Product Description The final volume of Alwyn's orchestral music in this landmark Naxos series. William Alwyn's prolific output included descriptive scores, and The Moor of Venice Dramatic Overture examines the turbulent central character in Shakespeare's Othello. The Serenade and the orchestral version of Seven Irish Tunes receive premiere recordings here, both covering a wide range of moods. Following the previous recording of Concerto Grosso No. 1, this collection includes Concerto Grosso No. 2, scored for strings only and Concerto Grosso No. 3, a tribute to Sir Henry Wood. Review The first of William Alwyn's Concerti Grossi was included in an earlier instalment of David Lloyd-Jones's excellent series with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic for Naxos. The neo-baroque second, for string orchestra, dates from 1948, and was dedicated to the conductor Muir Matheson, at a time when Alwyn was arguably the foremost British composer of film music. The third, much more piquant, and with an occasional Stravinsky-like abrasiveness, was composed in 1964 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the death of Henry Wood. Like all Alwyn's music, both pieces fulfil their function perfectly, just as the smaller-scale works here the dramatic overture The Moor of Venice and the Seven Irish Tunes arranged into a suite for small orchestra are perfectly judged light music. The equally slight Serenade from 1932, though, is a bit more than that its four short movements have very different starting points an Australian lithograph, quotations from Nietzsche and Browning but they come together in a distinctly pithy and pungent sequence. --Observer,21/08/11Lloyd-Jones,as you expect of a past master in this repertoire,leads his polished Liverpool players in atmospheric performances of tender affection. **** --Classic fm Magazine,Oct'11The performances are lovely, with David Lloyd-Jones approaching each score on its own terms. Performance ***** Recording *** --BBC Music Magazine,Oct'11Attractive and colourful music played with apt energy and drive. --Gramophone awards issue '11Throughout, the playing of this orchestra is quite outstanding, with Lloyd-Jones at the top of his considerable form. As the conductor of so many CDs of Alwyn's music he has the style at his fingertips and the committed nature of the playing clearly has much to do with his belief in the music, which is undoubtedly not misplaced. Very fine orchestral sound in an excellent acoustic. I do not know if there are more issues of Alwyn's orchestral music to come from this source but this new CD is of such high quality that if not I should like to har the team tackle more British music. How about the Liverpudlian John McCabe's output,for instance? --IRR,Dec'11
P**K
Superb Concerti Grossi
Buy this for the Concerti Grossi - wonderful pieces particularly No. 3The 7 Irish tunes are charming but the Moor of Venice is a little too symphonic poem for my taste - not quite "film music" as one reviewer suggests, but I see what he means.Beautifully played, conducted and recorded - shame Naxos didn't use an Alwyn painting as they've done on previous releases in this excellent series.
S**H
alwyn concerti grossi 2 & 3
Naxos's latest instalment in the William Alwyn series consists of a selection of the composer's shorter orchestral works, including the Concerti Grossi Nos. 2 & 3. Also included is the Overture "The Moor of Venice", the Serenade, and Seven Irish Tunes. The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra is conducted by the admirable David Lloyd-Jones.The "Moor of Venice" Overture, after Shakespeare's Othello, was composed at the time of the Third Symphony (1956). After a slow, brooding introduction, full of foreboding, Alwyn makes use of the traditional Willow Song to identify the hapless Desdemona, while the insanely jealous Othello is represented by stormy, brassy music, and the wiles of Iago by a fugal section. A suitably solemn coda concludes the work.Alwyn wrote three Concerti Grossi, the second of which is scored for strings alone, and is very much in the English string tradition fostered by the likes of Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Holst, Howells, Britten, Walton and Tippett. The first movement is vigorous and up-beat, with a more subdued middle section. The central adagio is tender and rather muted, with much interplay between string quartet and tutti. The finale returns to the vigorous mood of the opening. A brief lull in the fast tempo signals an abrupt, decisive close.The Serenade of 1932 consists of four short movements: Prelude, Bacchanal, Air and Finale. Alwyn's masterly orchestration is evident throughout, and much of the music is tender and restrained, although there are some more robust moments, especially in the Bacchanal and Finale.The Seven Irish Tunes (1936) are effectively arrangements of traditional melodies taken from the Petrie Collection. Alwyn includes the obligatory Jig and Reel, contrasting these with one or two more gentle melodies.The Concerto Grosso No.3 was completed in 1964 after Alwyn's move to Blythburgh in Suffolk, and is scored for woodwind and brass as well as strings. It is the brass, in fact, which dominates much of the weighty first movement, with underlying embellishments from the woodwind. The second movement begins "andante" in the strings, but the woodwind dominates in the "vivace" section. In the slow finale it is the turn of the strings to take the lead. There is a Baroque feel to the slow-treading melody that follows the introductory bars, and, apart from a couple of brief climaxes underscored by the brass, the music is thoughtfully serene throughout, and the ending is subdued.Aficionados of English music will no doubt be keen to add this disc to their collection, especially as the Overture and the Serenade are world premiere recordings. Incidentally, the missing Concerto Grosso No.1 is available on the Naxos companion disc, which also includes the Pastoral Fantasia, Autumn Legend, and Five Preludes.
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