perhaps of an English tenor voice.”..With stunning recorded sound, what more could one ask.” MusicWeb International, June 2012 | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Elgar: Enigma Variations
Roger Norrington and the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart de SWR present a programme of works by the most English of composers, Edward Elgar. Included is “In the South”, a somewhat neglected masterwork which has rarely been recorded. “Norrington captures the humour, the mercurial changes in mood and shading very plausibly. While one may miss the ripe, luxurious sound of a modern string section, the clarity that emerges has a lot to tell us about Elgar's textures - in this, one may well be reminded of Elgar's own recordings.” BBC Music Magazine, October 2011 **** “the SWR RSO is evidently a fine orchestra, but Norrington's insistence on such a chaste string sound inevitably brings a coolness to music that demands more expressive warmth. In other respects, these performances are uncontroversial” The Guardian, 20th October 2011 *** | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Yehudi Menuhin / Sir Adrian Boult
Recorded 1965, 1975 & 1969 | |
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“Our Hunting Fathers … is easily the most vivid version of Britten's earliest masterpiece to appear on disc.” Guardian, May 2005 | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. (Available now to download.) |
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| |  | English Orchestral Works
“the Delius items...are lovely performances, warm, tender and eloquent. They are superbly played and recorded in a splendid acoustic. The recording is beautifully balanced - the distant cuckoo is highly evocative.” Penguin Guide, 2011 edition | | | (Sorry, download not available in your country) | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | English String Festival
“The playing is strongly felt.” Penguin Guide | | | (also available to download from $6.00) | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. (Available now to download.) |
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| |  | Barbirolli in New York: The 1959 Concerts
Barbirolli: | An Elizabethan Suite Recorded 10th January, 1959 | Brahms: | Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77 Recorded 18th January, 1959 Berl Senofsky (violin) | Elgar: | The Dream of Gerontius, Op. 38 Recorded 25th January, 1959 Richard Lewis (tenor), Maureen Forrester (contralto), Morley Meredith (baritone) Westminster Choir Introduction & Allegro for strings, Op. 47 Recorded 3rd January, 1959 William Lincer (viola), John Corigliano & Leopold Rybb (violin) & Laszlo Varga (cello) | Haydn: | Symphony No. 88 in G major Recorded 10th January, 1959 | Holst: | The Planets: Mars The Planets: Mercury The Planets: Uranus The Planets: Jupiter Recorded 18th January, 1959 | Mahler: | Symphony No. 1 in D major 'Titan' Recorded 10th January, 1959 | Vaughan Williams: | Symphony No. 8 in D minor Recorded 3rd January, 1959 |
Barbirolli conducted the New York Philharmonic from 1936 to 1943 and returned to New York in 1959 to conduct the orchestra in a series of concerts featuring English repertoire rarely heard by Americans. Here are the best performances of Sir John’s visit, previously unissued, in state-of-the-art digital restorations. Includes “Dream of Gerontius” with Richard Lewis, a very fine Gerontius. “[Gerontius] anticipates the superlative studio recording Barbirolli and Lewis made together with Janet Baker five years later, though Maureen Forrester is a more than capable Angel here and the baritone, Morley Meredith, is arguably superior to his later equivalent...The mono sound is patchy but just about serviceable, but Barbirolli fans won't worry about that.” The Guardian, 23rd September 2010 *** | | | (also available to download from $28.00) | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. (Available now to download.) |
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| |  | London Philharmonic Orchestra plays Elgar
Elgar: | Symphony No. 1 in A flat major, Op. 55 recorded 1972 Sir Georg Solti Symphony No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 63 recorded 1980 Vernon Handley Enigma Variations, Op. 36 recorded 1985 Sir Charles Mackerras Sea Pictures, Op. 37 recorded live 1984 Dame Janet Baker (contralto) Vernon Handley Violin Concerto in B minor, Op. 61 recorded 1954 Alfredo Campoli (violin) Sir Adrian Boult Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85 recorded 1972 Paul Tortelier (cello) Sir Adrian Boult Falstaff - Symphonic Study in C minor, Op. 68 recorded 1956 Sir Adrian Boult The Sanguine Fan, Op. 81 recorded 1973 Sir Adrian Boult Introduction & Allegro for strings, Op. 47 recorded 1972 Sir Adrian Boult Chanson de Nuit, Op. 15 No. 1 recorded 1967 Sir Adrian Boult Chanson de Matin, Op. 15 No. 2 recorded 1967 Sir Adrian Boult Froissart Overture, Op. 19 recorded 1933 Sir Edward Elgar Elegy for strings, Op. 58 recorded 1933 Sir Edward Elgar Cockaigne Overture, Op. 40 'In London Town' recorded 1976 Sir Georg Solti Contrasts, Op. 10 No. 3 recorded 1933 Sir Edward Elgar Coronation March, Op. 65 recorded 1935 Sir Landon Ronald Serenade for Strings in E minor, Op. 20 recorded 1933 Sir Edward Elgar In the South (Alassio), Op. 50 recorded 1979 Sir Georg Solti Imperial March, Op. 32 recorded 1975 Sir Charles Mackerras |
32-page booklet includes photographs of the conductors at work, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Elgar. “What a brilliant idea of the LPO to gather together Elgar recordings from many different sources, some rare and unexpected. They range from the composer's recordings with the newly founded LPO to Sir Charles Mackerras and Vernon Handley in the 1980s. Most Elgarians will know the great majority, but it is many years since the Campoli recording of the Violin Concerto, fresh and urgent, was freely available.
The nobility in 'Sabbath Morning at Sea' is heart-stopping, from full-throated richness down to a hushed pianissimo on 'brooded soft on waters deep', and the attack in 'The Swimmer' is thrilling. Handley beautifully conjures up the surge of the sea in the brilliant orchestration.
Sir Adrian Boult is the principal contributor to the set in recordings from a number of labels.
The excellent transfer gives wonderful body to the mono recording of the Violin Concerto while Falstaff, Boult's 1956 Nixa recording, has a restricted frequency range but still reveals plenty of detail, the close chilling. It is good, too, to have Paul Tortelier's warm and steadily paced reading of the Cello Concerto, and Handley's noble CfP version of the Second Symphony is valuable for the use of organ to reinforce the bass at a key point in the finale. Mackerras's Imperial March, made for Reader's Digest, is a rarity, and his other contribution, a 1985 Enigma Variations (EMI Eminence), brings an unusually slow 'Nimrod'.
It is good to have Elgar's own beautiful account of the Serenade for Strings, spacious in the slow movement, and his Froissart. From the 1930s, too, an excellent Coronation March by Sir Landon Ronald sounds wonderfully rich for the period. Solti's Decca recordings have tingling clarity and brilliance, warmth and panache.
A wonderfully rich collection that all Elgarians should try to hear. Praise must go to the transfer engineers.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 “Most cherishable of all is a Sea Pictures with Janet Baker and Vernon Handley, a live recording from 1984 that was rescued from the Capital Radio archives; it's a wonderful alternative to the much-loved LSO/Barbirolli version. Baker's voice is still gloriously rich, and the live occasion inspires a performance of great urgency and intensity. A wonderfully rich collection that all Elgarians should try to hear.” Gramophone Magazine, July 2007 “... the other performance conducted by Handley is a gem ... a live performance of Janet Baker singing Sea Pictures .... Baker is on radiant form passionately engaged and in superb voice too…” International Record Review, June 2007 “....special interest attaches to a previously unreleased recording of the Sea Pictures by Janet Baker …” The Observer, April 2007 | | | (also available to download from $33.00) | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. (Available now to download.) |
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