England Archive

CHARLES AVISON: Concerti After Scarlatti – Accademia Mandolinistica Pugliese – Digressione Music

CHARLES AVISON: Concerti After Scarlatti – Accademia Mandolinistica Pugliese – Digressione Music

CHARLES AVISON: Concerti After Scarlatti – Accademia Mandolinistica Pugliese – Digressione Music DCTT63, 75:05 [Distr. by Naxos] (10/28/16) ***½: (Leonardo Lospalutti, director/ Mauro Squillante; 1rst mandolin / Gaetano Ariani; 2nd mandolin / Valerio Fusillo; mandolo / Antonio Barracchia; mandocello) Charles Avison’s Scarlatti Concerti treated to an all-mandolin extravaganza. One might imagine that, when Domenico Scarlatti finally published his epochal “essercizi per gravicembalo” in 1742, his fame would have soared back in his native Italy. There, his work would have found both a cultivated audience and the keyboard virtuosi capable of the radical demands of the new music. Moreover, the name Scarlatti would have been a well-recognized brand. But as it happened, it was in England that Scarlatti’s music had the largest influence. Scarlatti was, to quote Burney, “the wonder and delight of every hearer who had a spark of enthusiasm about him, and could feel new and bold effects intrepidly produced by the breach of almost all the old and established rules of composition” (Kirkpatrick, Domenico Scarlatti). Of course, the London music scene was already dominated by Handel and Geminiani.  Continental composers enjoyed a great period of commercial success in the 18th Century. However, the way Scarlatti made his way […]

Trios from Our Homelands” – REBECCA CLARKE: Piano Trio; ARNO BABAJANIAN: Piano Trio; FRANK MARTIN: Trio on Pop Irish Melodies – Lincoln Trio – Cedille

Trios from Our Homelands” – REBECCA CLARKE: Piano Trio; ARNO BABAJANIAN: Piano Trio; FRANK MARTIN: Trio on Pop Irish Melodies – Lincoln Trio – Cedille

We got a duplicate of this, so here is a second review opinion on the same recent CD. “Trios from Our Homelands” – REBECCA CLARKE: Piano Trio; ARNO BABAJANIAN: Piano Trio in f-sharp; FRANK MARTIN: Trio on Popular Irish Melodies – Lincoln Trio – Cedille CDR 9000 165, 64:15 ****: Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979) narrowly lost the Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Chamber Music Award in 1919 for her Viola Sonata. When Mrs. Coolidge revealed the runner-up, she reported, “You should have seen [the judges’] faces when they saw [the sonata] was written by a woman.” It was unheard of for a woman to be a composer in the early 20th century. Clarke also narrowly lost the award in 1921 for her Piano Trio. She went on to write songs and chamber music and lived until the ripe age of 93. Clarke’s Piano Trio is a work of considerable emotional substance and musical creativity. The piano boldly opens the first movement which theatrically alternates sensitive lyricism with rhapsodic drama, ending quietly. The viola sings a wistful lullaby in the folk-like Andante. The cheerful last movement opens with a dance between the strings and piano which is broken by an ardent interlude. The ending […]

Emma Johnson, clarinet – “An English Fantasy” – Works of TODD, READE, DANKWORTH & HAWES – Nimbus Alliance

Emma Johnson, clarinet – “An English Fantasy” – Works of TODD, READE, DANKWORTH & HAWES – Nimbus Alliance

Charming new pieces played wonderfully! Emma Johnson, clarinet – “An English Fantasy” = WILL TODD: Concerto for Emma; PAUL READE: Suite from “A Victorian Kitchen Garden”; JOHN DANKWORTH: Clarinet Concerto – “The Woolrich”; PATRICK HAWES: Clarinet Concerto – with BBC Concert Orch./Philip Ellis – Nimbus Alliance NI6328 [Distr. by Naxos], 69:19 (8/12/16) ****: I have been a fan of the ‘English school’ of clarinet playing and music for many years, now, going back to my growing up listening to the great Gervase de Peyer and Jack Brymer. There is a full, rounded tone quality to English clarinet artistry, a bit ‘darker’ tone quality than the French and just the right touch of vibrato. While Emma Johnson’s tone is not identical to my idol, Gervase de Peyer, she has been one of England’s greatest and best known clarinetists for many years now and one of my favorites! This is an absolutely gorgeous and captivating collection of some modern works written for Emma and the feel of these terrific works runs from the idyllic and pastoral to the overtly jazzy. To start with, the Will Todd Concerto for Emma is a simply wonderful and jazz-inspired work, the center-piece of which is the […]

American Friends (1993)

American Friends (1993)

American Friends (1993)   Cast: Michael Palin, Alfred Molina Director: Tristram Powell Producers: Patrick Cassavetti and Steve Abbott Screenplay: Michael Palin
 Studio: MGM (2/16/16)
 Video: for 16:9 screens Audio: PCM Stereo
 Language: English, no subtitles
 All regions 
Length: 96:00
 Rating: ***1/2 “And now, for something completely different.” I couldn’t resist the analogy. It is doubtful that Michael Palin (and John Cleese, et al) will ever shake off their renown from the iconic British comedy from the 1970s, Monty Python’s Flying Circus; and nor should they, brilliant as it was. This very soft, quiet and lightly amusing story, written by and starring Michael Palin, is one of the few times he has gone out and tried to do some largely ‘serious’ acting. For the most part, it succeeds, on the strength of Palin’s measured but quirky performance as a buttoned up college professor. Palin is the Reverend Francis Ashby, a fairly stodgy professor at St. John’s College Oxford, who goes off on a walking holiday in Switzerland. While high up in the Swiss Alps, Ashby comes across two American women: Caroline Hartley and her beautiful eighteen-year-old ward, Elinor. He begins to find the company of the women a welcome change from […]

HAYDN: Symphonies Nos. 78, 79, 80 & 81 – Accademia Bizantina/ Ottavio Dantone – 
Decca (2 CDs)

HAYDN: Symphonies Nos. 78, 79, 80 & 81 – Accademia Bizantina/ Ottavio Dantone – 
Decca (2 CDs)

Beautifully recorded and rendered, these original instrument realizations of rare Haydn symphonies do everyone honor. HAYDN: Symphony No. 78 in c; Symphony No. 79 in F Major; Symphony No. 80 in d; Symphony No. 81 in G Major – Accademia Bizantina/ Ottavio Dantone – Decca 478 8837 (2 CDs), 54:20, 55:10 (2/12/16) [Distr. by Universal] *****: Recorded June-September 2015, this little-known quartet of Haydn symphonies 78-81 dates from the years 1782-1784, when Haydn still served as kapellmeister to the Esterhazy family in their spectacular summer and winter palaces in Esterháza (present day Hungary) and Eisenstadt (Austria), where the music was first performed. Collectors will know these works through the Antal Dorati editions he led with Philharmonia Hungarica, or individually: for instance, the one symphony familiar to me, the sturm und drang No. 80 in d minor, I first heard in a live broadcast of the New York Philharmonic under Dimitri Mitropoulos. Decca plans a 36-CD edition of the complete Haydn Symphonies as performed on period instruments. We might begin with Dantone’s reading of the said No. 80 in d minor: though not “officially” part of the composer’s sturm und drang compositions, it opens with a fierce gesture in tremolo – […]

ELGAR: Symphony No. 1 in A-flat Major – Staatskapelle Berlin/ Daniel Barenboim – Decca

ELGAR: Symphony No. 1 in A-flat Major – Staatskapelle Berlin/ Daniel Barenboim – Decca

Daniel Barenboim revisits the Elgar Symphony No. 1 with fertile and heroic results.  ELGAR: Symphony No. 1 in A-flat Major, Op. 55 – Staatskapelle Berlin/ Daniel Barenboim – Decca 478 9353, 51:26 (3/11/16) [Distr. by Universal] ****: Sometimes lauded as “England’s first symphony,” the 1908 Symphony No. 1 in A-flat Major of Sir Edward Elgar found an early acolyte in conductor Hans Richter, who saw in the music a more cosmopolitan voice than had been the wont of similar efforts from Stanford, Sullivan and Parry.  For Elgar himself, the model of Brahms – especially his F Major Symphony – stood as a pinnacle of excellence in ‘absolute music,’ a genre specifically avoiding any sense of a ‘program’ in the manner of Richard Strauss.  It seems small wonder that for Barenboim – who has traversed this music prior with different orchestras – should have been influenced by his own Brahms experience – having collaborated with that other Elgar maestro, Sir John Barbirolli, in their Brahms concertos inscribed for EMI. The present recording of the Elgar First Symphony (19-21 September 2015) finds Barenboim and ensemble in an expansive, luxurious mode, opening the famous “noble and simple” motto theme – the germ cell […]

Crimson Peak, Blu-ray (2016)

Crimson Peak, Blu-ray (2016)

A Gothic romance masterpiece from Guillermo del Toro, set in the early 20th century. Crimson Peak, Blu-ray (2016) Cast: Mia Wasikowska, Hessican Chastain, Tom Hiddleston, Charlie Hunnam Director: Guillermo del Toro Studio: Universal Home Entertainment 61163118 (2/9/16) [2 discs] Video: 1.85:1 for 16:9 1080p HD color Audio: English DTS-HD MA 7.1, DTS Headphone 2.0, English DD 5.1 & 2.0, French or Spanish DTS-HD 5.1, Spanish DD 5.1 Subtitles: French, Spanish, English SDH All Regions Extras: On Blu-ray only: “I Remember Crimson Peak,” Primer on Gothic romance, Hand-tailored Gothic, A Living Thing, Crimson phantoms; On DVD disc: Commentary track with del Toro, Deleted scenes, “Beware of Crimson Peak,” “The Light and Dark of Crimson Peak” Length: 238 min. Rating: **** This del Toro effort is full of his usual clockwork gadgets, blood, ghosts and strange little insects. The latter are often moths which constantly flutter all over the place. However the complications of turn-of-the-century costuming and life keeps the director on course for most of the film. The preview pegs it as a horror film, but it’s really more of a Gothic romance/mystery. Edith is an aspiring novelist, sheltered by an older wealthy industrialist/widower. She falls for a seductive stranger, Thomas […]

Elvis Costello – Detour – Live At Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Blu-ray (2016)

Elvis Costello – Detour – Live At Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Blu-ray (2016)

Elvis Costello – Detour – Live At Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Blu-ray (2016) New wave auteur goes solo with forty years of worthwhile material. Cast: Elvis Costello with Larkin Poe (Rebecca and Megan Lovell) Studio: Eagle Vision EVB335309 Director: Joss Crowley Audio: DTS-HD MA 5.1; PCM 2.0 Stereo Video: 1.78:1 for 16:9, 1080i HD Color Length: 121 minutes TrackList: Red Shoes; Watch Your Step; Accidents Will Happen; Church Underground; As; Shipbuilding; I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down; Walkin’ My Baby Back Home; Ghost Train; When I Was Cruel No. 2; Watching The Detectives; If I Had A Hammer; Pads, Paws And Claws; That’s Not Part Of Him You’re Leaving; Down On The Bottom; Blame It On Cain; Alison; A Good Year For The Roses; Side By Side; Jimmie Standing In The Rain; Peace Love And Understanding; Golden Tom/Silver Judas Bonus Tracks: Love Field; Either Side Of The Same Town; Brilliant Mistake; Ascension Day Ratings:    Audio: ****   Video: ****                             Elvis Costello got his start in the pub musical scene in England. He rose to some prominence as part of the New Wave vanguard in the […]