WILLIAM HENRY FRY (1813-1864)
Santa Claus Symphony
Overture to Macbeth
Niagra Symphony
The Breaking Heart
Royal Scottish National
Orchestra/Tony Rowe
Recorded 1999
NAXOS 8.559057 [Total
playing time
61.13]
Crotchet
AmazonUK
Now no can accuse me of resisting any attempt to explore or revive forgotten
masterpieces or even mediocrities. I've conducted Bruch, Spohr, Stenhammar,
Dyson, Whitlock, Cliffe, and so on but frankly I think I would have put William
Henry Fry on the discard pile at once if I'd had the chance to peruse the
score. He was born in Philadelphia in 1813, died in 1864 and is credited
with being the first native-born American to write for large symphonic forces
and a grand opera. He spent the years 1846-1852 in Europe, and fell for Italian
opera with its bel canto style, best illustrated on this disc by the final
piece The Breaking Heart. The plain truth of the matter, however,
is that you could listen to the whole disc as one work in four movements
rather than four one-movement pieces.
The Santa Claus Symphony, though programmatic, still requires a written
explanation (a contradiction in terms; Beethoven's Pastoral needs
nothing more than movement titles, if that) to clarify all the incidents
it is supposed to depict. There's a feeling that it's all going to break
out into a Sousa march when the exultant brass are in full cry, the harmonic
language is unadventurously diatonic or overly melodramatic with endless
diminished sevenths. There are virtuosic cadenzas for various instruments
which promise better than what often follows (after the one for clarinet
we nearly get diverted to Sullivan's duet 'There is beauty in the bellow
of the blast' from The Mikado - though to be fair to Fry he was 32
years ahead of Sir Arthur!). Much of the problems lie in overkill, Fry doesn't
know when to stop labouring a rhythm or harmony. Still there are some fascinating
ideas which were certainly pioneering ones for the day: After the Xmas party
we get a wordless (thank God, no celestial choir) Lord's Prayer chord by
syllabic chord in the strings followed by 'Rock-a-by-Baby' on the soprano
saxophone, with the baby's breathing mimicked by the accompanying strings.
Into all this stumbles some poor lost traveller (solo double bass) who perishes
in a snowstorm, though quite why, or who he is, is never explained. At last
Santa arrives, but no rotund Ho! Ho! Ho! he on the tuba to get stuck in the
chimney - no he is a rather high-flying bassoon, whip-cracking-away at poor
old Rudolph. A fleeting visit, a quick slide down the chimney and just time
enough to drop off the toys on the unsuspecting (and still heavy-breathing
child) before a shimmering Adeste Fidelis (O come all ye faithful) brings
the whole thing to a grand apotheosis with much repetition of what we've
already heard with the curious addition of Little Bo-Peep (what's she doing
here?). The RSNO do their best but it's a pretty uphill task despite Tony
Rowe's evident belief in it all.
The Macbeth overture is predictably full of melodrama (real silent
movie stuff) which Verdi of course (about 15 years earlier than Fry ) did
better than anyone. Still, there's good writing for the brass chorus and
Rowe encourages a splendidly burnished sound. The tricky high string writing
tests the players, more success in the chattering winds sounding like Rossini
or Donizetti. Niagra gets given the full aquatic treatment, after
an ominously threatening start the falls thunder down with eleven (yes, eleven)
timpani, the strings scales cascading up and down for all they are worth.
Certainly a curiosity worth a hearing, and I admit to adding another star
upon listening to Santa Claus a second time - so give it a try. I
imagine the title will attract a lot of attention to amateur orchestras seeking
popular Xmas programmes, but I suspect that it will prove far too difficult
to play and not really be worth the effort.
Christopher Fifield
Performance
Recording
