Oh, how often my brain would misfire as I would always mix up Richard Rodney Bennett, with Robert Russell Bennett. I recall when this first volume came out I thought: "Cool, maybe we will get a new Victory at Sea recording." Oops!
I have exactly the same problem. I had to go back and check the video to make sure I had the name right. I was very relieved--and I tried to say the whole name only once because I knew I'd get it wrong the second or third time around.
I must confess to like Bennett a lot, and I guess that his jazzy "Murder in the Orient Express"-score is a gem. Also, in the jazz idiom there is the fabulous "Jazz Calendar". But Bennett, being tutored but not spoiled by Boulez, wrote some 12-tone-stuff, which fascinates me: The Piano Concerto is something like Ginastera's 1st: It's 12-tone, but written in a way that it sounds like "ordinary" music; then there is the cantata "Spells", which is very, very powerful, also written in 12-note-system. But his most gripping work is for me the opera "The Mines of Sulphur", a dark, spooky work, written also in 12-note-system, but sounding nearly like Britten. Your claim that you felt bored, I well understand. But I think one doesn't a favour for Bennett to listen his shorter works one after the other. I listen to them as they are thought: One in a "concert", and then, I guess, the work pretty well in holding one's attention. After all: A great pleasure that you made a talk about this composer!
I think that Bennett wanted to write more with more expression, but was constrained by the musical establishment that derided melody or emotional expression. He needed to compose serialist scores to be taken seriously. So many composers felt compelled to change their style to conform to the prevailing trends. I wonder how many wonderful works we were denied by the serialist hegemony?
He wrote a lovely harpsichord concerto and there's an old recording of it on RUclips. You can tell it's a good piece, but the sound quality isn't great and sells it short. We badly need a new one and I hope the series eventually covers it.
Slick, professional to a fault, enjoyable and entertaining, Bennett never surprises. He never puts a foot wrong, but that’s not a very high bar, let’s be honest. Dave, your comments were a brilliant little composition lesson.
I think one of the best discs of RRB is actually the much earlier Chandos disc conducted by Richard Hickox (billed as "volume 1", but Hickox died before any follow-ups could be made). It has the excellent Partita and then 2 wonderful works for string orchestra, which are very much in the British string music tradition. Chandos also do a CD of his film music, which of course is self-recommending.
Back in my college days (probably about the same time as Dave), all the percussion majors talked about Leigh Howard Stevens. They all practiced his “ripple” style of four mallets rolls. I was intrigued enough so that when I saw his Bach album on MHS, I bought it. Still have it. Listened to it once….and only once. You buy something like that to hear the technique, not to enjoy the actual music…which of course, sounds much better on piano or harpsichord.
David, your thoughts on percussion concertos in general, as exemplified by the marimba concerto here, are very interesting, especially from a percussion player. It would be fascinating to hear your perspective in greater detail, perhaps expanding the discussion to include other percussion concertos, such as James MacMillan's Veni, Veni Emmanuel.
Oh, how often my brain would misfire as I would always mix up Richard Rodney Bennett, with Robert Russell Bennett. I recall when this first volume came out I thought: "Cool, maybe we will get a new Victory at Sea recording." Oops!
I have exactly the same problem. I had to go back and check the video to make sure I had the name right. I was very relieved--and I tried to say the whole name only once because I knew I'd get it wrong the second or third time around.
Very illuminating observations about the marimba.
I must confess to like Bennett a lot, and I guess that his jazzy "Murder in the Orient Express"-score is a gem. Also, in the jazz idiom there is the fabulous "Jazz Calendar". But Bennett, being tutored but not spoiled by Boulez, wrote some 12-tone-stuff, which fascinates me: The Piano Concerto is something like Ginastera's 1st: It's 12-tone, but written in a way that it sounds like "ordinary" music; then there is the cantata "Spells", which is very, very powerful, also written in 12-note-system. But his most gripping work is for me the opera "The Mines of Sulphur", a dark, spooky work, written also in 12-note-system, but sounding nearly like Britten.
Your claim that you felt bored, I well understand. But I think one doesn't a favour for Bennett to listen his shorter works one after the other. I listen to them as they are thought: One in a "concert", and then, I guess, the work pretty well in holding one's attention.
After all: A great pleasure that you made a talk about this composer!
I think that Bennett wanted to write more with more expression, but was constrained by the musical establishment that derided melody or emotional expression. He needed to compose serialist scores to be taken seriously.
So many composers felt compelled to change their style to conform to the prevailing trends. I wonder how many wonderful works we were denied by the serialist hegemony?
Good question.
He wrote a lovely harpsichord concerto and there's an old recording of it on RUclips. You can tell it's a good piece, but the sound quality isn't great and sells it short. We badly need a new one and I hope the series eventually covers it.
Slick, professional to a fault, enjoyable and entertaining, Bennett never surprises. He never puts a foot wrong, but that’s not a very high bar, let’s be honest. Dave, your comments were a brilliant little composition lesson.
I think one of the best discs of RRB is actually the much earlier Chandos disc conducted by Richard Hickox (billed as "volume 1", but Hickox died before any follow-ups could be made). It has the excellent Partita and then 2 wonderful works for string orchestra, which are very much in the British string music tradition. Chandos also do a CD of his film music, which of course is self-recommending.
Of course...
Back in my college days (probably about the same time as Dave), all the percussion majors talked about Leigh Howard Stevens. They all practiced his “ripple” style of four mallets rolls. I was intrigued enough so that when I saw his Bach album on MHS, I bought it. Still have it. Listened to it once….and only once. You buy something like that to hear the technique, not to enjoy the actual music…which of course, sounds much better on piano or harpsichord.
David, your thoughts on percussion concertos in general, as exemplified by the marimba concerto here, are very interesting, especially from a percussion player. It would be fascinating to hear your perspective in greater detail, perhaps expanding the discussion to include other percussion concertos, such as James MacMillan's Veni, Veni Emmanuel.
MacMillan is a slightly different case, in that he uses multiple instruments to expand the solo's timbral range--but similar restrictions still apply.
Painful. Nothing worse than being gripped in your margins.