It’s often said of
buses that you wait ages for one and
then two come along together. Well,
that’s not quite true of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s
Violin Concerto but it’s still quite
remarkable that after the work has suffered
decades of almost complete neglect two
CD recordings have appeared within the
space of about a year.
The first to appear
was the pioneering effort on Avie by
Philippe Graffin and the Johannesburg
Symphony Orchestra conducted by Michael
Hankinson. My colleague, Rob Barnett
gave that recording a warm welcome and
I refer readers to his review
for a full discussion of the recorded
performance history of the work and
much well-informed comment about the
music itself.
Now Anthony Marwood
enters the lists for Hyperion. It’s
been fascinating to compare the two
versions. One big difference, which
markedly affected my appreciation of
the performances, comes in the recorded
sound itself. Graffin and his colleagues
have been recorded in a studio. This
results in a more forward, but not unmusical
balance and as a consequence much more
detail is audible. I think the sound
also contributes to the impression that
in the Avie recording the music is more
strongly projected. By contrast, Marwood
has been recorded in a church, where
the acoustic is warmer but more resonant.
The orchestra in particular is placed
noticeably further back in the aural
perspective. Some may prefer this as
a more natural, "concert hall"
balance. Initially I quite liked the
sound but when I came to play each movement
first by Marwood and then by Graffin
I quickly came to feel that the choice
of venue was something of a miscalculation
on Hyperion’s part. But, as I’ve implied,
that’s a matter of personal taste and
some listeners may well appreciate the
Hyperion sound.
Anthony Marwood is
a fine, eloquent violinist, possessed
of an outstanding technique. In Martyn
Brabbins he has a sympathetic partner.
However, Graffin and Hankinson make
a notable team as well. Marwood’s account
of the concerto is sensitive and enjoyable
and so far as I could tell without access
to a score the performance is accurate
and idiomatic. I have to say, however,
that on balance I found Graffin to be
just that bit more imaginative. To my
ears he seems to find more light and
shade, more expressive nuances, more
fantasy in the music. For instance,
Marwood’s very first entry is ear-catching,
as it should be, but I like the way
Graffin just holds back slightly at
the very top of that entry: a point
is made subtly but tellingly. The thematic
material of the first movement has its
weaknesses (the slightly martial first
theme wears a bit thin, I find) but
Graffin and Hankinson constantly lead
the listener on in a way that Marwood
and Brabbins, for all their many excellent
qualities, don’t quite match.
The slow movement is
an enchanting creation. Much of the
music is ruminative and it’s full of
melodic interest. It is, I think, the
highlight of the work. Marwood spins
a lovely line and Brabbins supports
him sensitively. The last couple of
minutes of the movement are quite lovely.
We hear a reprise of the material from
the opening. At the start of the movement
this was given to the orchestral violins.
Now, for the reprise the soloist joins
them (track 2, 7’31" – 8’12").
It's a passage of gently aching nostalgia
which Marwood and Brabbins perform quite
magically. Graffin isn’t quite as inward
at this point. Overall, however, I liked
his account of the movement just as
much as Marwood’s. In the middle of
the movement Graffin and Hankinson choose
a slightly broader pace and their account
gains somewhat over Marwood and Brabbins
as a result by being more warmly romantic.
The main burden of
the finale is a catchy, scampering rondo
into which Coleridge-Taylor weaves reminiscences
of both the preceding movements. There’s
little to choose between the two performances
except that for the faster music the
speed in the Graffin version is a little
bit brisker, This and the closer recording
means that the Johannesburg orchestral
players sound as if they impart more
punch to the rhythms than do their Scottish
colleagues.
On balance, despite
the many merits of the newcomer, I have
a definite preference for the Avie version,
both as a performance and as a recording.
However, heard in isolation the Hyperion
performance will give much pleasure
for it is a fine account in its own
right.
Therefore choice may be determined by
the coupling. Avie provide a fine performance
of the concerto by Dvořák, which
makes a most apposite partner for the
Coleridge-Taylor. Hyperion, however,
give us something much more rare and
enterprising.
I’ll come clean at
once and say that I don’t recall ever
before hearing an orchestral work by
Sir Arthur Somervell. Like most music-lovers,
I guess, I have previously heard only
his songs, on which his posthumous reputation
now rests. His Violin Concerto dates
from 1930 and he wrote it for Adila
Fachiri, the sister of Jelly d’Aranyi.
This information comes from the typically
informative and interesting notes by
Lewis Foreman. It would appear from
his essay that the concerto has not
been heard at all since about 1933 until
the sessions for this, its première
recording, took place. That’s a great
shame for while I don’t think it’s as
fine a work as the Coleridge-Taylor
it is, as Lewis Foreman says, a "straightforward
and heart-warming work."
Structurally I think
it’s rather unbalanced. The work lasts
for 33 minutes in this performance,
and the first movement occupies 18’21"
of this time. There is a broad, confident,
rather Elgarian feel to the music though,
ultimately, it lacks the distinction
of Elgar. I think in all honesty that
the movement would have been better
if it had been shorter by about five
minutes. That said, there is much engaging
and enjoyable music in the movement
and Anthony Marwood plays it with feeling
and commitment. One interesting feature
occurs in the substantial cadenza. Midway
through this section the soloist is
joined for a while by the (muted?) orchestral
violins. I’m not quite sure what the
idea of this was but it’s an interesting
and original touch.
The slow movement is
the calm lyrical heart of the work.
The music has a lovely melodic flow
and Marwood’s playing is most poetic.
The whole movement is nicely and unaffectedly
done both by soloist and orchestra.
Lewis Foreman aptly describes the finale
as a "bucolic dance." This
is open, uncomplicated music and Marwood
and Brabbins seem to find delight in
it.
I must be careful in
"rating" the Somervell concerto.
I came to the Coleridge-Taylor work
with the great advantage of knowing
the piece already through an existing
recording whereas the Somervell was
entirely new to me. Notwithstanding
this, my sense is that the Somervell
piece is not as distinctive as the Coleridge-Taylor.
That said, it’s a most enjoyable work
and I think it’s a very good thing indeed
that a recording is at last available
so that it can be evaluated properly
and be enjoyed by a wide audience. Yet
another great example of Hyperion enterprise.
I was impressed with
Coleridge-Taylor concerto when I first
heard it through the Avie CD but it’s
been a joy to appreciate it still further
by comparing and contrasting. two fine
recordings. If you buy the Hyperion
disc you will acquire an excellent reading
of the Coleridge-Taylor coupled with
another unjustly neglected English concerto,
which deserves attention but is unlikely
to be recorded again in the foreseeable
future, if ever. The Hyperion release
comes with notes by Lewis Foreman, which
are in the best tradition of the label
– interesting, well written and informative.
There is one small, most uncharacteristic
error on the jewel case where the Coleridge-Taylor
work is variously described as being
in G major and in G minor. The latter
is correct.
If I were obliged to
choose one version of the Coleridge-Taylor
I’d have to opt for the Graffin account.
However, I’m in the very fortunate position
of owning both versions. As the couplings
are very different I don’t think it’s
a cop-out to say on this occasion that
the ideal would be to have both CDs
in your collection. But anyone limited
to one version and opting for an all-English
programme is unlikely to be disappointed
with this Hyperion CD, which I’m happy
to recommend warmly.
John Quinn
HYPERION’S ROMANTIC VIOLIN CONCERTO
SERIES
Volume
1: SAINT-SAËNS The Three
Violin Concertos Philippe Graffin violin,
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Martyn
Brabbins Compact Disc CDA67074
Volume
2: STANFORD Suite for Violin
and Orchestra, Op 32; Violin Concerto
in D major, Op 74; Anthony Marwood violin,
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Martyn
Brabbins Compact Disc CDA67208
Volume
3: HUBAY Violin Concerto
No 3, Op 99; Violin Concerto No 4, Op
101; Variations on a Hungarian Theme,
Op 72 Hagai Shaham violin, BBC Scottish
Symphony Orchestra/Martyn Brabbins Compact
Disc CDA67367
Volume
4: MOSZKOWSKI Violin Concerto,
Op 30; Ballade, Op 16 No 1; KARLOWICZ
Violin Concerto, Op 8 Tasmin Little
violin, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Martyn
Brabbins Compact Disc CDA67389
for details
Anthony Marwood (violin) 
