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Enquiries for Joseph Holbrooke's orchestral music have been heard from enthusiasts for many years, and are now answered by Dutton Epoch's recording shared between the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. Soloist Raphael Wallfisch gives a singing performance of the delightful Cello Concerto, while the Fourth Symphony, the vivid tone poem The Pit and the Pendulum and the waltz Pandora, a charming encore from a 1920 ballet score, represent Holbrooke at his tuneful best. All are world premiere recordings, vividly played by the two orchestras. Track listing: The Pit and the Pendulum: Fantasie for Orchestra, Op.126 (1929)/Cello Concerto, Op.103 'Cambrian' (1936)/Symphony No.4 in B minor, Op.95 'Homage to Schubert' (1928)/Pandora (1920)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
In the early years of the last century Holbrooke was viewed as the "Great white hope" of British music, praised by such influential figures as the conductor Sir Henry Wood and the critic Ernest Newman, but in his later years he became deaf and increasingly embittered by the neglect, if not positive disparagement, of his music by the musical establishment.
In recent years, there has been a renewal of interest in this composer and it's good to welcome this enterprising release from Dutton.
The rather garish "The Pit and the Pendulum" reflects Holbrooke's obsession with the writings of Poe, and the resulting piece seems to foreshadow a Hammer horror film score. The short ballet movement "Pandora", on the other hand gives off a faint whiff of the salon, but is not without charm.
The symphony "Homage to Schubert" in its original form was Holbrooke's entry into the Columbia Graphophone company's competition to honour the centenary of Schubert's death. In the revised form to be heard on this disc it seems, to me at least, a far superior piece to Frank Merrick's entry which won the British division first prize in the competition. The first and last movements are based around Schubert's sketch for an unfinished movement of the B minor symphony, but Holbrooke's lovely, lyrical slow movement has about as much to do with Schubert as Schubert's music has to do with Monteverdi!
The Cello Concerto is probably the most worthy piece on the present disc; it has rhapsodic and ecstatic passages which are reminiscent of Delius. Good British Cello Concertos are not particularly numerous, so the past neglect of this piece is puzzling.
The composer's son, the late Gwydion Brooke, a master bassoonist, spent much of his retirement in promoting his father's music. He was not particularly happy with certain of the earlier cd recordings of Holbrooke's orchestral music (although he praised the Hyperion issue of the 1st Piano concerto highly) and felt that unsympathetic performances could do more harm than good to the composer's reputation. I think he would have been very happy with the present issue, though, with its idiomatic, committed readings of the music in fine recorded sound.
Some of Holbrooke's best works (and, to be honest, he was a very uneven composer) still await recording. It's probably too much to hope for any of the operas to appear in the near future, but maybe we will be given "Queen Mab" or the terrific setting of Poe's "The Bells" which, as far as I'm concerned, knocks Rachmaninov's effort into a cocked hat. The fine Sextet for Piano and winds is also begging for a recording.
I hope the present issue sells as well as it deserves to and encourages Dutton to record more by this fascinating composer.
In recent years, there has been a renewal of interest in this composer and it's good to welcome this enterprising release from Dutton.
The rather garish "The Pit and the Pendulum" reflects Holbrooke's obsession with the writings of Poe, and the resulting piece seems to foreshadow a Hammer horror film score. The short ballet movement "Pandora", on the other hand gives off a faint whiff of the salon, but is not without charm.
The symphony "Homage to Schubert" in its original form was Holbrooke's entry into the Columbia Graphophone company's competition to honour the centenary of Schubert's death. In the revised form to be heard on this disc it seems, to me at least, a far superior piece to Frank Merrick's entry which won the British division first prize in the competition. The first and last movements are based around Schubert's sketch for an unfinished movement of the B minor symphony, but Holbrooke's lovely, lyrical slow movement has about as much to do with Schubert as Schubert's music has to do with Monteverdi!
The Cello Concerto is probably the most worthy piece on the present disc; it has rhapsodic and ecstatic passages which are reminiscent of Delius. Good British Cello Concertos are not particularly numerous, so the past neglect of this piece is puzzling.
The composer's son, the late Gwydion Brooke, a master bassoonist, spent much of his retirement in promoting his father's music. He was not particularly happy with certain of the earlier cd recordings of Holbrooke's orchestral music (although he praised the Hyperion issue of the 1st Piano concerto highly) and felt that unsympathetic performances could do more harm than good to the composer's reputation. I think he would have been very happy with the present issue, though, with its idiomatic, committed readings of the music in fine recorded sound.
Some of Holbrooke's best works (and, to be honest, he was a very uneven composer) still await recording. It's probably too much to hope for any of the operas to appear in the near future, but maybe we will be given "Queen Mab" or the terrific setting of Poe's "The Bells" which, as far as I'm concerned, knocks Rachmaninov's effort into a cocked hat. The fine Sextet for Piano and winds is also begging for a recording.
I hope the present issue sells as well as it deserves to and encourages Dutton to record more by this fascinating composer.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
What a wonderful disc - and a great appendix to CPO's excellent initial foray Holbrooke: Symphonic Poems which concentrated on Holbrooke's early period. The composer's middle- and late-period style is even more elusive and quixotic, and repeated listening is essential.
The performances are first-rate, as is the recorded sound - incidentally, there is a fantastic 'match' between two different orchestras in two different venues, no mean feat. 'The Pit and the Pendulum' (1929) is a Poe-inspired riot for the orchestra - a piece clearly from the same stable as 'Amontillado' (CPO), it does ramble somewhat but Holbrooke's orchestral wizardry holds the attention. The Cello Concerto (1936) is a very substantial piece (beautifully played by Raphael Wallfisch) with many characteristically abrupt changes of mood and colour - in the otherwise-excellent booklet notes it is curious that Rob Barnett does not mention that the slow movement is built upon the traditional Welsh song 'David of the White Rock', which justifies the concerto's title ('The Cambrian').
The Fourth Symphony (1928) was written as an entry for a competition to celebrate Schubert's centenary - I thought during the first movement that I had switched discs subconsciously and was listening to Marriner and the ASMF in Brian Newbould's realisation of 'The Unfinished' (Holbrooke uses a theme from the uncompleted Scherzo)! This is a truly bizarre and fascinating composition, but one which will bring a wry smile to Holbrooke's many fans. The remainder of the Symphony is more like the composer we know and love - wonderful woodwind (especially flute) solos in the middle movement and a return to the Schubert theme harmonically transformed right at the end of the work.
'Pandora' is well-crafted light music, nothing more and nothing less - but sumptuously orchestrated and performed without condescension. A truly great addition to Holbrooke's growing representation in the catalogue, with George Vass drawing superb performances from both orchestras. Another triumph for Dutton.
The performances are first-rate, as is the recorded sound - incidentally, there is a fantastic 'match' between two different orchestras in two different venues, no mean feat. 'The Pit and the Pendulum' (1929) is a Poe-inspired riot for the orchestra - a piece clearly from the same stable as 'Amontillado' (CPO), it does ramble somewhat but Holbrooke's orchestral wizardry holds the attention. The Cello Concerto (1936) is a very substantial piece (beautifully played by Raphael Wallfisch) with many characteristically abrupt changes of mood and colour - in the otherwise-excellent booklet notes it is curious that Rob Barnett does not mention that the slow movement is built upon the traditional Welsh song 'David of the White Rock', which justifies the concerto's title ('The Cambrian').
The Fourth Symphony (1928) was written as an entry for a competition to celebrate Schubert's centenary - I thought during the first movement that I had switched discs subconsciously and was listening to Marriner and the ASMF in Brian Newbould's realisation of 'The Unfinished' (Holbrooke uses a theme from the uncompleted Scherzo)! This is a truly bizarre and fascinating composition, but one which will bring a wry smile to Holbrooke's many fans. The remainder of the Symphony is more like the composer we know and love - wonderful woodwind (especially flute) solos in the middle movement and a return to the Schubert theme harmonically transformed right at the end of the work.
'Pandora' is well-crafted light music, nothing more and nothing less - but sumptuously orchestrated and performed without condescension. A truly great addition to Holbrooke's growing representation in the catalogue, with George Vass drawing superb performances from both orchestras. Another triumph for Dutton.
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