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Walton – The Symphonies

Composers
Genres
Orchestras / Ensembles
Conductors
Label
Catalogue numberBIS-1646 SACD
Release date2010-06-26
Discs1
Orig. sample rate44100Hz
Total time70:41

Rarely appearing together on disc, William Walton's two symphonies are separated by some 25 years. The First Symphony was composed after his dazzling early success, beginning with Façade and culminating in two scores written before Walton reached the age of thirty: the Viola Concerto and the oratorio Belshazzar's Feast. After this, composition became more difficult, and progress on the symphony was tortuous and protracted. Nevertheless, the work has a strikingly positive tone - perhaps in celebration of the victory over the many demons and difficulties that had attended its creation. Twenty-two years later, in 1957, the musical world was a very different place, but Walton's response was not to seek solace in reflective nostalgia. It is rather as if he conceived the Second Symphony as a follow-up to his terse and bubbly Partita for orchestra, building on the confidence that the success of that score had given the always self-doubting composer. Owain Arwel Hughes, who conducts the present recording, first made his name with an electrifying televised performance of Walton's Belshazzar's Feast which received a notable accolade from the composer. During his distinguished career Hughes has recorded a number of discs for BIS, including a complete cycles of the 13 symphonies of Vagn Holmboe. In the French magazine Répertoire his 3-disc series of Rachmaninov's symphonies was described as 'the great modern Rachmaninov cycle', while the reviewer in International Record Review stated that 'Hughes is the first conductor to convince me that the First Symphony is on a par with its two successors.' On this recording he brings Walton across the English Channel and conducts one of the leading French orchestras, Orchestre national de Lille, for their first appearance on the BIS label.
 
  • STUDIO QUALITY
    File formats included in STUDIO QUALITY
    • FLAC 24-bit Stereo
    • FLAC 24-bit Surround 5.0
    • FLAC 16-bit Stereo
    • MP3 Stereo
  • CD QUALITY | MP3
    File formats included in CD QUALITY | MP3
    • FLAC 16-bit Stereo
    • MP3 Stereo
$ 14.54
 
Extra material for download
 
 
  Composer: Walton, Sir William
  Symphony No.1 42:51
01 I. Allegro assai 13:45 $ 2.89 USD
02 II. Presto con malizia 06:30 $ 1.37 USD
03 III. Andante con malinconia 09:55 $ 2.08 USD
04 IV. Maestoso – Allegro, brioso ed ardentemente 12:41 $ 2.66 USD
 
  Symphony No.2 26:24
05 I. Allegro molto 08:41 $ 1.82 USD
06 II. Lento assai 09:07 $ 1.91 USD
07 III. Passacaglia 08:36 $ 1.81 USD
 
  Album total 70:41
OrchestraOrchestre national de Lille
ConductorArwel Hughes, Owain
ComposerWalton, Sir William

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