Havergal Brian: Symphonies Nos. 22-24
New Russia State Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Walker
Walker secures fine playing by this unfamiliar orchestra whose brass section, pleasingly, avoid, the excessive vibrato of previous Russian generations.
Havergal Brian: Symphonies Nos. 22-24
New Russia State Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Walker
Purchase product
Walker secures fine playing by this unfamiliar orchestra whose brass section, pleasingly, avoid, the excessive vibrato of previous Russian generations.
About
During the remarkable and prolific period between his 72nd and 92nd birthdays, Havergal Brian wrote no fewer than 27 symphonies. Some seem to fall into groups, such as Nos. 22-24, all written within a nine-month period between 1964 and 1965. They all share a concern for march-rhythms, changeable moods and developing variation. No. 22 is Brian’s shortest symphony and exemplifies his art in its most compressed, nocturnal form, whereas No. 23 offers a more extrovertly scored and expansive scale. No. 24 provides the triumphant rejoicing that ends the trilogy. Influenced by Tchaikovsky, the 1906 English Suite No. 1 nevertheless hints at Brian’s sonic experiments to come.
Contents and tracklist
- New Russia State Symphony Orchestra
- Alexander Walker
- New Russia State Symphony Orchestra
- Alexander Walker
- New Russia State Symphony Orchestra
- Alexander Walker
- New Russia State Symphony Orchestra
- Alexander Walker
Awards and reviews
November 2013
Walker secures fine playing by this unfamiliar orchestra whose brass section, pleasingly, avoid, the excessive vibrato of previous Russian generations.
July 2013
Naxos's sound is clear and precise, the playing of the New Russia State Symphony Orchestra remarkably idiomatic if understandably tentative occasionally.
22nd May 2013
a well assembled and generous disc which, given the presence of the Suite and the wild yet rigorous fantasy of the Symphonia Brevis, serves as a welcoming gateway to Brian enthusiasts existing and potential.
3rd May 2013
no doubt this will be an essential purchase for Brian enthusiasts
11th May 2013
Three cheers...to (of all people) the New Russia State Symphony Orchestra under Alexander Walker for supplying feisty performances of the English maverick’ s Symphonies 22-24 — a dark, dissonant triptych from the mid-1960s.
