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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
As is well-known ,much of Moeran's music was inspired by the landscape and folksongs of Norfolk and Ireland, and most of the works recorded here are no exception to the rule.
"In the Mountain Country" is a short orchestral rhapsody (or "impression") written in 1921. The mountains in question are those in the south-west of Ireland (they are rather hard to come by in Norfolk!), and the music is in ternary form, with two slow outer sections flanking a quicker middle one. There are folk-like inflections throughout, but no actual folksong is quoted.
Moeran followed this work in 1922 with the Rhapsody No.1, a piece of similar ilk. After a calm introduction, the music becomes much more animated, full of drive and rhythm. Vernon Handley, the conductor on this recording, once suggested that no-one coming fresh to this piece would guess it was by Moeran, whose style is reputedly pastoral in nature, but the Moeran fingerprints are unmistakable, as anyone who has heard the G-minor Symphony must agree. In fact, in many ways, this rhapsody seems to presage that work.
In the Rhapsody No.2 (1924), a quiet opening on clarinet gains momentum before the heart of the piece, a beautiful, broad melody of Irish descent, intervenes. The earlier, sprightly mood is resumed, based on the opening material, and the work ends briskly, amidst percussion, with two staccato tutti chords.
The chromatic harmonies of Delius inform Moeran's Nocturne of 1934. At this point, Delius had just died, and his widow Jelka asked Moeran to dedicate the piece to him. Written for baritone (here, Hugh Mackey), small chorus and orchestra, it is a setting of part of a poem by Robert Nichols (1893-1944). The noctural mood is established from the outset by a muted orchestral passage and the use of a wordless chorus reminiscent of Vaughan Williams' Flos Campi. There are impassioned moments, but overall the gentle, restrained mood is maintained throughout, and the tempo changes, such as they are, are subtle rather than sudden.
The Serenade in G is Moeran's last substantial orchestral work (1948), although it has its origins in the Farrago Suite of 1932. In its final form, it consists of eight short movements, including a sprightly Prologue and an Epilogue which brings the work full circle. The emotional heart of the piece - for me, at least - it its gentle Air, but there is plenty in the other movements offering contrasts of mood, not least the headlong Galop. The folksy Minuet with its lovely oboe melody reverts to quieter mode, while the jaunty Rigadoon paves the way for the finale.
On this disc, Moeran aficionado Vernon Handley takes the Ulster Orchestra through its paces, while Mackey and the Renaissance Singers are persuasive exponents in the Nocturne. The recording quality is up to Chandos's usual high standard.
"In the Mountain Country" is a short orchestral rhapsody (or "impression") written in 1921. The mountains in question are those in the south-west of Ireland (they are rather hard to come by in Norfolk!), and the music is in ternary form, with two slow outer sections flanking a quicker middle one. There are folk-like inflections throughout, but no actual folksong is quoted.
Moeran followed this work in 1922 with the Rhapsody No.1, a piece of similar ilk. After a calm introduction, the music becomes much more animated, full of drive and rhythm. Vernon Handley, the conductor on this recording, once suggested that no-one coming fresh to this piece would guess it was by Moeran, whose style is reputedly pastoral in nature, but the Moeran fingerprints are unmistakable, as anyone who has heard the G-minor Symphony must agree. In fact, in many ways, this rhapsody seems to presage that work.
In the Rhapsody No.2 (1924), a quiet opening on clarinet gains momentum before the heart of the piece, a beautiful, broad melody of Irish descent, intervenes. The earlier, sprightly mood is resumed, based on the opening material, and the work ends briskly, amidst percussion, with two staccato tutti chords.
The chromatic harmonies of Delius inform Moeran's Nocturne of 1934. At this point, Delius had just died, and his widow Jelka asked Moeran to dedicate the piece to him. Written for baritone (here, Hugh Mackey), small chorus and orchestra, it is a setting of part of a poem by Robert Nichols (1893-1944). The noctural mood is established from the outset by a muted orchestral passage and the use of a wordless chorus reminiscent of Vaughan Williams' Flos Campi. There are impassioned moments, but overall the gentle, restrained mood is maintained throughout, and the tempo changes, such as they are, are subtle rather than sudden.
The Serenade in G is Moeran's last substantial orchestral work (1948), although it has its origins in the Farrago Suite of 1932. In its final form, it consists of eight short movements, including a sprightly Prologue and an Epilogue which brings the work full circle. The emotional heart of the piece - for me, at least - it its gentle Air, but there is plenty in the other movements offering contrasts of mood, not least the headlong Galop. The folksy Minuet with its lovely oboe melody reverts to quieter mode, while the jaunty Rigadoon paves the way for the finale.
On this disc, Moeran aficionado Vernon Handley takes the Ulster Orchestra through its paces, while Mackey and the Renaissance Singers are persuasive exponents in the Nocturne. The recording quality is up to Chandos's usual high standard.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
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1 review
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Typical Morean-Well Done
2 Dec 2008
Format:Audio CD
Vernon Handley has completed a series of Morean's works, picking up on the Irish lilt in his music. Delightful listening time and again. Would recommend to all who enjoy Arnold Bax, Vaughan Williams, and Gustav Holst.
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