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Eric Coates: Orchestral Works, Vol. 3
BBC Philharmonic, John Wilson
Awards:
-
Presto Editor's Choice, June 2023
John Wilson’s third volume devoted to Coates...is played with all the relaxed, charismatic charm we have come to expect from the British conductor’s recordings. Fabulous stuff.
Eric Coates: Orchestral Works, Vol. 3
BBC Philharmonic, John Wilson
Purchase product
Awards:
-
Presto Editor's Choice, June 2023
John Wilson’s third volume devoted to Coates...is played with all the relaxed, charismatic charm we have come to expect from the British conductor’s recordings. Fabulous stuff.
About
John Wilson's third volume of the music of Eric Coates combines some of the composer's larger-scale works with miniatures and two marches. The Cinderella Phantasy frames the well-known fairy-tale from Cinderella's perspective, glossing over the more brutal elements of the original, with some notably descriptive writing for the dream sequences, the ball and of course the happy ending. The Three Men is to some extent autobiographical, as Coates explores his love of his native Nottinghamshire countryside, his love for London and his love of the sea. The Three Elizabeths is a suite of portraits of three great figures in English History - Queen Elizabeth I; Elizabeth of Glamis (then the Queen Consort, now remembered as the Queen Mother), and Princess Elizabeth (who of course became Queen Elizabeth II). Lost Love is a wistful Romance written in 1939, while the much later Sweet Seventeen is a beautiful waltz, inspired by Eric and his wife Phyliss? love of dancing. In fact, the title refers to his first date with Phyllis, at the Blenheim Restaurant, the day before her seventeenth birthday. Two marches complete the programme - the Television March was commissioned by the BBC (just three weeks before the date of broadcast!) for the resumption of television broadcasting in 1946. The Dam Busters March was used as the main title for Michael Anderson?s 1955 film and is arguably the composer's most widely known work.
Contents and tracklist
Awards and reviews
-
Presto Editor's ChoiceJune 2023
September 2023
John Wilson’s third volume devoted to Coates...is played with all the relaxed, charismatic charm we have come to expect from the British conductor’s recordings. Fabulous stuff.
Nov/Dec 2023
John Wilson is a natural conductor for this material. He has a feel for its jazz elements, he encourages his musicians to let go when appropriate, and he elicits crisp playing. Chandos’s rich recorded sound also provides clarity, and the program notes by Richard Bratby are extremely informative.
August 2023
The Dam Busters march became the biggest and final hit of Coates’s career. John Wilson’s way with it – letting that tune glide in almost imperceptibly, relishing the moment when the violins decorate it, like sprinkling icing on a cake – typifies his approach.
June 2023
This is an hour of pure delight, from the characterful little 'Television March' which Coates composed for the BBC in 1946 to the touching portrait of the late Queen as a girl which closes The Three Elizabeths. The famous 'Dambusters' March' is delivered with a welcome lightness of touch, and the sea-shanty-cum-fugue on 'Three Blind Mice' in 'The Man from the Sea' (from the Three Men Suite) is enormous fun.
3rd June 2023
The BBC Philharmonic plays with buoyancy and style. The booklet notes are invaluable: a slice of British history compressed into a few well chosen words.
