Vaughan Williams

There's no lack of glorious melody in Sir Johnin Love, and not just folksong cunningly interwoven. Musically, what comes over strongly, more richly than ever before in this magnificent recording from Richard Hickox, is the way that the writing anticipates later Vaughan Williams, not just the radiant composer of the Fifth Symphony and Serenade to Music, with keychanges of heartstopping beauty, but the composer's darker side, with sharply rhythmic writing.

The four works offered here by the Piatti Quartet on its Rubicon label debut are all but unknown; even the Household Music of Ralph Vaughan Williams, written during World War II for amateur performance, has been recorded only sparsely, and the String Quartet in E minor of Vaughan Williams Ina Boyle, having thus far been passed over in the general revival of music by women, here receives its world premiere.

This disc is a far cry from the typical fare we’ve come to expect on the shelves around the Christmas season. The inclusion of Bach’s sublime Cantata 63 and Mendelssohn’s Vom Himmel hoch give the disc a year round appeal. Vaughan Williams’ joyful The First Nowell is a veritable feast of well loved carols and the London Philharmonic Choir together with soloists Lisa Milne and Christopher Maltman exude Christmas cheer.

The four works offered here by the Piatti Quartet on its Rubicon label debut are all but unknown; even the Household Music of Ralph Vaughan Williams, written during World War II for amateur performance, has been recorded only sparsely, and the String Quartet in E minor of Vaughan Williams Ina Boyle, having thus far been passed over in the general revival of music by women, here receives its world premiere.

This new album of music by Ralph Vaughan Williams, the latest by the London Choral Sinfonia and Michael Waldron, features collaborators including violinist Jack Liebeck and tenor Andrew Staples. The collection includes works such as Vaughan Williams's Violin Concerto; ""In Windsor Forest,"" adapted from the opera 'Sir John in Love;' and ""Prelude on Gibbons’ Song 13,"" newly orchestrated for strings. Among these adaptations are Vaughan Williams' own transcriptions of J.S. Bach's works, including the 'Giant' Fugue and 'Schmucke Dich' chorale, reflecting his admiration for Bach's music. The album contains poignant pieces like ""Nothing is here for tears,"" a sombre response to King George V's death, and ""Land of our birth,"" an homage to Britain's World War II victory.

"This new album of music by Ralph Vaughan Williams, the latest by the London Choral Sinfonia and Michael Waldron, features collaborators including violinist Jack Liebeck and tenor Andrew Staples. The collection includes works such as Vaughan Williams's Violin Concerto; ""In Windsor Forest,"" adapted from the opera 'Sir John in Love;' and ""Prelude on Gibbons’ Song 13,"" newly orchestrated for strings. Among these adaptations are Vaughan Williams' own transcriptions of J.S. Bach's works, including the 'Giant' Fugue and 'Schmucke Dich' chorale, reflecting his admiration for Bach's music. The album contains poignant pieces like ""Nothing is here for tears,"" a sombre response to King George V's death, and ""Land of our birth,"" an homage to Britain's World War II victory. Highlighting string arrangements including the seminal “Silent Noon”, arranged for strings by Owain Park, as well as world premieres, the album underscores Vaughan Williams' musical adaptations and their ties to British legacies."

The pairing of Vaughan Williams' Job and his Symphony No. 9 is a logical one, not least because of the prominent role given to saxophones in both works. Vaughan Williams called Job a "masque," following old English usage, but it's a ballet in all but name, and like many of them it succeeds as a standalone orchestral work. The idea of a ballet based on the Book of Job seems slightly odd until you learn that it was inspired by William Blake's illustrations for the story, which would have been very familiar to Vaughan Williams' audiences in 1930.

This release is part of the complete cycle of Vaughan Williams' symphonies undertaken by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the energetic Martyn Brabbins holding the baton. Like others in the series, the reading of the Symphony No. 5 is a strong performance, understated in the English way, with themes arising naturally, as if organically. Listen to the emergence of the second theme in the opening movement for a good idea of what to expect from the whole. The big news here is the presence of a new Vaughan Williams work: the Scenes Adapted from Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, composed in 1906.

Ralph Vaughan Williams' A London Symphony, otherwise known as the Symphony No. 2 in G major, was composed between 1911 and 1913, and premiered in 1914. After the score was lost in the mail, reconstructed from the short score and orchestral parts, and revised twice, the symphony was published at last in 1920, though it was ultimately replaced by the definitive version in 1936, with cuts to the about 20 minutes of the original material. This recording by Martyn Brabbins and the BBC Symphony Orchestra presents the 1920 version, along with three short works, Sound sleep for female voices and small orchestra, Orpheus with his lute for voice and orchestra, and the Variations for brass band. The filler pieces are delightful rarities that Vaughan Williams specialists will find of some interest, though most listeners will prize this recording for the energetic and colorful performance of the symphony, which is one of the composer's most vivid and satisfying works.