Arnold, Sir Malcolm (1921-2006)

[Andrew Slater]

Incidentally the 16th International Malcolm Arnold Festival was held online over this very weekend. If as last year recordings are made available online, I'll post a link here.

The four sessions of the 2021 Arnold Festival are now available online here.

[Serial_Apologist]

The four sessions of the 2021 Arnold Festival are now available online here.

Wow, fantastic - and thanks very much for this, Andrew!

[Andrew Slater]

Wow, fantastic - and thanks very much for this, Andrew!

I'm just the messenger!

[Serial_Apologist]

I'm just the messenger!

But very just!

[bluestateprommer]

From this side of the pond, a recent NYT article by Hugh Morris about Malcolm Arno

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/26/arts/music/classical-music-malcolm-arnold.html

[Piazolla]

I caught the midday concert with the BBC Concert Orchestra yesterday (8th) and the Arnold ballet music they played was quite remarkable, I seem to remember it being said it was the first performance since 1955, What's going on here, this is top rank music!

[EnemyoftheStoat]

I caught the midday concert with the BBC Concert Orchestra yesterday (8th) and the Arnold ballet music they played was quite remarkable, I seem to remember it being said it was the first performance since 1955, What's going on here, this is top rank music!

Thanks for the heads up, Piazolla. I'm downloading that one on Sounds not just on account of the Arnold but also for the Rawsthorne, another underperformed composer.

[Andrew Slater]

The 18th Malcolm Arnold Festival is due to be held in Northampton on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th October 2023, with a follow-up 'online day' on Sunday 29th October.

[teamsaint]

Just reading some liner notes to the London Festival Orchestra disc of Sinfoniettas etc, and they mention that Arnold regarded Berlioz as his most important model.
I wondered if anybody has thoughts about how this might clearly manifest itself in Arnold’s music ?

[Pulcinella]

Just reading some liner notes to the London Festival Orchestra disc of Sinfoniettas etc, and they mention that Arnold regarded Berlioz as his most important model.
I wondered if anybody has thoughts about how this might clearly manifest itself in Arnold’s music ?

His Wiki article also mentions this:

Arnold was a relatively conservative composer of tonal works, but a prolific and popular one. He acknowledged Hector Berlioz as an influence, alongside Gustav Mahler, Béla Bartók and jazz.^[9]

[9], which might apply to the whole list or just to the jazz component, I suppose, is a reference to his obituary in the Telegraph.
I can't say I'd noticed any influence (though I don't know that much of Berlioz' music); perhaps he was just an admirer of Berlioz' orchestration and treatise thereon.

PS: Which recording do you have, ts?
These look curiously similar but subtly different.

https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/works/123066--arnold-sinfonietta-no-2-op-65/browse

[smittims]

On another occasion he said Sibelius!

I think he was referring to orchestration. He praised the clarity and transparency of Berlioz' orchestration . He said that , later, too much emphasis had been given to the middle of the orchestral sound (extra horns, Wagner tubas, saxophones, etc) and not enought to the outer edges . He realised that , unlike the piano, the orchestra is relatively weak at its. extremeities. Note how he often uses the piccolo and bass tuba, while he once said 'I've never scored for cor anglais in my life'.

I'm indebted here to Murray Schafer's splendid book 'British Composers in Interview. ' A copy could once be found in many of our once-excellent public libraries .

[Serial_Apologist]

On another occasion he said Sibelius!

I think he was referring to orchestration. He praised the clarity and transparency of Berlioz' orchestration . He said that , later, too much emphasis had been given to the middle of the orchestral sound (extra horns, Wagner tubas, saxophones, etc) and not enought to the outer edges . He realised that , unlike the piano, the orchestra is relatively weak at its. extremeities. Note how he often uses the piccolo and bass tuba, while he once said 'I've never scored for cor anglais in my life'.

I'm indebted here to Murray Schafer's splendid book 'British Composers in Interview. ' A copy could once be found in many of our once-excellent public libraries .

I too have the Shafer book, which I bought back in the 60s in a little bookshop in Soho.

The main influences on Arnold were I would think Vaughan Williams, Walton and Sibelius, but also Shostakovitch, Mahler, the mischievous side of Poulenc and other representatives of Les Six. He was an eclectic who usually managed to mix unlikely influences together into his own, undoubtedly rather "British", soundworld.

[teamsaint]

His Wiki article also mentions this:

Arnold was a relatively conservative composer of tonal works, but a prolific and popular one. He acknowledged Hector Berlioz as an influence, alongside Gustav Mahler, Béla Bartók and jazz.^[9]

[9], which might apply to the whole list or just to the jazz component, I suppose, is a reference to his obituary in the Telegraph.
I can't say I'd noticed any influence (though I don't know that much of Berlioz' music); perhaps he was just an admirer of Berlioz' orchestration and treatise thereon.

PS: Which recording do you have, ts?
These look curiously similar but subtly different.

https://www.prestomusic.com/classica...2-op-65/browse

I have the Arte Nova disc. Odd the same orchestra and conductor recorded exactly the same works less than a decade apart.
Perhaps the Hyperion disc was a shambles and they wanted a second go !!

[teamsaint]

On another occasion he said Sibelius!

I think he was referring to orchestration. He praised the clarity and transparency of Berlioz' orchestration . He said that , later, too much emphasis had been given to the middle of the orchestral sound (extra horns, Wagner tubas, saxophones, etc) and not enought to the outer edges . He realised that , unlike the piano, the orchestra is relatively weak at its. extremeities. Note how he often uses the piccolo and bass tuba, while he once said 'I've never scored for cor anglais in my life'.

I'm indebted here to Murray Schafer's splendid book 'British Composers in Interview. ' A copy could once be found in many of our once-excellent public libraries .

Very interesting, thanks. Worth a few quid that book.

[Andrew Slater]

The 19th Malcolm Arnold Festival was held in Northampton last Saturday (19th October 2024). There's a follow-up 'online day' from 11am this coming Sunday, 27th October. I believe that a recording of it should be available from a few days afterwards for a while. (Last year's was available for almost the whole year.)

Here's a link to the online festival:

https://malcolm-arnold-festival.livevideostream.co.uk/