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Product Description
Review
Gramohone Editors Choice June 2010 --Gramophone Magazine
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
This CD came as a revelation to me, as up till now I'd known only the famous Butterworth orchestral pieces such as Banks of Green Willow. The songs range from settings of poems to folk songs - Butterworth was part of the great 20th century revival of folk music. There's Housman, of course, but also William Henley (new to me), RL Stevenson and Oscar Wilde (a poignant elegy for his younger sister). There's also an early song so that you can get an idea of how fast Butterworth developed before his appallingly early death in the trenches of WW1. The settings vary widely, from simpler robust or melancholy ones for the folk songs to more complex for the poems, carrying subtler emotions. Mark Stone's sensitive but powerful singing perfectly conveys the variety of tone and Stephen Barlow's accompaniment is highly evocative even when the music is at its most minimal. Of course the tragedy of Butterworth's death adds an extra poignancy to these songs, but they are wonderful in any case. The CD strikes me as a labour of love, planned minutely and carried out to virtual perfection. Not only is the music beautiful, but the design is delightful and the generous sleeve notes well-written, informative and entertaining. Henley as the inspiration for Long John Silver! That's amusing to think of when listening to the romantic subtleties of his poems. The CD also contains what must be a precious bonus - a film clip of Butterworth Morris dancing. That would be uncanny to see after listening to this glorious music, but sadly my ancient computer can't play it. Still, it seems almost miraculous that it exists at all.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
This disc is a real joy; brilliantly performed by Stone and Barlow and beautifully recorded. It has the advantage over the recent Naxos Butterworth release of having all thirty songs (rather than just twenty-five). In addition to the familiar A.E. Housman settings, folksongs and single songs of Shelley, Wilde and Stevenson, it also includes the wonderful W.E. Henley cycle "Love blows as the wind blows" and a recent discovery of a Bridges setting, entitled "Haste on, my joys!". In addition to this it also has a very substantial booklet with incredibly detailed notes - the Naxos disc doesn't even have the texts. Finally, there is a hilarious video clip of George Butterworth morris dancing, for which it is worth buying the disc on its own. Bravo!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
This is a gorgeous CD.
The vocals and instrumentation are exquisitely executed, whilst remaining soulful, joyous, mournful and (where necessary) amused. I can't praise it highly enough.
But the thing that's made me want to write a review is the fact another reviewer has commented on the quality of recording. Although the review was largely positive, they were critical of the actual recording, stating it had too much reverb. Put simply, I couldn't disagree more!
This is a simply wonderful recording. It's perfect. The sound is full bodied and crystal clear - and it's got volume too. This CD is an absolute example to other labels (EMI, Naxos, Hyperion) of what can actually be done. I'm not saying those labels don't make good music, but buying classical recordings is still very much pot luck when it comes to recording quality. This is unquestionably a stand-out item on that particular front.
For me personally, this is a 5/5 no brainer!
The vocals and instrumentation are exquisitely executed, whilst remaining soulful, joyous, mournful and (where necessary) amused. I can't praise it highly enough.
But the thing that's made me want to write a review is the fact another reviewer has commented on the quality of recording. Although the review was largely positive, they were critical of the actual recording, stating it had too much reverb. Put simply, I couldn't disagree more!
This is a simply wonderful recording. It's perfect. The sound is full bodied and crystal clear - and it's got volume too. This CD is an absolute example to other labels (EMI, Naxos, Hyperion) of what can actually be done. I'm not saying those labels don't make good music, but buying classical recordings is still very much pot luck when it comes to recording quality. This is unquestionably a stand-out item on that particular front.
For me personally, this is a 5/5 no brainer!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
A fine composer
Had George Butterworth not perished in the First World War, eerily almost foretold in the haunting song "The Lads in the their Hundreds", he would have certainly been a household... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Mr. M. G. Gamble
Inspiring
Butterworth's music is amazing. I really enjoyed the CD, glad I spent the money. Well worth it!
Published on 6 May 2010 by Mrs. E. M. Sturt
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