Bbc Music March 2018

SOMM Recordings is delighted to present a revelatory collection of orchestral songs by Sir Edward Elgar (on double slimline selling as a single disc), performed by two of today’s most exciting young singers – mezzo-soprano Kathryn Rudge and baritone Henk Neven – accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra conducted by Barry Wordsworth. The Hills of Dreamland takes its title from a line in Elgar’s well-known setting, beautifully still and beseeching, of Arthur L Salmon’s Pleading. Historically the least regarded part of Elgar’s output, his songs contain a treasure-trove of vocal gems and here receive performances of insight, imagination and emotional directness.

Essentially a vehicle for Hammond organ maestro Mick Weaver, late 60s British band Wynder K. Frog specialised in funky club Soul/Jazz. Hailing from Bolton, Lancashire, but based in London for much of their career, Mick and the band made three albums for Island Records between 1966 and 1970. These have long been coveted by Mod collectors and fans of the prestigious Island label. For the first time ever, all three LPs - Sunshine Super Frog (mono, 1966), Out Of The Frying Pan (stereo, 1968) and the US-only Into The Fire (stereo, 1970) - appear on one package, accompanied by a host of rare non-album tracks, previously unissued material, a track from a BBC radio session and two stereo mixes from the soundtrack to the 1968 film The Touchables.
Shook Shimmy And Shake is housed in a handsome clamshell box. Inside are miniatures of all three albums…

Essentially a vehicle for Hammond organ maestro Mick Weaver, late 60s British band Wynder K. Frog specialised in funky club Soul/Jazz. Hailing from Bolton, Lancashire, but based in London for much of their career, Mick and the band made three albums for Island Records between 1966 and 1970. These have long been coveted by Mod collectors and fans of the prestigious Island label. For the first time ever, all three LPs - Sunshine Super Frog (mono, 1966), Out Of The Frying Pan (stereo, 1968) and the US-only Into The Fire (stereo, 1970) - appear on one package, accompanied by a host of rare non-album tracks, previously unissued material, a track from a BBC radio session and two stereo mixes from the soundtrack to the 1968 film The Touchables.
Shook Shimmy And Shake is housed in a handsome clamshell box. Inside are miniatures of all three albums…

Deluxe three CD + NTSC/Region 0 DVD edition. Features an additional 33 bonus tracks drawn from new 5. 1 surround sound and stereo mixes from the original multi-track master tapes, BBC radio sessions from 1968 and 1971, and non-album singles along with the 1968 short film Mr. Sunshine. The set also includes a lavishly illustrated 68-page book with previously unseen photographs and an essay by BJH specialists Keith and Monika Domone. Additionally, the set includes a facsimile of the 1970 Barclay James Harvest orchestral tour program and two facsimile press releases from 1968 and 1969, postcards and a replica 1968 record shop poster for the 'Early Morning' single….

Roxy Music release an expanded edition of their ground-breaking debut album to mark its 45th anniversary. The Super Deluxe Edition includes rare and previously unavailable material never-heard-before outside of Roxy’s inner circle. Audio includes the original album, BBC Sessions & In Concert performance, 1971 demo tape and ‘In-Session’ performance…

Five years after the highly-praised release of Volume 3, Sir Andrew Davis returns to his exploration of Holst’s orchestral works with the brilliant BBC Philharmonic, a series initiated almost ten years ago by the late Richard Hickox, then taken over by another expert in British repertoire. This selection of orchestral works by Holst provides a remarkable overview of his career, ranging from such early works as A Winder Idyll – composed in 1897 when he was still studying at the Royal College of Music – to the Scherzo of a symphony on which he was working towards the end of his life.

Respectfully known as the "king of light music,"Eric Coates was one of England's greatest composers. A prolific writer, Coates wrote pieces for orchestras, chamber groups, and solo pianists. In addition to penning more than 160 ballads, he composed numerous instrumental settings for the poetry of William Shakespeare and other British poets. His many radio themes included the theme of the popular BBC radio show Calling All Workers, which aired four times a day, five days a week. Coates made his orchestral debut in 1911 when his composition "Miniature Suite" was performed by the Queen's Hall Light Orchestra under the direction of Sir Henry Wood. Coates played viola with the orchestra during the premiere. Although he wrote his most enduring tune, "Stonecracker John," in 1909, Coates enjoyed a revival of his popularity in the late '20s when his songs "Birdsongs at Eventide" and "Homeward to You" became major hits. He remained active until shortly before his death in 1957, composing "The Dam Busters March" and "High Flight" for popular early-'50s films.

Apart from Grieg, no Scandinavian composer has written for the piano with more individuality and insight than Nielsen. Right from the very outset of his Five Piano Pieces, Op. 3, there is no doubt that his is an individual voice. The first emerges from a Schumannesque innocence to speak with personal accents, but all five are strong on humour and character. Nielsen’s greatest piano music is clustered into a period of four years (1916-20) with his final thoughts in the medium, the Three Pieces, Op. 59 of 1928 being composed in the immediate proximity of his Clarinet Concerto, music that already breathes the air of other planets. With the exception of Leif Ove Andsnes, no pianist of international standing has championed it on record, and apart from John Ogdon and John McCabe it has been the almost exclusive preserve of Nordic artists. True, the American scholar Mina Miller, who edited the autographs for the Hansen edition, recorded a complete survey in 1995 – also for Hyperion. But although Schnabel was the dedicatee of the Suite, Op. 45, he never broke a lance for it on the international scene. The Suite is not only Nielsen’s greatest keyboard work but arguably the mightiest ever written in Scandinavia. Martin Roscoe is right inside this music and guides us through its marvels with great subtlety and authority.