Ensemble

... conveyed an impression of a harsh, blistering landscape, which seemed at times on the point of eruption. Scotsman (Conrad Wilson), 27 August 1984, Instrumentation: 2.picc.2.2.2 - 4231 - timp(=BD)...

Instrumentation: 2.2(II=ca).2(II=bcl).2 - 2(1)00 - timp(=rototom or tom-t+glsp) - strings (min 4.4.3.3.2)

Music for Japan begins with a great sobbing breath of sound, rather like the deep chesty vocalism of Japanese classical singer-actors. Slow planetary wanderings of timbre and accent give way to a midd...

Lush and pictorial, it consisted of sharply defined sections that courted the charge of mere exoticism - evocations of Oriental musics and sounds, full of throbbing strings, rapidly reiterated percuss...

"Matthews calls the processes in Landscape `the irrational logic of a dream'. It might otherwise be described as an instinctive but masterful reinterpretation of sonata principles, surprising...

Instrumentation: 3(III=picc).3.3.3 - 4331 - timp - perc(2/3): SD/TD/BD/cyms/tamb/susp.cym/whip/tgl/unspecified tuned perc - (pno) - strings Nicholas Maw Summer Dances Summer Dances was commissioned by...

... a powerfully evocative piece for orchestra of strings, brass and percussion, which translates into a variety of extraordinary orchestral timbres and motifs, the feeling of the sun as a vast, glari...

With its rich textures bubbling with activity, not unlike Janácek thrilling at nature's evergreen renewal, the piece seeks to put into music `the energy and beauty of spring'. It is an approachable ex...

... a 17-minute, three-movement work in which orchestra suits and colours are dealt with concision, wit, fluency and light-fingered skill... Gillian Widdicombe, Financial Times, November 1976 Instrume...

Instrumentation: 2.2.ca.2.2.cbsn - 4331 - strings

... has a genuine music-hall flavour, with lots of gusto, a winning waltz theme, an Offenbachian can-can and even twittering bird effects in the tuneful pot-pourri towards the end of the suite. Ivan M...

... has an enchatingly gentle Ravelian slow movement, and an outrageously jazzy finale which was encored at its Proms premiere - understandably as it centres on one of Arnold's most infectious tunes.....

Instrumentation: 2222 - 4000 - strings

Instrumentation: 2(I=picc ad lib).2.2.(bcl).2 - 423(1) - timp -perc(1/2): tam-t/glsp/cyms/2 susp.cym/ratchet/BD/tgl/(siz.cym) - (pno) - (harp) - strings

Instrumentation: 3(III=picc).2.2.bcl.(cbcl).2.cbsn - 4.2(I=ptpt adlib).3.1 - timp - perc(3): vib/3 BD/3 susp.cym/hi-hat/tpl.bl/xyl/6 tom-t/(siz.cym)/tam-t/gong/6 rototom/4 t.bells/glsp/claves/mcas - p...

First performed in Manchester, by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Edward Downes, this work lasts 21 minutes and is for full orchestra. Instrumentation: 2(II=picc).afl(=picc).2.ca.2(II=Ebc...

"With its subtle shifts of colour, its scrapping ebb and flow of percussion, and its gradual intensification, the first part evoked both Britten and Debussy. The latter and more substantial part,...

A cleverly devised, texturally fresh and engaging short essay... with its percussive tick-tocks, extended melodies for a woodwind section including saxophone... Paul Driver, Financial Times, June 1986...

The title Cortege does not imply a funeral march, but rather a measured processional in which the colours are predominantly sombre and the mood dark and often menacing. One of the most important eleme...

... a little jewel of a five-minute orchestral piece. Edward Greenfield, The Guardian, 17 June 1988 Instrumentation: 3.1.ca.3.1.cbsn - 4030 - perc(4): timp/tam-t/2 t.bells/susp.cym/vib/tamb/sleigh bel...

... creates a shimmering tapestry of sound that ranges satisfyingly wide within a brief-span - a fine display piece for conductor and every section of the orchestra. The Guardian, 17 September 1988 In...

... immediately engaging, with its uplifting horn melody, lively fanfares, comfortable harmonies and easy-to-follow trajectory... Mark Stryker, Dayton Daily News, 13 January 1994 Instrumentation: picc...