CD REVIEW – MUSIC FOR STRINGS
SINFONIA OF LONDON / JOHN WILSON
Chandos CHSA 5291 [66.00]

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Another humdinger of a disc from John Wilson and his magnificent orchestra, this time with the accent on the strings. The programme opens with one of the most popular of all classical compositions: Ralph Vaughan Williams' Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. JW takes just over a minute off the timing of Sir John Barbirolli's famous 1962 version with the Sinfonia in its first manifestation. Another well-loved piece here is Sir Edward Elgar's superb Introduction and Allegro, also included on that earlier EMI recording.

The release is completed by two less familiar works. The first is Herbert Howells' Concerto for String Orchestra, at 28.02 minutes the longest on the album. Howells, who died aged 91 in 1983, was an English composer, organist and teacher, best known for his large output of Anglican church music. In the booklet notes Andrew Burns quotes him saying that "strings were born to sing".

The concerto begins with an energetic burst and then settles down to a second movement inspired by the deaths of Elgar and Howells' own son, which is largely elegiac in character, before a final spirited third movement including a pleasing passage of pizzicato playing. Overall, I have found that liking this work increases on each hearing.

The fourth piece is Eric Fenby's arrangement of the descriptive Village Swallows by Frederick Delius, being the slow movement of a string quartet comprising two violins, viola and cello. One of the violinists is John Mills, leading the SoL again.

The playing throughout is par excellence and the sound recording – yet another (the Delius excepted) made in August 2021 – is of the customary highest standard we have come to expect from this source. It is already in line to be one of the CDs of the Year!

© Peter Burt 2023