Updating folk songs by supplying accompaniments is nothing new. We need
only remember Benjamin Britten’s efforts – which have become classics. Here
Mark Tanner has picked sixteen songs with roots in some cases as far back as
the 13
th century. On the other hand
A Carol by
Candlelight (tr. 10) was written – words
and music – by Mr
Tanner himself as recently as 2009. Of the remaining songs the melody for
The Last Rose of Summer was composed in 1813 by Sir John Stevenson.
We know that there is a human mind behind all the melodies although their
having been passed on through oral tradition they have probably undergone
changes on the way – until they were first written down - and probably after
that as well. I sometimes wonder whether the originator, if he could be
transported with the help of a time-machine to our time, would recognise his
tune and whether he would approve of Mark Tanner’s accompaniments. To put it
bluntly: he would probably not approve of Britten’s accompaniments either –
for obvious reasons since he would be totally unfamiliar with the harmonies,
however mild, with which Britten adorned the songs. Concerning Mark Tanner’s
work the reaction would probably be: strange harmonies and what a lot of
notes.
This latter remark is my main hang-up: the accompaniments are quite
elaborate – technically they are surmountable to allow these arrangements to
be performed – but they tend to rob the songs of their ‘folksy’ simplicity
and draw attention to themselves. Surely the object was to ‘save’ the songs
for posterity. They are inventive and clever, no doubt about that, but they
tend to be obtrusive. Listen to
Greensleeves for instance, to see
what I mean. These songs can stand any treatment and still survive, and many
of them have been victims of quite horrible choral settings, arranged for
dance band and God knows what …
Still I was, after hearing some of these songs, fascinated to hear what
ideas Tanner had about the next song and I have to admit that, after all,
the pleasure I derived from the disc was to be found in the arrangements –
and the melodies, several of which were unfamiliar. It was unavoidable to
pick mainly slow songs, since most tend to be slow, but this also implies
that there is a certain monotony in a programme of this kind. Thus it was a
relief when I reached track 12, three-quarters through the recital, to find
The Mermaid which is a happy, even jolly cabaret-like song.
I am afraid that, what rules this disc out for me is the singing of
Michael George. I have admired him for many years, on record and in the
flesh. I particularly remember a performance in London of Handel’s
Messiah, where he was the bass soloist and I afterwards bought his
recording on Hyperion. A steady, flexible bass-baritone, excellent
enunciation — which he has retained to this very day — and tonal beauty were
his hallmarks then. Alas, much of the steadiness is gone and the singing is
markedly effortful. The tone is worn and rather uneven. He has good
intentions and obviously loves these songs but the voice doesn’t always obey
his intentions. Not everything goes wrong.
The Oak and the Ash (tr.
3) receives a straightforward and full-throated reading, and
O Waly
Waly (tr. 8) is very sensitively sung, but all too often I can almost
visualise how he has to struggle with every phrase. The recording is also a
problem. The piano is very brilliantly recorded – and rather close – while
Michael George seems to be in an altogether different acoustic with
something like a halo around him. At least this was what I experienced when
listening through headphones.
To end on a happy note: the booklet has extensive notes on the origin of
each of these sixteen songs – a fascinating read. I only wish that the
recording could have been made some years earlier.
Göran Forsling
Track listing1. Down by the Salley Gardens
[3:42]
2. Sweet Nightingale [4:07]
3. The Oak and the Ash [2:48]
4. Greensleeves [6:16]
5. The Pool of Pilate [1:45]
6. I Love my Love [3:56]
7. Cold Blows the Wind Today Sweetheart [4:39]
8. O Waly Waly [3:24]
9. Carrickfergus [7:32]
10. A Carol by Candlelight [2:39]
11. Lovely Nancy [4:13]
12. The Mermaid [3:24]
13. Loch Lomond [5:08]
14. Shenandoah [3:26]
15. Londonderry Air [3:39]
16. The Last Rose of Summer [4:15]
