I have six grandchildren; so I know a bit about the target
audience for this recording. It contains three of the Top Ten
on anyone’s list of the best classical compositions for children.
Peter and the Wolf was written in 1936, with music and
words by Prokofiev, as a commission from the Moscow Central
Children’s Chorus. Although its premiere was poorly attended,
it did succeed in the long term in achieving its sponsor’s aim
of “cultivating musical tastes in children from the first years
of school”. It is usually heard with narrator and full orchestra,
but here the orchestra is replaced by the organ. This rearrangement
works in some ways, and not others: for example, the bird as
flute, and the duck as oboe, are convincing, but bassoon for
Grandfather and horns for the wolf are less so. And it’s jarring
to hear the word “diapasons” used in a description of Peter,
aimed at a five-year-old. On the other hand, replacing the orchestra
with the organ opens up access to many more audiences, at more
reasonable cost. This is precisely what the principals on this
album plan to do during a 2012 tour.
Carnival of the Animals is a piece that Saint-Saëns was
embarrassed about from its debut in 1886, worrying that it would
damage his reputation as a serious composer. Ironically it has
become one of his best known and loved works. It was written
to show young people the range and playfulness of orchestral
instruments, and it succeeded. One reason for its success is
that Saint-Saëns borrowed great tunes freely: Berlioz, Offenbach,
Rameau and himself. Another is that in 1949 the American poet
Ogden Nash wrote droll verses to accompany each of the 14 movements.
Most performances and recordings today feature the music with
the poetry. Saint-Saëns’ original version uses two pianos prominently
with orchestra, so in this recording the piano is essential
with organ.
The Story of Babar, the Little Elephant, was written
in French in 1933 by Jean de Brunhoff. It spawned a series of
books and videos to which his son has further contributed. Poulenc’s
three-year old cousin Sophie was vacationing with him outside
Paris in the summer of 1940, when she become bored with his
composing. Legend has it that she placed her Babar storybook
upside-down on the piano stand and said “Play this!” He improvised
between sections of the story, and later wrote down the music,
dedicating it to Sophie and the other neighbourhood children
who thronged to hear it. The English translation used in this
recording is different from that in the first Random House publication,
and leaves out major sections of the story. Even so, the result
comes in at just less than half an hour, a challenging attention
span for a child.
The actor Richard Briers narrates all three pieces. His face
and voice are familiar from British TV and stage. He is able
to call up gravity, impishness or breathlessness as these stories
and poems require.
An act of love created this album – or rather two acts. The
first act created the label. This is the first release from
a new label – Cathedral Classics - from the team of Matthew
Dilley and Richard Bland. The latter recorded, edited and produced
this album. Their discography includes many recordings in the
chapels on the Cambridge and Oxford campuses. An even greater
contribution to the recording, including personal investment,
came from the organist, David Coram, who clearly loves the instrument,
and believes in its power to communicate with children. He arranged
the first two pieces here for organ. He also wrote the accompanying
booklet which is aimed perfectly at his young audience - with
a note to parents warning them of the references to firearms
in the Peter and Babar stories, in case even younger ones might
be frightened. The booklet cover and the CD feature cute drawings
of the stories’ characters .by Mike Brownlow.
If you have children on your gift list, this album will be gratefully
received and enjoyed.
Paul Kennedy
Richard Briers (narrator);.David Coram (organ); David Owen Norris
(piano) 
