News and Announcements (updated April 2011)

Bax's Second Symphony at the London Proms in August:  Andrew Litton and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra will perform Bax's Second Symphony at the Royal Albert Hall on August 16, 2011 as part of this year's Proms Season.  This is the first Bax symphony to be played at the Proms in nearly 25 years and the first public performance of the Second Symphony since the early 1970s.   The program also includes music by Copland, Bartok and Prokofiev.  Ticket information is available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/whats-on/2011/august-16/50.

New Recording of Bax's Second Piano Concerto on Centaur Label:   The pianist Philip Adamson has recorded a recital of 20th Century British Piano music that includes Bax's Second Sonata.  Other work on this disc include Humphrey Searle's Vigil, Op. 3;  Frank Bridge's  Lament for Catherine, In Autumn: Retrospect; In Autumn: Through the Eaves and Bridge's Piano Sonata.  The disc is released in May and can be ordered at http://www.centaurrecords.com/search_engine.php?session=50&category=new_releases. CRC 3060

Bax's 'A Rabelaisian Catechism (La foi d'la loi)' has just been published by Fand Music Press and is available from its website (www.fandmusic.com) for £9.95. This arrangement for baritone and piano of a ribald traditional French folksong was made in 1920 and has never been published until now.

Chandos non-committal regarding follow-up recordings of Bax's Tone Poems: Chandos has not yet confirm whether Edward Gardner will be recording a follow-up disc of Bax Tone Poems for the Chandos label.  Chandos had announced earlier that Gardner would be continuing the Tone Poem series started by Vernon Handley but Chandos has not committed to a continuation of that series by Gardner.  Works that await new recordings include the original version of "Christmas Eve in the Mountains", the early Symphonic Variations for Orchestra and a new recording of Bax's Phantasy for Viola and Orchestra.

Donations being sought for creation of a ‘Vernon Handley Foundation’:  A new foundation honoring the memory of the late Vernon Handley is being created with the intent of promoting the performance of rarely-heard British music and supporting young orchestral musicians and aspiring orchestral musicians.  The Foundation hopes to create an endowment fund that will be used to support the Foundations aims in perpetuity.   Those interested in donating or finding out more about the Foundation should contact Peter Sheeran at 07710-807921 (in the UK) or by e-mail at: peter.sheeran@btinternet.com. 

Join the Bax Yahoo Discussion Group: A Yahoo discussion group has been created devoted to Sir Arnold Bax. Those interested in joining should visit the group's web site at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Arnoldbax/. This group will be a collecting point for feedback about every aspect of Bax's work.