Recorded: St Jude-on-the-Hill, Hampstead Garden Suburb, London, 13-15 July 2010

Dutton Epoch is delighted to present this ear-opening, pioneering traversal of Gordon Jacob’s complete music for viola and orchestra – all world premiere recordings – that covers over fifty years of the composer’s life. Here we have the two numbered concertos and the tuneful Concert Piece (essentially a third concerto) with Graham Parlett’s orchestration of the Three Pieces from 1930. All are played with fine style and characteristic tone by viola soloist Helen Callus accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Stephen Bell. At the RCM Jacob was a composition pupil of both Stanford and Vaughan Williams, and the glorious First Concerto of 1925 was inspired by the playing of Lionel Tertis. Jacob explores the dual nature of the viola, alternating between music headed ‘rugged and virile’ and a plangent ‘gentle and singing’ style particularly appropriate to the viola. All lovers of British orchestral music of this period will surely take the First Concerto to their hearts; the modal slow section theme is fully worthy of his teacher Vaughan Williams in its wide-spanning lyricism and atmospheric orchestration. This is a remarkable work of its time; at the recording sessions, no one could understand why it is not regularly heard.