Adrian Munsey
has enjoyed a long career in film and television both as
producer and distributor, whilst carrying on an interest
in musical composition. This is his second album and it
is varied and very enjoyable.
I recently
heard
Requiem in a concert by the English Sinfonia
at the Cadogan Hall and was stunned by its eloquence and
noble simplicity. Scored for solo violin and small orchestra,
it’s not a Requiem in the Latin Mass sense of the word – there’s
no singing and it’s a mere 5 minutes in duration – instead,
the composer tells us that he wrote the work upon receiving
some news which was “unbearable”. He created this piece
because “I wanted the idea of being able to rest in peace
through its expression to be of some comfort to those who
hear it.” It’s a sumptuous little thing, beautifully laid
out for the orchestra with a singing line floating above,
and sometimes spinning arabesques round, the texture. It’s
worth the price of the CD for this track alone.
Theme
from Images of Nature is a richly scored miniature,
with some very tasty harmonic changes. Indeed, Munsey’s
harmonic movement is one of the hallmarks of these pieces.
The
pieces recorded with the Prague Philharmonic have solo
parts for stringed instruments.
The Right Words (apart
from
Requiem and the songs with texts I have no
idea whatsoever of the meanings of the titles) is basically
a verse and chorus for solo viola, attractively played
by Zdenek Zindel.
The Distance Between is a song
without words for cello, eloquently played by Pavel Belousek;
it contains a most ardent climax.
Beautiful Earth is
another vocalise but with a solo violin. This is music
of longing.
I Would Lay Down My Life for You is
dedicated to the composer’s wife and is another work for
solo violin. The graceful soloist on these two works is
Lucie Svehlova.
To
match the solo string pieces there are also four vocal
works.
Faraway Place is a meditation on a place
where one can rest – perhaps, even though the words journey’s
end are used, this might not necessarily refer to death
for there is a going–to–sleep–to–rest lullaby–like lilt
to the music.
I’ve Been Praying is a more obviously
pop ballad inspired song, with lyrics to match the straightforwardness
of the music. There is a delightful and contrasting middle
section. Elin Manahan Thomas sings these songs with utter
simplicity and a sensibility most appropriate to the sentiments.
The second performance of
Faraway Place is for the
choir with orchestra and is a richly harmonized arrangement.
Voice
of an Angel is a simple prayer for peace, with a lovely
vocal by Keedie. All the songs have lyrics by Jeff Chegwin.
Broadwell (
for
a Village, its Church and its People) is English
pastoral at its most tuneful and restrained. There’s
a lovely oboe solo which informs the music. The longest
work on the disk is
The Sky Inside, a nature impression,
along the lines of Butterworth’s
Banks of Green Willow but
with a more recent harmonic sensibility. There’s
a
YouTube
video to accompany this piece.
There
really is little more to say. The music is very approachable
and most enjoyable. The recordings, made at different times
and various venues, is very good and spacious, but the
Prague sound is a bit too far forward compared to the other
tracks. The booklet is attractive, there’s no notes, with
lots of beautiful black and white photographs. All the
pieces move at a medium pace but there’s sufficient variety
to keep the interest. This is a very attractive programme
of deeply felt, and very genuine, miniatures. Give it a
go, you won’t, I am sure, be disappointed.
Bob Briggs