William Alwyn: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 [CD]

William Alwyn, probably best known for his numerous film-scores, was born in 1905. I heard his sinfonietta for strings on the BBC only this morning, and that pearl of the recording industry Naxos is promoting this disc comprising Alwyn's two piano concertos plus a couple of fillers, the recordings having been done originally in 1995. Other sponsors are the British Piano Concerto Foundation, of which series I already own on disc performances, again with the admirable Peter Donohoe as soloist, of corresponding works by Rawsthorne and Bliss.

It's the amateur musician in me, not the part-time patriot, that leads me to be as enthusiastic as I am about these performances. For one thing, I doubt that Donohoe really enjoys the `profile' among modern piano-players that he fully deserves. He is a virtuoso of the very first magnitude and a musical intellectual, and I have cause to appreciate his magnificent musicianship from some of his other work that I know in Beethoven, in Elgar's quintet and in no less than Turangalila where he partners Rattle. He focuses his formidable endowment here on Alwyn, giving us the two piano concertos plus the so-called sonata alla toccata in readings of colossal aplomb and conviction. They are not difficult concertos to understand or enjoy, and how difficult they may be for the soloist I have no way of knowing given the panache with which Donohoe puts them across. The first is an early work, presumably one of the compositions that Alwyn `withdrew' (how does one do that?) wholesale with a view to relaunching himself. It is hardly a quarter of an hour in length, divided into four continuous sections that barely qualify for the title of movements, and has a certain `neo-classical' style about it as that term might be applied to some of Stravinsky. The second is a late piece, intended in the first instance for the admirable Cor de Groot before he suddenly lost the use of his right arm, and at the time of the liner-note with the disc it had not received a public performance. It could quite easily lure me out if I saw it billed, given the right soloist. It's idiom is, I suppose, more `romantic' than that of its predecessor, but take with a pinch of salt what the liner-note might be suggesting in the way of parallels with Rachmaninov, and don't be expecting anything as luscious as some of Alwyn's film-music either.

The two minor items are of great interest. One is an overture entitled `Derby Day'. This title was apparently suggested in the composer's mind by seeing a picture of this society event subsequent to the work's composition, and you need fear no suggestion in the music of mounts coming in at 7-to-10 on or of ladies' millinery. It is only 6 minutes in length, and although there is apparently some use of a 12-tone scale I for one would never have guessed. My much more confident guess would be that this was no more than some professionals' game that beguiled the composer as he worked on the piece. The final number is the sonata alla toccata, and seeing that the work was in 4 movements I dared hope that it might hark back to Bach's magnificent toccatas, which are nothing like the perpetuum-mobile studies in rapid execution that have hijacked the name of toccata at least since Schumann's effort by that title. No such luck, but the piece is an attractive one nonetheless, explicitly written to be difficult and despatched with confident mastery as usual by Donohoe.

The liner-note at this point suffers a bit of a lapse into liner-note-ese, talking about `toccata form' (there's no such animal) and `breaking free from all stylistic constraints', a concept which is, if you think about it, totally bereft of sense or meaning. Otherwise it's not bad at all - informative, succinct and clear for the most part, and there are also brief resumes of soloist, orchestra and conductor. The Bournemouth SO under James Judd acquit themselves really very well, I'd say, although the concertos are works where the piano hogs the limelight to a great extent. The recording is also perfectly good, although the volume needs a fairly high setting.

Definitely recommended, and hats off again to Naxos. Fugaces labuntur anni, says Horace - `the years are slipping away past recall'. Naxos are giving me the opportunity of some belated musical education at very modest cost indeed, and I can't suppose I'm alone in that regard.

Alwyn's music deserves to be heard. At least as good as many composers we hear often. If you like Shostokovich, Prokofiev, and Grieg, you will really like this refreshing and beautiful music.

A review in Gramophone led me to this CD of William Alwyn's music. I knew very little about his music, recalling only that he wrote several film scores. Alwyn was an unabashed Romantic like his contemporary Samuel Barber. The First Piano Concerto (1930) is a short work of less than 15 minutes but in that space of time it manages to explore the form completely. Cast in four movements, the concerto in an innovative work beginning with an energetic toccata and explores different ideas closing with an adagio that fades away.

The Derby Day Overture is an energetic overture that was first performed at a Promenade concert conducted by Malcolm Sargent. The inspiration was a Victorian era painting by William Powell Firth, who was a painter noted for the crowds depicted in his pictures. The overture is a stimulating overture, perfect for opening a concert. The Second Piano Concerto (1960) followed the First by 30 years and is a highly Romantic work with the epic sweep of Rachmaninov, for whom some critics thought Alwyn was writing his own homage. The first movement is indeed epic is scale with virtuosic flourishes. It is followed by a quietly reflective middle movement and a long cadenza leads into the final movement, which is more dissonant and features jazz syncopations. The soloist has a demanding job with the last movement with a long cadenza before the concerto closes with a flourish. The Sonata alla toccata is a short work in three movements in a neo-classical style. It is a virtuoso piece and indeed requires an agile pianist and reminded me more of a brief series of studies.

This is a very engaging CD for which one acquires a greater appreciation on repeated hearings. Peter Donohoe plays marvelously and is ably supported by the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, conducted by James Judd. This is a great introduction to the music of William Alwyn and, for me, the first CD of an Alwyn collection.