I
reviewed
the UK première in Cardiff of Pickard’s
Tenebrae
for
Seen and Heard earlier this year on 8 January, and I make
no excuse for repeating here some of what I said on that occasion; I
note that Richard Whitehouse took the same course when reviewing this
CD for
International Record Review. “The work is less obviously
programmatic than earlier Pickard works such as
The flight of Icarus
or
Channel firing, being in part a psychological study of the
character and work of Gesualdo and partly a reflection on themes of
darkness and despair…This was indeed a fine example of post-romantic
expressionism through which the harmonies of Gesualdo himself occasionally
shone, and which built to an impassioned climax. After this the despairing
oboes sounded positively Mahlerian in tone, and even the piccolo sounded
warm and consoling. From this point the troubled music built up again,
but there was no sense of repetition as the musical material sounded
entirely fresh. The music brought to mind the music associated with
Wozzeck’s final moments, over which the Gesualdo material
faded into stunned silence before retiring to the subterranean rumblings
of the opening. This is quite simply a magnificent work, with an emotional
engagement which is extremely rare in modern music.”
I am delighted to find that my enthusiasm for the work is only
reinforced by this superb new recording, given by the Norrköping
Orchestra who gave the world première of the piece with the same
conductor who had commissioned the work. In Cardiff Martyn Brabbins obtained
an even more glowing performance from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales,
with their richer and more saturated string sound and darker sonorities;
but, enhanced by the splendid BIS recording, the Norrköping players are
by no means outclassed. The work remains as impressive as it did on first
acquaintance. One wonders why we have had to wait so long for this
performance to be released on CD.
The other two works on this disc are both considerably earlier
pieces, but serve to flesh out our knowledge of Pickard’s developing
style. The
Piano Concerto begins as a very percussive piece indeed,
but it is far from devoid of thematic interest and sparkles with life
especially in the enthusiastic performance given us here by Fredrik
Ullén, again with Brabbins and his Norrköping orchestra. Again
one might welcome a rather richer string sound; but the almost Baxian melody
which launches the second movement
Passacaglia is phrased with warmth
and affection as well as nicely sustained tone. The use of
‘bent’ notes on the tubular bells towards the end of this
movement (track 2, 8.00) is an intriguing effect. After this the finale
reverts to the more percussive style of the opening, and this makes for a
sparkling conclusion.
The earliest piece here,
Sea-change, was written for a
student orchestra at Bangor University, where Pickard studied under William
Mathias, but it makes little concession to the abilities of student players
although the composer in his informative booklet notes considers it
“less technically demanding than the other, more complicated, pieces I
was writing around that time.” In its depiction of the sea it
anticipates his later orchestral works
The flight of Icarus and
Channel firing, both of which have already been recorded by the
Norrköping forces on an earlier BIS release.
Sea-change is like
the
Piano Concerto a rather percussive work, but towards the end (at
around 15.00) it develops into something more with a grandiose theme
thundered out by the full orchestra which draws the attention.
Both the
Piano Concerto and
Sea-change are valuable additions
to the catalogue in their own right, but
Tenebrae is something
else again - a work of towering genius which deserves to be heard by
anyone with the slightest interest in modern music. One looks forward
with anticipation to future performances - how about an outing at the
Proms?. In the meantime, this CD is well worth a close listen.
Paul Corfield Godfrey
