My introduction to the London Symphony was in the 70s. A Friday night concert in Usher Hall in Edinburgh. Sir Alexander Gibson and Scottish National Orchestra. An absolutely stunning performance, I was on a high for a couple of days after.
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Ah, the Usher Hall! I used to sneak out of my Edinburgh Academy boarding house of an evening to see groups there, including Taste, Focus and Greenslade.
Many years later, I watched on a closed link broadcast on TV as my elder son graduated from Edinburgh University with his PhD in there.
So lots of happy memories.
I enjoy many of Previn’s VW symphony performances. His 5 is very special, comparable with the best available and I’ve not heard a more moving performance of the Pastoral. OTOH his 4 is rather lacking in fire by comparison with many other versions, most especially the composer’s own. I’ve always found it surprising, given Previn’s background in film music and jazz piano, that it was the quieter, more contemplative side of VW’s music that often seemed to bring out the best performances from him.
Overall, though I tend to resist cycles by one conductor and orchestra. Hearing alternative interpretations adds to my appreciation of a composer’s work. Hickox in the London, Haitink in the Antartica, Handley in 6 would be some of my go-to VW choices, but that wouldn’t prevent appreciation of others. I really must listen to Pappano’s recent live and very strongly reviewed disc of 4 and 6 soon.
Roger
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For the historically inclined a recording of RVW conducting the 1936 version of the London Symphony at the Proms in 1946 has just been released on the Somm Ariadne label, together with him conducting the premier of Symphony no 5 in 1943.
Hi @graham55. I am not well versed in matters classical but I saw your post and am listening, and enjoying, right now. When RVW made the symphony shorter are the cuts that were made throughout the movements or was it one big cut?
No, there are little cuts all the way through each of the four movements. When listening, I can’t hear where the cuts are made.
I think that you would need to play both versions of the symphony with the two scores in hand but, as I don’t read music, that’s not an option for me.
But I don’t bother about that at all. I just adore the music above almost anything else, whether in Barbirolli’s ‘cut’ version or the Hickox ‘original’ (what I suppose our German friends would call the ‘Urtext’.)
Of course, there are lots of other great recordings of the ‘cut’ version. I also have recordings by André Previn (Mr Preview to Morecambe and Wise) and Adrian Boult, and other conductors such as Vernon Handley have laid down highly praised recordings.
Goodness only knows what someone like Leonard Bernstein might have made of it during his fling with the London Symphony Orchestra. Or even the young Karajan in his pre-Berlin days with Walter Legge’s Philharmonia - that could have been a thing of wonder!
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Thanks Graham
I’m pleased (relieved, even) that you’re enjoying the London Symphony. As a follow up, you might want to try to find Barbirolli’s recording of RVW’s Fifth with, I think, the London Symphony Orchestra, also on an EMI CD.
It is coupled with Arnold Bax’s wonderfully atmospheric and brooding ‘Tintagel’ - what Richard Strauss would have called a tone poem, which (to me) summons up images of King Arthur, Camelot and the Round Table.
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I shall play these too! Cheers Graham
My introduction to the London Symphony was a live performance by the Scottish National Orchestra and Alexander Gibson in the 1970s. This performance in Edinburgh’s Usher Hall remains one of my favourite musical experiences. I don’t think they ever recorded it.
I live in France. VW is totally unknown here, as are Bax, Finzi, Moeran, etc.
Britten seems to be the only really popular British composer here - I heard Isabelle Faust in his wonderful Violin Concerto last September, the Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes more recently, and the Van Kuijk are playing his third quartet at the end of the month.
I forgot, Holst’s Planets is often heard in concert.
Thanks for your reply. Strangely enough I was listening to VW’s 5th symphony earlier this morning.
The influence of Boulez, perhaps? RVW’s neglect inside in France is interesting as he was a fluent French speaker, studied with Ravel and had a lifelong friendship with Florent Schmitt. One critic, commenting on the first string quartet, commented that it sounded as if the composer had been taking tea with Debussy.
Roger
Hello Graham, just checking how you are coping and feeling?
Best wishes
Ian
Ian, we’ve exchanged messages elsewhere (about the Fauré Requiem), but I’m feeling fine, thank you for asking!
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Yes, messages have crossed, funnily enough I was thinking about your reaction to the new Nait 50 and would it go with your NAT02 ?
best wishes
Yes, I’m in a quandary now, as the NAT-02 is Olive, in beautiful condition, and unused in over 20 years. I will see if James at TomTom can find a CB finish tuner for me. I will probably also think of moving on my similarly unused Olive Nait 2.
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I hope nobody minds me going “off piste” but this is my system with three generations of Naim gear
Getting back on piste , thanks to this thread I have purchased the Richard Hickox RVW London Symphony
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I hope that you enjoyed the Hickox recording, Ian.
If you haven’t heard it already, do try to hear the Barbirolli EMI account of the ‘standard’ version, though. "Glorious John’ was a truly great conductor, and was lucky to have EMI produce such fine recordings for him.
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Probably worth a sub topic and no doubt a resurrection of a previous discussion but I had, years ago, intended to have an olive NAT 02. The reason for not doing so is the expectation of the FM signal being shut down. I am, though, a fan of the live FM broadcast as a source of quality music. Even in HD the streamed source does not come over as well.