A Great Hidden Treasure!
jsharpe870 | Toronto, Ontario Canada | 11/17/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I always enjoy discovering composers whose works I've never heard before -- either because they've never been recorded before or because they've simply gone out of fashion. This recording of works inspired by the poetry of Sappho is certainly one of my great discoveries of this past year. If you enjoy any of the Late Romantic conmposers -- Strauss or Mahler -- and especially the English contingent of Elgar and Vaughan Williams, you'll find something to relish here. The song cycle Sappho for mezzo-soprano and orchestra is simply stunning... particularly Track 3 ("I loved thee once, Atthis.") From the prelude based on themes used throughout the cycle to the final address to the "Muse of the Golden Throne" there is a wide range of emotional appeal presented here. Like previous entries in Handley's Bantock cycle for Hyperion, this is lush and highly enjoyable."
One to melt by
Jeff Dunn | Alameda, California United States | 12/04/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This has been one of my top favorites for several years. The song "I loved thee once Atthis, long ago" is emblematic for the hyperromantic musical era inspired by Wagner's Tristan and snuffed out by the flaming infamy of World War One. This song alone is worth the price of the album, but all the selections are luscious to hear and superbly performed.Those with hardened hearts will steadfastly refuse to succomb to the allures of Bantock's style and accuse him of wallowing in sentiment. The rest of us lucky enough to own Bantock's masterpiece will lick our lips, sigh, and melt into a puddle."
A Forgotten Gem
D. A Wend | Buffalo Grove, IL USA | 02/20/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Ancient Greece was one of Granville Bantock's passions, as evidenced by his Pagan and Cyprian Goddess symphonies. Here, he sets the poems of Sappho to music. This is not an easy task since her poems exist in fragments. The text was fashioned by Bantock's wife, Helena, and is a remarkable achievement. This song cycle is beautifully conceived and is characterized by Bantock's sensitive and colorful orchestral writing. Vernon Handley and the Royal Philharmonic turn in an excellent performance. The song cycle begins with a prelude that presents the themes of the first songs and sets the stage for what is to follow. The songs require a dramatic reading and Susan Bickley is up to the challenge: they require a range of emotion from ecstatic to sad. The Bridal Song is a particularly charming piece, less elegiac in tone than the other songs, and reminds us that many of Sappho's poems were written to celebrate weddings. The Sapphic Poem for cello and orchestra is a magnificent showpiece for the solo instrument. Bantock quoted a fragment of Sappho at the beginning of the score: "and this I feel in myself." The quote sets the tone of the work - introspective, reflective and dramatic. Here, the cello does the soul searching that the voice does in the song cycle. The orchestration includes no heavy brass so the cello can sing out, and it does to great effect. Julian Lloyd Webber is an ideal soloist. This is a journey to an exotic and long-forgotten time and place that Bantock brings life to with his incomparable music."