Search - Maxwell Davies :: Symphony 6 / Time & The Raven

Maxwell Davies (b. 1934) is one of the reigning British composers at this end of the 20th century. He is remarkably prolific and Collins is apparently bent on getting most of it on disc. The symphonies are particularly successful. Maxwell Davies's Symphony 6 (1996) is an abstract work that pushes various themes--still in a sonata format-- through various convolutions to a cogent conclusion. Maxwell Davies makes extensive use of loose atonal arrangements, giving his music a dark, sometimes frightening, character. Time and the Raven (1995) is a grim parody of occasional overtures. --Paul Cook