Paul Walton is Associate Organist of Bristol Cathedral and is involved in
a number of other musical activities in the city. Here he presents a
programme of British organ music from the twentieth century - some
well-known, some slightly obscure, many arranged from other sources, but
none without interest.
Elgar's Severn Suite exists in
several versions. It started as a test-piece for band, with the composer
arranging it for full orchestra soon after its composition. Later still the
composer's friend Sir Ivor Atkins arranged the work for organ - as the
"Organ Sonata No.2". Atkins' version left out some of Elgar's
music and was generally found wanting in other ways. The present version,
arranged by Jeremy Cull, makes good these deficiencies. Walton ably presents
it with a good deal of Elgarian feeling and with excellent pacing and
clarity of line. This is especially true in the
Introduction and
the succeeding
Toccata, while in the
Minuet Walton pays
attention to the humorous aspects of the piece. He also provides a typically
stirring
Coda (
see review).
Basil Harwood's well-known
In An Old
Abbey was arranged by the composer from a piece for cello and
piano. It is the cello-like elements that Walton emphasizes as well as
showing attention to individual details. Overall, I find this approach
superior to that of Adrian Partington in the set of the complete Harwood
organ music on
Priory. A somewhat similar mood piece is
Herbert
Sumsion's
Intermezzo although I found
this less stimulating than usual with this composer (
see review).
Herbert Sumsion also
appears, as arranger, in the organ version of the Vaughan Williams
Two Hymn Tune Preludes,
better known in their original form for small orchestra. Unfortunately
Walton fails to bring out the varied textures of these pieces and this is
perhaps the least successful item on the disc. Much better is
Walter
Alcock's
Toccata, a piece of
notable structural and emotional variety, all of which features Walton
brings to the fore.
Two of the pieces here were new to me and both proved of interest.
Douglas Steele's
Arioso is lighter than the other pieces on this
disc but quite enjoyable (
see review).
John Cook studied with
Vaughan Williams and then served in posts in Britain and Canada before
becoming Organist and Choirmaster at the famous Church of the Advent in
Boston (USA). His
Five Studies in the Form of a
Sonata is a true sonata with its five sections linked by a
leitmotif. The piece shows both a melodic gift and a strong sense of
structure. The
Prelude is gentle, but probing. Following a
well-executed
Fugue there is an imaginative
Scherzo
featuring varied dynamic changes. The most effective movement is the
Ostinato where the leitmotif functions in the pedals like a tolling
bell. The
Finale has a Holstian jollity but again demonstrates the
composer's structural sense. This piece is a real discovery.
As part of his editorial work for the Chandos William Walton series in the
1990s the late Christopher Palmer (1946-1995 -
link
link)
arranged excerpts from three of
Walton's wartime propaganda
films (and one excerpt from "The Battle of Britain") into
A
Wartime Sketchbook. The
Prologue incorporates music
from
Next of Kin and
Went the Day Well. More recently the
organist Robert Gower has arranged the
Sketchbook for organ and
this showcases Paul Walton's strengths as a performer: good rhythmic sense,
skill in keeping lines clear and an affinity for the unique aspects of a
composer's style. To some degree it also demonstrates the major problem I
found in this recording: Walton's tendency to broaden melodies until they
sometimes lose their vitality. However, given the overall high quality of
Walton's playing, good sound quality and an excellent choice of programme
this disc is a strong and appealing entry.
William Kreindler
