I would be interested to hear opinions on the respective merits of these composers, music of theirs which stands up today, and any potential for reassessment beside or against Elgar.
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If I may recommend a trio of CDs?
EMI Classics CDM 5 65107 2
Parry: Symphony No. 5 / Blest Pair of Sirens / Symphonic Variations / Elegy for Brahms
LPO/London Philharmonic Choir/Boult
The 5th is the most concise and arguably least self-indulgent of the symphonies.
Helios CDH55061
Nonets by Parry and Stanford
Performed by Capricorn
Hyperion CDA66273
Cathedral Music by Sir Hubert Parry
Choir of St. George's Chapel, Windsor / Roger Judd / Christopher Robinson
(Any or all of these may have been reissued under different numbers since I bought them). -
Great choice. Parry was born in 1848 and died in 1918. So his Centenary year this year. I dohope there's some assessment of his music.Originally posted by LMcD View Post
Lat-Lit, do try Parry's a capella work Songs of Farewell. strongly recommend this.
Parry
Songs of Farewell. Tenebrae, Nigel Short.Don’t cry for me
I go where music was born
J S Bach 1685-1750Comment
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Well I'm a fan,I listen to their music a lot,more than Beethoven even.Originally posted by Lat-Literal View Post
I think the Symphonies of both are underestimated.
Stanford violin concerto.
Marvellous chamber music,Stanford string Quartets,Parry piano trios and Quartet.
Parry Invocation to Music,Stanford Requiem,I could go on.
Experts most likely say the two are not as important as Elgar,probably they are right.
But I think they influenced almost all the British composers that came after,I'm not capable of substantiating that claim,I just sense it.Comment
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Originally posted by LMcD View Post
If you only have one Parry recording in your collection, it has to be this.
My two favourite Stanford works are the Irish Symphony and the Clarinet Concerto. Sadly (or perhaps not) they aren't available paired on a single CD, but some lovely discs of each with very useful "alternate" couplings.Last edited by ferneyhoughgeliebte; 10-03-18, 12:58.[FONT=Comic Sans MS][I][B]Numquam Satis![/B][/I][/FONT]Comment
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What I love about the cover picture is the engine number (1912). The photo was taken at Cromford station.
It could be argued that one criterion of a composer's status is whether he or she has their own 'sound'. Despite not being musically trained, I can usually identify a piece which I might not have heard before by, say, Brahms, Dvorak, Beethoven and so on. That doesn't apply to Parry. His symphonies may be well crafted but are perhaps a little uninspiring (?). If there is a 'Parry' sound, I've yet to discover it, but that's perhaps more of a reflection of my knowledge of these things. The 'Cambridge' symphony' is a pleasant listen. I have the Naxos recording. (In passing, I wonder if they ever intended to record the other 4)Comment
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Couldn’t agree with you more, Ferney!Originally posted by ferneyhoughgeliebte View Post If you only have one Parry recording in your collection, it has to be this.
My two favourite Stanford works are the Irish Symphony and the Clarinet Concerto. Sadly (or perhaps not) they aren't available paired on a single CD, but some lovely discs of each with very useful "alternate" couplings.
For Stanford,Don’t cry for me
I go where music was born
J S Bach 1685-1750Comment
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For even better value and including some Stanford choral music and the Irish Symphony, the Parry CD is part of a 5CD set British Composers Elgar, Stanford and Parry and currently available from Amazon merchants from under £6 plus p&pOriginally posted by LMcD View PostComment
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Oh, I don't agree. Parry (of the two) has easily the more individual sound. It's quite notably diatonic, such that you're not constantly wondering if this is Brahms or Dvorak - as I certainly am with Stanford. It seems to me that Gerald Finzi has much the same Bach-like diatonic quality. In my view, Parry's problem was in saying 'yes' to everything, such that he was always overworked and could skimp on careful revision.Originally posted by LMcD View PostComment
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Spot on for me, too.Originally posted by ferneyhoughgeliebte View Post If you only have one Parry recording in your collection, it has to be this.
My two favourite Stanford works are the Irish Symphony and the Clarinet Concerto. Sadly (or perhaps not) they aren't available paired on a single CD, but some lovely discs of each with very useful "alternate" couplings.
For Stanford,Comment
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Not in the Bach-Parry-Finzi mode I'm thinkking of. (Oh for a piano!)Originally posted by jean View PostComment
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The first piece by Parry I ever heard (apart from Jerusalem) was Blest Pair of Sirens, when it was coupled with Elgar's "The Music Makers" when first released on LP.
I was amazed that it sounded to me to be more Elgarian than Elgar.
Such a master of rich diatonic harmony.Comment
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Thank you ever so much to everyone who has posted.
There is a lot to help me forward here.
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Along with Parry, I'm a great admirer of Stanford's Violin Concerto, which the composer hoped his friend Joachim would perform. He aimed high in this piece, and though some might say that he is too close to his model (Brahms), this is no mere pastiche. Only the folk-tinged finale disappoints slightly, by failing to deliver the necessary heft to balance the first two impressive movements.Comment
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