John
Garth was born at Witton le Wear in County Durham, and for many
years lived in Durham, organizing public concerts there. This
set of Concertos was dedicated to the Duke of York, a cellist
of considerable ability, and was followed by sets of sonatas
for strings and keyboard and of organ voluntaries. The composer
had needed suitable music to demonstrate his own prowess on
the cello, as at that time no such pieces had been published
in Britain. He first played one of them in 1753 in the Assembly
Rooms in Durham , the others following over the next few years.
All are in three movements and according to the booklet this
is their first recording. Although Gerald Finzi edited No. 2
nearly sixty years ago, the remainder have not been available,
as far as I know, since their original publication. They are
recorded here in an edition by Gordon Dixon with cadenzas by
Richard Tunnicliffe. One oddity is that the title page to the
original publication, reproduced in the booklet, refers to them
as being for “four violins, one alto viola and basso ripieno”,
but the orchestra here has only two violins. Possibly the original
issue of two copies of each of the violin parts was simply a
relic of the time of the Concerto Grosso, but it would have
been interesting to have had the performers’ views on why they
did not employ two more violinists - other than the obvious
financial considerations.
The
lengthy and helpful booklet notes explain the likely origin
of the forms used in these works, deriving in part from Avison,
his fellow North-Eastern composer, together with the more modern
gallant style coming into fashion. C.P.E. Bach may well have
been the main influence in terms of their overall form. The
general cut of the themes is very typical of the period, but
Garth does show considerable powers of invention, avoiding cliché
and turning corners with grace and wit. The slow movements are
particularly attractive, especially that of No. 2 which may
perhaps have been the reason that led Finzi into editing it.
The performances are excellent, with Richard Tunnicliffe irresistibly
mixing grace and virtuosity. The recording is clear without
sounding clinical or fierce.
Maybe
these discs do not fill a major gap in the range of recorded music,
but in performances such as these the present Concertos give immense
pleasure.
John Sheppard
