MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             

Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger

REVIEW Plain text for smartphones & printers

Support us financially by purchasing
this through MusicWeb
for Ł11.75 postage paid world-wide.

Mátyás SEIBER (1905-1960)
Ulysses - Cantata for tenor solo, chorus and orchestra (1947) [48.50]
Elegy for solo viola and small orchestra (1954) [8:09]
Three Fragments from A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1957) [18.28]
Alexander Young (tenor); BBC Chorus; London Symphony Orchestra/David Atherton (Ulysses); Cecil Aronowitz (viola), London Philharmonic Orchestra/Mátyás Seiber (Elegy); Peter Pears (narrator); Dorian Singers, Melos Ensemble/Mátyás Seiber (Three Fragments)
rec. BBC archive, broadcast 21 May 1972 (Ulysses), Elegy, Three Fragments originally released on Decca SXL2232 (1960): sung texts included
LYRITA SRCD348 [75:31]

Live performances of Seiber’s music are strangely rare today. Admittedly they were never especially frequent but it was at least possible during his lifetime to form an idea of the scope and nature of his work from a mixture of live performances and broadcasts. A quick glance at the invaluable BBC Radio Times website shows that in Britain at least it was possible from the 1940s to the 1970s to hear a reasonable cross-section of it. Later this was reduced to a mere trickle, largely repeating the same few works. I remember vividly a memorial concert in the Maida Vale studios in 1961 which included Ulysses but even that superb work has virtually disappeared in recent years. All the more reason then to give a very strong welcome to this disc. In this I wholly endorse the enthusiastic earlier review by John France. Like him, would draw attention to the lengthy and helpful essay by Alan Gibbs on this site. I can add nothing to their exposition of the composer’s career or of the background to the two main works on this disc.

That leaves me solely to encourage those who do not know these works or this composer to investigate this disc. Ulysses is not only the longest but the most approachable of the former. It has a wonderful way of instantly drawing listeners in to the musical argument and holding them there through its changing but always logical character. Hugh Wood’s booklet notes suggest that it might be regarded as a choral symphony as much as a cantata, and so indeed it might. It is perhaps surprising that a composer who lived in Hungary and Germany until 1935 when he came to England should have been able to choose and set with such perception extracts from novels whose use of language is so complex. It was perhaps related to his ability to make use of musical influences from such a wide range, turning them into something that is wholly his own. Both vocal works here are strongly characterised and wholly absorbing. Siber became well known for his ability to write apt dramatic incidental music and generate atmosphere quickly. These qualities are very evident in both the main works here. It is simply extraordinary that they have been so neglected in recent years.

This is a disc that should reawaken interest in a great but sadly short-lived composer, with excellent performances, recorded some years ago but with no need to apologise for the sound. It is well presented with good notes and the full texts. This must surely be one of the most important discs of neglected music issued by Lyrita. That's saying a great deal.

John Sheppard

Previous review: John France (Recording of the Month)

 

 



Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Chandos recordings
All Chandos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing