Arnold - Symphonies Nos 1-9 (Box-set) [Box set]

This slipcase package from Naxos contains the original 5 CDs released between 1995 and 2000; the CDs are available seperately but at higher cost. All 9 symphonies are performed by the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland under Andrew Penny.

Malcolm Arnold was a prolific composer, known for "light" music such as film scores, rather than symphonies. This is a pity, as Arnold's symphonies are orchestrated beautifully and have undercurrents of rage within their tuneful surface sheen. 1 sounds carefree most of the time, but does have violent outbursts of dissonance. 2 is akin to 1 but more advanced - it's less strident.

3 is deep, brooding and yearning - stark at times. 4 was written agianst the background of the 1950s Notting Hill race riots and has lots of purcussion. 5 is generally held to be Arnold's best; lots of tunes and passion.

6 is dark, elusive and satisfying. 7 & 8 are difficult, with 7 using the 12-tone technique, and is burning with passion and is, well, pretty terrifying at times! 8, although quite wistful, is also dark and brooding.

9 is sometimes decried, but it is like a beefed-up 7, lightly scored and enigmatic.

Penny takes a light approach; his bright and breezy style suits Arnold very well - Arnold was present at the recording sessions and must have concurred with Penny's approach.

Arnold is often overlooked and this is a great pity as he wrote some very fresh and exciting work; the symphonies here in the Naxos bargain slip-case version are where to start.

Having bought this set as individual cd's - ok that sounds like a stupid thing to do but it didn't cost any more as it turned out - I can honestly say that I've enjoyed all these recordings very much. They represent a singular unified view of the symphonies and possibly benefited from the composer's presence at the recordings. I say "possibly" because Arnold's own later recordings of the First and Fourth are so incredibly laboured as to sound like they've come from a different planet - they sound positively dream like - compulsive in a ghoulish kind of way. His earlier versions of the Second and Fifth, however, were much more in line with other conductors views of the pieces.

Whereas the Chandos recordings may sound a touch clearer with a slightly better orchestra, this set is performed very well and the interpretations retain the drama, menace and pain that pulses through the series. The strings might sound under nourished at times but the brass, Arnold's speciality, are terrific. These symphonies represent a very weighty series - don't be fooled by Arnold the film composer.

Mark Meldon's summary of the nine symphonies is very useful but if you're looking for patterns and developments throughout the series it might, as is so often the case, be convenient to split the works into early, middle and late.

The first three symphonies are strongly influenced by Sibelius with the First and Third sounding quite forbidding at times. The First is sparce and austere until the finale gives a glimpse of Arnold's theatrical flare. The Second has a more pastoral feel but there are shadows there too. Worthy of particular note is the impressively craggy slow middle movement of the Third.

Arnold stated that Berlioz had the biggest influence on his music. Some might wonder where that influence lies. Berlioz was a great orchestrator and was very happy to display very unrestrained emotion through his music. Arnold like Berlioz, seems unconstrained; keeping a tight, classical rein on form. These similarities become increasingly apparent from the middle symphonies onwards. Even so, the vocies of Sibelius, Mahler, Britten, shostakovich and, increasingly, Nielsen come more obviously to mind.

Symphonies Four to Six represent a group showing a greater flexibility in his use of often disparate material, expertly woven together. The Fourth, inspired by the Brixton riots, displays this to an extraordinary degree and the drama played out echoes moments in "West Side Story" with an ugly Racist march in the finale. It was quite a remarkable feat to tie these disparate elements - not forgetting a very memorable and schmaltzy theme in the first movement - into such a convincing whole. IOt's a shame that Leonard Bernstein never conducted this because he seems a kindred spirit here and in much of the rest of the series.

The Fifth and Six play hide and seek with themes from recent Shostakovich works - the First Cello Concerto and Second Violin Concerto. The middle movement of the Sixth constantly repeats an extended theme that appears to derive from Shostakovich's DSCH monogram. Add to that some jazz episodes and a Shostakovich like sarcasm in the triumphant finale. Shostakovich was one of his idols.

The Fifth doesn't end in triumph but again plays out a drama with disparate themes and some memorable themes. The finale mixes Fife and drum with some stabbing and dissonant Shostakovich like woodwind before the schmaltzy string theme from the slow movement returns, suggesting a romantic conclusion that then crashes to earth. This is probably the best symphony of the set but I love the Fourth and Seventh too. It's worth remembering that this was written at a very difficult time for Arnold with the break up of his first marriage and a series of bereavments.

Much is made of Arnold's psychological disintegration over the years and point to this when reviewing the later symphonies. There may be some truth to that but Arnold was hardly stable in his earlier years. If his mental disintegration had been so great then he wouldn't have been able to complete such compelling and convincing symphonies - up to the Seventh at least.

The Seventh uses rather more dissonance and expanded tonality than the earlier symphonies. The work is full of an incredible rage and pain. The acerbic harmonies may serve this emotional drama but may reflect an urge to avoid being being labelled an old fashioned tonal composer at a time when the BBC ignored such music. Whatever the truth this is another extraordinary work. The three movements of rage and howling pain are relieved briefly by a short Irish dance late in the finale that is followed by a loud stamping tantrum, three bashes on a giant cow bell and then rounded off by huge major chords. Do they represent triumph or defiance?

Each movement of the work is dedicated to one of his children. Fatherhood was clearly very difficult for Arnold. Most of the pain may be his but there is more than a hint of angry childish tantrums along the way. It's a remarkable psychological drama and my enjoyment of it probably says something bad about me!

The last two symphonies, for me, do represent a dropping off of his inspiration, which may very well have been due to his complete breakdown. The Eighth is another pained work that tries to end triumphantly but, rather like later Nielsen works, sounds increasingly irritable before ending in less than convincing triumph. The first movement rehashes a theme from one of his last film scores. The heat and intensity of the Seventh has waned here somewhat and the harmonic strain of the Seventh remains.

The Ninth followed after his rehabilitation, after a long period of silence. The astringent harmonies of the Seventh have gone and the musical language sounds very Nielsen like - albeit rather lean and resigned sounding. The long slow finale takes up half the work and could be seen as a long farewell. It finishes on a major chord but it is quiet - more of a "thanks for listening" than a moment of victory. There is little drama in this symphony; the earlier energies are spent and it's conclusion is more contemplative than tragic. The fact that he managed to write it at all by that time was a cause for celebration. The spareness of the textures in this final symphony at recall those of his First Symphony, giving the cycle some kind of symmetry.

With this set you follow a coherent journey with the composer from beginning to end. Recordings by Hickox, Handley, Gamba and, occasionally by Arnold himself, make fine individual alternatives but if you want a complete set that you can have total faith in, the RTE Orchestra combined with Andrew Penny's enthusiasm and authority in his interpretations and Naxos's fine recorded sound then look no further. The price is unbeatable - if you buy as a set or individually! If you really want to be picky you might ask for the additional early Symphony for Strings and the later Symphony for Brass. If you were really greedy you might ask for the Sinfoniettas too. All these additional works are substantial and would give a more complete picture. Noentheless, the Nine Symphonies make for a remarkable and emotionally draining journey.

Arnold's is one of the few truly great British symphonic cycles. The almost raw and visceral response to the subjects that inspired many of these works is almost unparalleled - whereas as other "expressive" composers looked for the universal, his response sounds raw, savage and spontaneous. This is the set to have, without question.