Rootham: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 97 & Ode on the Morning of Christ's Nativity, Op. 81

Chronique

The music of composer Cyril Rootham is only occasionally recorded, and mostly in Britain, but as head of the Cambridge University Musical Society in the early 20th century he was a major force in English musical life. He was the teacher of Arthur Bliss. The pair of works here reveals a composer with a distinctive style: a conservative who did not shy away from modern trends, but took from them what he considered of value. These deeply lyrical works suggest what might have happened had someone like Frederick Delius taken a position in the heart of the British academy. The main attraction is the Ode on the Morning of Christ's Nativity, setting the substantial poem by John Milton for giant forces including choir, boy choir, strings, winds, 11 brasses, and a percussion section with tubular bells. The lofty lyrical tone, with little variation in tempo or rhythm, can take a bit of time to tune into, but once you connect with it, it's remarkable. Sample the beginning of Milton's "Hymn" (track 2), where a Manx carol, The Sheep Under the Snow, is quoted. The Symphony No. 2, composed in the last year of Rootham's life and painstakingly dictated almost note by note just before his death from a degenerative disease, has a choral finale with a mystical text from the Revelation of St. John the Divine. The graphics on this Lyrita release mention state-of-the-art recording equipment, but these recordings sound as if they were taped off the radio. They render Rootham's complex orchestral writing clearly, but not more than that. Nevertheless, these rarely heard pieces that can be recommended to fans of English music of the 20th century.

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