Britten

[EnemyoftheStoat]

Does anyone know why George Malcolm was asked to conduct the first recording (a thrilling one!) and why Britten didnt take the helm himself? BB obviously held GM in high regard as they alternated as conductors for the premier of Midsummer Nights Dream at Aldeburgh.

John Amis, in his obit of George Malcolm, comments that he often directed the Cantata for BB; it would seem logical for him to record it as well: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/ob...m-1235845.html

[Gary Freer]

He wanted a more 'continental' treble sound - by contrast with a more hooty (if beautiful) Willcocks style sound - for that and some other pieces.

These were very young musicians singing new music, best to leave their regular choirmaster to get the best out of them.

[BBMmk2]

He wanted a more 'continental' treble sound - by contrast with a more hooty (if beautiful) Willcocks style sound - for that and some other pieces.

These were very young musicians singing new music, best to leave their regular choirmaster to get the best out of them.

GM rather liked the more continental sound of choirs, for some reason. I don't know why what's wrong woth the British sound, really.

[Barbirollians]

Not even Kathleen Ferrier can save the Spring Symphony for me - how it escaped being in my five pieces I would be happy never to hear again I cannot imagine !

[BBMmk2]

Kathleen Ferrier - EEk!

[Pulcinella]

According to November's BBC MM, which arrived today, the Radio 3 evening concert on Wednesday 1 November includes Britten's Piano Concerto No. 1, Recitative and Aria for Piano and Orchestra.
This will be new to me; anyone else know it or even of it?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

According to November's BBC MM, which arrived today, the Radio 3 evening concert on Wednesday 1 November includes Britten's Piano Concerto No. 1, Recitative and Aria for Piano and Orchestra.
This will be new to me; anyone else know it or even of it?

Presumably, this is a performance of the original 1938 version of the Britten Piano Concerto, with the Third Movement (Recitative & Aria) which was subsequently replaced by the "Impromptu": Andante lento in the 1945 revision of the work?

[Pulcinella]

Presumably, this is a performance of the original 1938 version of the Britten Piano Concerto, with the Third Movement (Recitative & Aria) which was subsequently replaced by the "Impromptu": Andante lento in the 1945 revision of the work?

Should have thought of that!
Though calling it Piano concerto (original version) might have helped.
We shall have to wait and see (hear) what gets served up!

[pastoralguy]

I have a friend who doesn't feel that Britten deserves to be called a genius. To cure this, I'm going to give him the composer's own recording of 'Peter Grimes' and wait to see if the penny drops.

He's by no means my favourite composer but I would still rate his music very highly.

[visualnickmos]

I have a friend who doesn't feel that Britten deserves to be called a genius. To cure this, I'm going to give him the composer's own recording of 'Peter Grimes' and wait to see if the penny drops.

He's by no means my favourite composer but I would still rate his music very highly.

For what it's worth, in my books, anyone who can compose music is most definitely deserving of the epithet 'genius'.

[Barbirollians]

For what it's worth, in my books, anyone who can compose music is most definitely deserving of the epithet 'genius'.

Einaudi ?

[BBMmk2]

Einaudi ?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Einaudi ?

With his royalties, he should be called "Dreimercs".

[LMcD]

Can anybody out there cast light on an apparent contradiction? I've just been listening to, and greatly enjoying, Britten's 'Spring Symphony' (fittingly 'on a particularly lovely spring day in East Suffolk', which comment I believe was made by Britten and led to the use of English verse rather than Latin text)
Compare the following:
'Koussevitsky generously ceded the first performance to the Holland Festival in Amsterdam on 9 July 1949' (so says Michael Kennedy in the liner notes to the 10-CD 'Britten Conducts Britten' set. However, according to Humphrey Carpenter's biography: 'Koussevitsky was not pleased that, yet again, a Britten work commissioned by him did not receive its first hearing at Tanglewood, and Britten wrote to him to apologize....'

[bluestateprommer]

Minnesota Opera has produced a socially distanced and staged for video performance of Albert Herring, with the newly-DBE'ed Jane Glover on the podium, via this link:

https://mnopera.org/season/2021-spring-season/albert-herring/

The "price of admission" is your name and e-mail address, with the video available through June 5. Have watched Act I, and as long as you don't mind that very little attempt is made at English accents, it's pretty good so far. Of course, the uptightness about 'morality' transcends borders, and is all too apparent on this side of the Atlantic from hypocritically sanctimonious Republicans. There is one cute, if that's the term, reference to the pandemic in the staging besides the general social distancing of the performers, which I won't spoil.