Customer Reviews

Paul Creston: Symphony No.3; Partita for Flute, Violin & Stings, Op. 12; Out of the Cradle; Invocation & Dance, Op. 58

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Here's a recording that predates the popular Naxos recording of Creston's first three symphonies. As this CD was successful enough to warrant a sequel (Delos' Orchestral Works, Volume II), we may suppose that it probably did much to make the Naxos recording possible. This CD and the Naxos have a symphony in common, Number Three (1950). Schwarz and the Seattle band don't have Naxos' somewhat more spacious Ukrainian acoustics, but they do have significantly more accurate playing (especially in the fast violin passage toward the end of the third movement), and I kind of prefer the slight emphasis of brass and winds from Seattle.

The present recording also gives us a sampling of some early Creston, the Partita, Op. 12 (1937), a five movement Baroque/Classical bow with plenty of fancy passages excellently played by Scott Goff and Ilkka Talvi. Not desert island fare by any means, but it does offer an important hint as to the solid foundation upon which Creston would soon build.

The tone poem "Out of the Cradle" shows us that rich palate of colors Creston had at his disposal and how he could weave them into a sumptuous tapestry of sound.

The CD ends with "Invocation and Dance," a work made popular by virtue of its being on the first offering of the groundbreaking Louisville Orchestra series of LPs in the early 50's. It's Creston's calling card, a rhythmic tour de force in the grand tradition of Ravel's and Stravinsky's exotic dance music. (Why, sometimes you feel just like you've fallen into a Ginastera or Chavez black hole.) By any measure, it's one of the most striking examples of its kind in American music, fully deserving of far wider play than it has ever received. The Delos recording provides more detail than the old Louisville mono LP (as fine as that was for its time!), and that means we get to hear all the interesting structures and devices that make the piece come together as well as its more obvious overall power and sweep. I would recommend this CD solely for this 13 minute unjustly neglected masterpiece (no collection of American music could be called complete without it), but of course it's great to have all the other pieces on it as well.

This CD introduced me to the work of Paul Creston. Creston is, perhaps, a quintessential American composer. Born into a poor family, he basically taught himself to become a composer, an organist, and a pianist.

His work did pay off, as is demonstrated by these works. Especially reccommended is his Symphony No. 3 "Three Mysteries". For anyone who loves American music, this CD is a must have.

Paul Creston was one of the great American composers; unfortunately, the emergence of twelve tone and serial music led to his being sidelined. Even Samuel Barber was being denigrated by professors at the Julliard School in New York from the sixties to the eighties. The third symphony and the Invocation and Dance are sterling examples of Creston's flair for lively dance rhythms. Out of the Cradle is another fine example of his affinity for the writings of Walt Whitman.
Creston comes as close as possible to the American paradigm of the self-made man. He was forced to leave high school after his freshman year to work with his dad, a house painter, to support his family. Creston was persistent in educating himself in so many areas, not just in music. He was also the organist at the Actor's Chapel; he played very well.
This is a man to admire not only for his musical talent but also for his persistence in overcoming adversity. I have long enjoyed his music and respected the character of the man who composed it. I suspect you will too.

Paul Creston was one of the more popular American "classical" composers of the 1950's and early 1960's. An American success story - he had to quit school at 15 to help his family, he was primarily although not exclusively a self-taught composer. He was a recipient of many awards and composed many works. He also held faculty positions before his music was not seen as relevant by those championing atonal and 12 tone music.

My specific interest was the Partita for Flute, Violin and Strings. While written in 1932 during the early part of his career, it is still accessible, comprehensible and even enjoyable to many who like either popular music or traditional "classical" music. It is not Bach in harmony, but there is something rhythmically reminiscent of his Brandenburg Concertos in the opening phrases of this piece. I would highly recommend this piece (and CD) to anyone who is interested "Western Art Music" but wishes to eschew atonal or 12 tone music.

In my view, Paul Creston remains one of the most engaging and rewarding of the generation of American composers that also included Hanson, Diamond, Schuman and others. Stylistically his music is rather conservative, being unashamedly romantic with neo-classical elements thrown in to lighten up the textures (there are some use of whole-tone harmonies and clever use of dance rhythms) - he consistently avoided anything resembling serialism or twelve-tone technique and was subsequently overlooked by the musical establishment from the 1960s onwards. Despite his conservatism, however, Creston's musical voice remains relatively individual, and his music is - while eminently approachable - always engaging and rewarding.

Gerard Schwarz, who has been an important advocate for Creston's music the last couple of years, was in fact Creston's pupil, and he displays and obvious understanding and love for the music. The third symphony also exists in a very fine version under Theodor Kuchar on Naxos, and there isn't too much to choose between them - Schwarz is generally more streamlined, sleeker and breezier, and the response from the Seattle SO perhaps a tad more refined than what Kuchar manages to draw from the NSO Ukraine, but I don't think anyone will be disappointed with either approach. The work itself is generally solemn and wistful, with a magical tinsel sheen to it - `solemn' in the sense that even the faster music is very lyrical and reflective, even despite the rhythmically invigorating foundation for the choral like themes; there is a sense of calmness over the whole work, creating a remarkable and quite memorable effect.

The early, neo-baroque Partita for flute, violin and strings is a lovely work, even though it doesn't plunge any depths - Creston was obviously not quite stylistically confident yet, but there are some really gorgeous things here nonetheless. `Out of the Cradle' is based on Whitman (same as Delius's Sea Drift) and a calmly reflective, sweet work - attractive but not very memorable. The Invocation and Dance, on the other hand, is a truly catchy, invigorating and memorable work and clearly the most rewarding on the disc apart from the marvelous third symphony. Overall, this is a real success and a strongly recommended disc.