Customer Reviews

Elgar: Overtures

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Elgar was the English of the English, so is there any reason why a Scottish orchestra under a Scottish conductor cannot give a first-class account of his overtures? On the evidence of this fine set, none at all. Obviously there are other excellent versions around, but this disc competes on a level of quality where preferences are probably more a matter of the listener's temperament than of any considerations that I might call `objective'. Elgar has a spring in his step in all the four pieces here, and that suits them all. What is even more important is how his orchestral writing is made to sound. That is an issue partly of the playing and partly of the recording, and several hearings have reinforced my first impression that this matter has been exceptionally well handled here.

Elgar must have been difficult to record, at least to judge from many recordings that have come my way. His range of tone-colour is wide and it is rich, but to convey that on record has defeated many sound-specialists. Shaw thought him `the greatest of orchestral technicians', but his textures can become thick if everyone is not careful. The triumph of this set is that there is light and air in the sound, and if you had not previously considered Elgar in Shaw's hyperbolic terms I suggest, quite seriously, that this recital might tempt you to think along some similar lines. The Scottish National Orchestra, not yet `Royal' in 1983 apparently, was not quite the Berlin Phil or the Chicago Symphony I dare say, but it is perfectly fit for purpose. Gibson had been there about 20 years by then, and he had achieved wonders in raising it to a genuine threshold of international quality. You will hear some fine playing from every department as the recital goes along. The Strauss-like upward leaps at the start of In the South are thrilling, and all the way through both brass and percussion are uninhibited without being unpleasant. However there is plenty of poetry here too, and if there is one particular `high spot' of the entire disc it is surely the canto populare, again from In the South, outstanding not only for the viola solo but also for the horn playing a moment later.

To check my impressions in case I was getting over-enthusiastic I played the Froissart overture from a set that I thought absolutely outstanding when I first heard it, (and still think so), the disc called `Elgar a Self Portrait' from the Halle under Mark Elder. The recording on that production is a triumph, and I suppose that by comparison there was a slight touch of acidity in the SNOs' sound right at the start and the full orchestral sound did not equal the Elder set's for sheer brilliance anywhere, but the shortfall was little enough, and in general the tutti effects are splendid. The bottom line was - there was not all that much to choose between the two.

As a real bonus there is an excellent liner note, by Andrew Keener and devoted entirely to the music. All in all, this is a thoroughly welcome reissue. In fact I don't think I have had a more enjoyable hour's listening (actually a little less, but who cares?) in months, and never mind the niceties.

I was turned onto this recording when I sought a satisfactory interpretation of In the South, Elgar's reminiscence of an Italian vacation, and found this version recommended by the All Music Guide All Music Guide to Classical Music: The Definitive Guide to Classical Music (All Music Guide Required Listening). At about 20 minutes' duration, In the South is the main reason to buy this recording.

I wasn't disappointed by the music; conductor Alexander Gibson delivers a high energy and full-throated version of In the South, which has four sections about Italy. However, the remaining music on the disk -- Elgar's Froissart and Cockaigne overtures and Handel's "Chandos Anthem No. 2" as overture for orchestra in D minor -- were not in the same league. The two Elgar overtures paled in comparison to performances by Barbirolli Elgar: Orchestral Works [Box Set] and others I've heard to such extent I chose not to retain the disk.

The recording, made in the early 1980s, is pretty good and the Scottish National Orchestra always plays well for Gibson. The recording is not full by CD standards and could have accommodated another piece, too. So this is recommended to people that seek a top-notch version of In the South. Others I'd recommend are by Barbirolli Elgar: In the South; Walton: Partita; Britten: Sinfonia da Requiem in a much better concert of English music, Silvestri's recording famous from the LP era but now only available with the Symphonies Nos 1 & 2, and Solti's that comes with his recording of Elgar: Symphonies 1 & 2 even though I didn't like his work with the symphonies very much. Anyone coming new to the music of Edward Elgar won't be disapponted by what's on this recording, which is an OK introduction to the composer.