Vaughan Williams: The symphonies

[BBMmk2]

Sky Arts have been showing a documentarey on RVW. it's not the normal run of the mill type either! Lots of music and very interesting and I have seen it on amazon too!!

[Nick Armstrong]

Sky Arts have been showing a documentarey on RVW. it's not the normal run of the mill type either! Lots of music and very interesting and I have seen it on amazon too!!

Yes, it's Tony Palmer's "O Thou Transcendent"... I have it on DVD. Very good it is too! My upstairs neighbour Tamas Vasary is conducting some of the musical extracts! (Symphs. 4, 7 & 9).

There's a complete listing of the music here: http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/...lbum_id=191397

[BBMmk2]

Yes, it's Tony Palmer's "O Thou Transcendent"... I have it on DVD. Very good it is too! My upstairs neighbour Tamas Vasary is conducting some of the musical extracts! (Symphs. 4, 7 & 9).

There's a complete listing of the music here: http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/...lbum_id=191397

he has also made a documentary of Walton and Elgar too. And if they are as good as RVW one, well.......

[Pabmusic]

Yes, it's Tony Palmer's "O Thou Transcendent"... I have it on DVD. Very good it is too! My upstairs neighbour Tamas Vasary is conducting some of the musical extracts! (Symphs. 4, 7 & 9).

There's a complete listing of the music here: http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/...lbum_id=191397

It is a very good documentary if you ignore the blatant attempt to impose an editorial view from the outset. Vaughan Williams was a pessimistic man who foresaw all the world's tragedy (even the Tallis Fantasia contains the seeds of nihilism!). He was so traumatised by his experience as a stretcher-bearer in WW1 that everything else he did was related to war and famine.

None of the guest contributors supports this - Michael Kennedy and Ursula in particular show a very different person. And Tony Palmer leaves out things that don't quite fit with his thesis, such as the fact that the traumatised noble stretcher-bearer became an officer in the Royal Artillery (and apparently really enjoyed the technicalities of heavy artillery bombardment).

[Barbirollians]

The 1957 Barbirolli/Halle London really is without compare ! Listened to it on Monday when I should have been listening to John Wilson's concert but it is just so well judged and emotionally it hits the bulls eye.

[akiralx]

The 1957 Barbirolli/Halle London really is without compare ! Listened to it on Monday when I should have been listening to John Wilson's concert but it is just so well judged and emotionally it hits the bulls eye.

Yes, it is indeed very good. I also heard Boult's mono version last month for the first time, and liked it a lot.

The two modern RVW2s I enjoy are Bryden Thomson and (maybe surprising to some) Roger Norrington (his other RVW CDs are not so good).

For some reason Haitink's doesn't appeal as much as others from his excellent cycle.

[Stanfordian]

My favourite RVW symphonic cycle is the Boult with LPO from the 1960s on EMI. Boult's older set doesn't suit my taste. I also admire the series by Previn and the LSO. I guess the Previn is curently unavailable, hence the asking price on amazon.co.uk/com of around £79 for the RCA Red Seal set.

[visualnickmos]

Yes, there are two, both with the Halle (room for confusion here). The Dutton one you have is the earlier and, in my view, better one, recorded in 1957 or thereabouts for Pye-Nixa. There's a later one (1968?) for EMI.

I have an EMI "Poenixa" series CD with the 'London' Symphony (1957) and the 8th (1956) Hallé/Barbirolli. Would I be right in thinking this was originally the Pye-Nixa recording you refer to?

[Barbirollians]

Yes.

[visualnickmos]

Yes.

[Barbirollians]

I also discovered that my 20 month year old son jumped up and down, smiling and pointed at the speakers when the London first movement was played . Up to now he had shown no interest in music except awful dance music or Baa Baa Black Sheep and Row Row Row your boat !

[richardfinegold]

I also discovered that my 20 month year old son jumped up and down, smiling and pointed at the speakers when the London first movement was played . Up to now he had shown no interest in music except awful dance music or Baa Baa Black Sheep and Row Row Row your boat !

A Critic is born!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

A Critic is born!

Unnecessarily insulting don't you think, richard?

Surely; "A Musician is born!"?

[amateur51]

I also discovered that my 20 month year old son jumped up and down, smiling and pointed at the speakers when the London first movement was played . Up to now he had shown no interest in music except awful dance music or Baa Baa Black Sheep and Row Row Row your boat !

A great story, Barbs

[BBMmk2]

I saw a clip of Joshua Bell, incognito, playing JSB's Chaconne and a few passers by stopped a couple of second, eg men, usually on their way to work but it was the children who wanted to listen more. only nitn was their mothers who dragged thyem on rather than staying to listen too.