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A Carol Symphony
First up is Bryan Kelly's Improvisations on Christmas Carols, a five-movement work based on well-known tunes such as "Past three o'clock" and "I saw three ships". Hely-Hutchinson's work follows. It is symphonic in structure and based on popular carols too, the highlight being the slow third movement where the spine-tingling "Coventry Carol" melts into a magical arrangement of "The First Nowell". Arrangements by Philip Lane of Warlock and traditional English wassails break up the carolling before Patric Standford's A Christmas Carol Symphony rounds off the disc. It's rousing opening movement combines three jolly carols--"Deck the Halls", "Ding dong merrily on high" and "God rest ye merry gentlemen"--before "Away in a manger" takes over for the second. The grand finale brings together a myriad of carols and songs--I counted nine, but there could be more. --Rebecca Agnew But let’s not ignore the remaining tracks. Each one is a miniature gem that manages to capture something of a festive feel, whether it be the happy, cheeky crispness of Bryan Kelly’s Carol Improvisations and Philip Lane’s Wassail Dances (the modest Lane also writes the sleevenotes) or the solemn, gentle, melancholic flipside represented by a most alarmingly beautiful arrangement of Peter Warlock’s Bethlehem Down (originally for voices, here played by strings) or Patrick Standford’s jubilant Christmas Carol Symphony. Whatever it is about Christmas music that makes it “Christmassy” is represented in spades on this unassumingly priced CD. A word of warning though: it makes for odd listening any time outside of the Festive Season – exercise caution playing it in June!
RRP: £5.99
Our Price: £2.96 (subject to change)
Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review
This new recording on the Naxos label makes a pleasant change from the usual seasonal compilations of hymns or pop songs. It takes its name from the most substantial work on the disc--Victor Hely-Hutchinson's A Carol Symphony--which is complemented with three other symphonic pieces based on Christmas music.
When Slade, Wizzard and Bing simply won't do anymore...
Review date: 2003-09-23 Rating: 10 out of 10
If you’re seeking a quieter, more restful and (dare I say) traditional form of Christmas Spirit than you’re getting from Slade, Wizzard and Phil Spector, then here’s something very beautiful: a collection of classical, orchestral pieces all themed around the Yuletide season.
Victor Hely-Hutchinson’s splendid Carol Symphony (the third movement of which achieved greater fame in the 1980s as the creepy-but-festive theme to the BBC series “The Box Of Delights”) appears here in one of perhaps only two recent (and available) recordings and is beautifully played/ recorded. This alone justifies Naxos’ bargain price!
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Product Details/Specifications
Artist(s):
City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Creators:
Bryan Kelly (Composer)
Patric Standford (Composer)
Peter Warlock (Composer)
Philip Lane (Composer)
Victor Hely-Hutchinson (Composer)
Gavin Sutherland (Conductor)
Recording label: Naxos
Manufacturer: Naxos
EAN: 0747313209927
Binding: Audio CD
Release date: 2002-11-04
Universal product code (UPC): 747313209927
Number of discs: 1
Disc 1 Tracks:
1. Allegro (God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen)
2. Andante Non Troppo
3. Slowly (Past Three O' Clock)
4. Moderato (I Saw Three Ships)
5. Allegro (Ding Dong Merrily On High/Unto Us A Boy Is Born)
6. Allegro Energico (Adeste Fideles)
7. Scherzo: Allegro Molto Moderato (God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen)
8. Andante Quasi Lento E Cantabile (The Conventry Carol/The First Nowell)
9. Allegro Energico Come Prima (Here We Come A-Wassailing/Adeste Fideles)
10. Bethlehem Down (A Carol For Strings)
11. Vivace (Somerset Wassail)
12. Andantino (Yorkshire Wassail)
13. Vivace (Gloucestershire Wassail)
14. Vivace (Deck The Halls/Ding Dong Merrily On High/God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen)
15. Andante Tranquillo (Away In A Manger/Es Ist Ein Ros' Entsprungen)
16. Allegretto (Past Three O' Clock/Now The Holly And The Ivy)
17. Rondo Finale (On Christmas Night/I Saw Three Ships/Christmas Awake/We Wish You A Merry Christmas)
Publishers: Naxos