Arnold, Sir Malcolm (1921-2006)

[Barbirollians]

Whilst he may have been under the care of the Court of Protection in its then form it seems more likely it is an issue with the MOJ .

I suppose the issue is more likely to be the personal information of still living third parties than that of Malcolm Arnold himself.

[Andrew Slater]

I'm coming to the conclusion that the only Arnold I like is the Dances, but I'll persevere!

I would certainly recommend listening to the earlier symphonies a few times, particularly Nos. 2 and 5, before tackling No. 9. In 2011, which would have been Arnold's 90th anniversary, at the festival in Northampton, all nine numbered symphonies were played over a weekend. One prominent old friend of Arnold refused to stay to hear No. 9, which he said was unfair to Arnold's memory, and shouldn't be played. Arnold had gone through a deep trauma and was clearly very ill at the time of writing. It uses very spare textures, mostly two-part harmony, in contrast to his earlier works, which are brimming with tunes and counterpoint. Although I wouldn't go as far as the old friend went, I think a good understanding of Arnold's idiom and the context of his later years are needed to appreciate it as a sincere work. In fact, it could probably be claimed to give some insight into the pain he had suffered. It was conducted at the 2011 festival by John Gibbons, who used slightly faster tempi than are marked in the score, which do help. He later made a recording on the Toccata label, which I would recommend. As a coupling, for light relief, the CD includes the Grand Concerto Gastronomique, for Eater, Waiter, Food and Large Orchestra, another Hoffnung Festival composition. (It would work better on a DVD, I think!)

[Roslynmuse]

Ah, thank you for that correction, it was indeed that Prom that I remember. No wonder I couldn't find a recording of it under Arnold !!?

I'm coming to the conclusion that the only Arnold I like is the Dances, but I'll persevere!

I don't think I have ever heard any of the symphonies but I enjoyed Tam O'Shanter and Beckus the Dandipratt as slightly more substantial pieces than the dances. If I'm honest, I find something slightly chilling about even some of these occasional pieces - the way they seem to freeze-frame and tread water, and the slightly sickly combination of melody and harmony that he sometimes uses. (Peterloo Overture too.) I've accompanied the clarinet and oboe sonatinas many times and find them ultimately quite depressing pieces. I think it must have been Tony Palmer's documentary that was on tv in the 90s - if it was, I agree with Roger's assessment of it as disturbing. There was an image towards the end of it with the camera trained on Arnold's face and it gradually became hideously distorted. Sorry, this is a very subjective view of a composer that many obviously find much more engaging; it's interesting to speculate on why we react so strongly (in my case negatively) to this music.