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Back again, it's John Barbirolli's classic 1962 recording of Vaughan Williams' Fifth Symphony. This time, however, it's not alone as it was on LPs in the sixties and seventies or coupled with Barbirolli's equally ecstatic 1965 recording of Arnold Bax's Tintagel as it was on its initial CD release in the eighties and nineties, but rather joined by a goodly portion of the English modernist master's shorter orchestral works recorded by Malcolm Sargent in 1957.
Since the mastering is exactly the same as the previous digital reissue, the sound and performance are exactly the same, too, meaning that the sound is glowing and the performance is rapturous. Barbirolli's love for the music is obvious, his understanding of the score is complete, and his ability to draw glorious playing from the Philharmonia is nonpareil. For him, the London strings are sweeter, the woodwinds warmer, the brass mellower, and their blend almost supernaturally radiant. With flowing tempos and luminous textures, Barbirolli creates an exquisite reading of the Fifth that every enthusiast of English orchestral music ought to hear.
The question is what context to hear it in. While more Vaughan Williams is always better, Sargent's Vaughan Williams is only so-so. His Wasps Overture has plenty of sting and his Serenade to Music has sufficient lyricism, but he never quite makes the music take wing and sing. The London Symphony Orchestra plays with professional polish, but seems uninspired by either the man on the podium or the music on the stands. On the other hand, Barbirolli's passionate Tintagel on the earlier CD release is one of the most compelling of all Bax recordings, and though Bax is indubitably no Vaughan Williams, Sargent is undeniably no Barbirolli, and the slightly cramped 1957 sound is no match for the lush 1965 sound. In the final analysis, then, the earlier reissue remains the CD release to beat.
© TiVo
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The Wasps (Les Guêpes) (Ralph Vaughan Williams)
Sir Malcolm Sargent, Conductor - London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra - Peter Andry, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1957, 1990 Parlophone Records Limited
Serenade to Music (version pour 4 solistes & chœur) (Ralph Vaughan Williams)
Sir Malcolm Sargent, Conductor - London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra - Peter Andry, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer - William Shakespeare, Lyricist - Elsie Morison, Soprano - Marjorie Thomas, Contralto - Duncan Robertson, Tenor - Trevor Anthony, Bass
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1957, 1990 Parlophone Records Limited
Fantaisie sur 'Greensleeves' (Ralph Vaughan Williams)
Sir Malcolm Sargent, Conductor - Peter Andry, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer - Ralph Greaves, Arranger - London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1957, 1990 Parlophone Records Limited
Toward the Unknown Region (Ralph Vaughan Williams)
Sir Malcolm Sargent, Conductor - Peter Andry, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer - London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra - Walt Whitman, Lyricist
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1957, 1990 Parlophone Records Limited
Symphonie n° 5 en ré majeur (Ralph Vaughan Williams)
Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestra - Sir John Barbirolli, Conductor - Victor Olof, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1963, 1994 Parlophone Records Limited
Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestra - Sir John Barbirolli, Conductor - Victor Olof, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1963, 1994 Parlophone Records Limited
Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestra - Sir John Barbirolli, Conductor - Victor Olof, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1963, 1994 Parlophone Records Limited
Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestra - Sir John Barbirolli, Conductor - Victor Olof, Producer - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Composer
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 1963, 1994 Parlophone Records Limited
Album review
Back again, it's John Barbirolli's classic 1962 recording of Vaughan Williams' Fifth Symphony. This time, however, it's not alone as it was on LPs in the sixties and seventies or coupled with Barbirolli's equally ecstatic 1965 recording of Arnold Bax's Tintagel as it was on its initial CD release in the eighties and nineties, but rather joined by a goodly portion of the English modernist master's shorter orchestral works recorded by Malcolm Sargent in 1957.
Since the mastering is exactly the same as the previous digital reissue, the sound and performance are exactly the same, too, meaning that the sound is glowing and the performance is rapturous. Barbirolli's love for the music is obvious, his understanding of the score is complete, and his ability to draw glorious playing from the Philharmonia is nonpareil. For him, the London strings are sweeter, the woodwinds warmer, the brass mellower, and their blend almost supernaturally radiant. With flowing tempos and luminous textures, Barbirolli creates an exquisite reading of the Fifth that every enthusiast of English orchestral music ought to hear.
The question is what context to hear it in. While more Vaughan Williams is always better, Sargent's Vaughan Williams is only so-so. His Wasps Overture has plenty of sting and his Serenade to Music has sufficient lyricism, but he never quite makes the music take wing and sing. The London Symphony Orchestra plays with professional polish, but seems uninspired by either the man on the podium or the music on the stands. On the other hand, Barbirolli's passionate Tintagel on the earlier CD release is one of the most compelling of all Bax recordings, and though Bax is indubitably no Vaughan Williams, Sargent is undeniably no Barbirolli, and the slightly cramped 1957 sound is no match for the lush 1965 sound. In the final analysis, then, the earlier reissue remains the CD release to beat.
© TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 8 track(s)
- Total length: 01:18:22
- Main artists: Sir John Barbirolli Philharmonia Orchestra Sir Malcolm Sargent London Symphony Orchestra
- Composer: Ralph Vaughan Williams
- Label: Warner Classics
- Genre: Classical
A Warner Classics release, © 2008 Parlophone Records Limited A Warner Classics release, ℗ 2008 Parlophone Records Limited
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