Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Variants

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
This 1993 digital recording is not likely to be surpassed for warmth of conception and smoothness of execution. Sir Neville Marriner is at the top of his form, the interpretations are first rate, and the strings of the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields play with polish and great beauty. The recorded sound is superb. --Ted Libbey

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Variants, Music, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Neville Marriner, Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, 20th/21st Century Orchestral Music, 20th/21st Century Variations, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Orchestral, Suite for Orchestra

Vaughan Williams: Fantasies; The Lark Ascending; Five Variants
Average customer rating:

Iona Brown was very special

Superb

this England!

tallis and lark

smooth as silk

Vaughan Williams: Fantasies; The Lark Ascending; Five Variants

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Symphonies Nos. 3 & 5

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Fantasia on

Vaughan Williams - Serenade to Music · Five Mystical Songs · Fantasia on Christmas Carols · Flos Campi / Sixtieen Soloists · Thomas Allen · Nobuko Imai · Corydon Singers · ECO · Matthew Best

Vaughan Williams: Serenade to Music; The Lark Ascending; Fantasia on Greensleeves; English Folk Song Suite; In the Fen Country; Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1

Vaughan Williams: Orchestral Works

ASIN: B000004CVM
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Fantasia On A Theme By Thomas Tallis
Fantasia On Greensleeves
The Lark Ascending
Five Variants Of 'Dives And Lazarus'

Amazon.com

Marriner's evergreen 1972 recording of favorite shorter works by Vaughan Williams has yet to be surpassed for warmth of conception and smoothness of execution. The soloists in these accounts (among them William Bennett in the Greensleeves Fantasia and Iona Brown in the Lark Ascending) are all first-rate, and the Academy's strings play with polish and great beauty of sound. The analog recording is excellent, and Marriner's remarkable empathy for the music comes across effortlessly. Some listeners may prefer the richer sonority and arrestingly mystical manner of Marriner's 1993 digital remake of the Tallis Fantasia for Philips, but this disc offers the most desirable coupling of other works and remains a first choice for those interested in getting to know the composer's finest short essays. --Ted Libbey

Customer Reviews:

Iona Brown was very special.......2007-06-11

The Iona Brown recording of "Lark" here is famous in Britain and justifiably so. Brown, who died in 2004, grew up in the English countryside and had a deep experience of what Vaughan Williams was trying to capture. The rest of the CD is lush, crisp and wonderful -- the Academy's renowned strings at their early 70s peak. It's an analog recording (1972) and the sound is terrific. I don't think this recording has ever been out of print -- how many thousands of us owned the LP and bought the CD as soon as it came out.

Superb.......2007-03-16

This is an essential recording for any classical music collection. I've probably played this CD a thousand times, and I never grow tired of it. Wonderful music beautifully played - buy it.

this England!.......2006-12-14

It is perhaps impossible to hear Vaughan Williams' short works performed more beautifully and unforgettably than in this 1972 ADRM/Argo recording. Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields acquit themselves above reproach. Vaughan Williams - you love him or hate him - must be loved for his Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, that haunting and almost religiously uplifting setting of Medieval plainsong that is capable of shifting a driver to the side of the road in open-jawed amazement at the sheer evocative beauty of it.

Greensleeves is emblematic of the English countryside and its melody, easily dismissed as the primped-up stuff of 'Rule Brittania' shops but so much more worthwhile than all that. Iona Brown's violin on 'The Lark Ascending' sounds as though crafted to play this piece once - enduringly- and then tossed like unused Eucharistic wine.

How, one wonders in aesthetic and rationally unguarded moments, could a nation that produced such music have lost an Empire? Or, more accurately, how could a people capable of such lyricism have done otherwise than believed - for an historical blink of an eye - in its own superiority?

That a coterie of *English* musicians should produce the definitive recording of these works is poetically appropriate.

That listeners of many tongues should listen and wonder at Williams' temperamental genius is simply a musical fact on the ground.

Begin Vaughan Williams with this recording. The rest are derivative.

tallis and lark.......2006-10-06

Fantasia on a theme by Thomas Tallis was a piece of music John Williams discovered in a house of sorts during the war in a dresser.He loved to visit small villages to hear local music. This piece and Lark Ascending are, in my mind, the finest music ever written. I love Beethoven, Willie and Lobo, Miles Davis, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Nina Simone, Pat Metheny, Patrick O'Hearn, John Lee Hooker, I can go on. But it's these 2 pieces that completely consume the listener, pull you in and stop you dead in your thoughts....to dream. Lark Ascending was literally a piece of music written with the author watching a lark(bird) in a small, cozy valley rising up from the floor, singing all the way up. I have given away these CD's 6 and 7 times over because guests at my house are so touched after the music is over, especially after a jug of wine. Thank you for reading, Greg-Fresno, CA.

smooth as silk.......2006-09-30

I too fell for this music in college long ago, and carry it inside me everywhere I go. I have listened to Lark and Tallis many times when I was worried about school or work, and hum them in my mind when I need an emotional lift. Interesting comment about the Japanese connection -- when listening to Lark I sometimes imagine an English countryside with stream, and sometimes a Japanese.

Marriner is a genius at small orchestra. I like the famous Barbirolli version of Tallis too, but it was Marriner's I fell in love with. A great collection to own. If you love this, don't miss RVW's Serenade to Music on Hyperion - an awesome musical setting of Shakespeare that is as satisfying as Lark and Tallis.

Average customer rating:

Inspiring, noble, and also relaxing!
Beautiful Music
I love this composer
Balanced & Refined English Folk Song Adaptations
A great CD

Vaughan Williams: Orchestral Works

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Symphonies Nos. 3 & 5
Vaughan Williams: The Nine Symphonies
Vaughan Williams: Fantasies; The Lark Ascending; Five Variants
Vaughan Williams: Serenade to Music; The Lark Ascending; Fantasia on Greensleeves; English Folk Song Suite; In the Fen Country; Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1
Vaughan Williams - Serenade to Music · Five Mystical Songs · Fantasia on Christmas Carols · Flos Campi / Sixtieen Soloists · Thomas Allen · Nobuko Imai · Corydon Singers · ECO · Matthew Best

ASIN: B00000IX81
Release Date: 1999-05-11

Tracks:

Fantasia on Greensleeves
English Folk Song Suite: I. March: Seventeen come Sunday
English Folk Song Suite: II. Intermezzo: My bonny boy
English Folk Song Suite: III. March: Folk songs from Somerset
Oboe Concerto: I. Rondo pastorale
Oboe Concerto: II. Minuet and musette
Oboe Concerto: III. Finale
Concerto Grosso: I. Intrada
Concerto Grosso: II. Burlesca ostinata
Concerto Grosso: III. Sarabande
Concerto Grosso: IV. Scherzo
Concerto Grosso: V. March and Reprise
Romance (for Harmonica, Strings & Piano)
The Lark Ascending (for Violin And Orchestra)

Tracks:

Five Variants of 'Dives and Lazarus'
Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1
Partita For Double String Orchestra: I. Prelude: Andante tranquillo
Partita For Double String Orchestra: II. Scherzo ostinato: Presto
Partita For Double String Orchestra: III. Intermezzo (Homage To Henry Hall)
Partita For Double String Orchestra: IV. Fantasia: Allegro
In the Fen Country
Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

Customer Reviews:

Inspiring, noble, and also relaxing!.......2007-06-15

Hi. I am familiar with a lot of classical music. However, I knew little about the oeuvre of Vaughan Williams. What a great find! Getting so much of his instrumental work is truly a bargain. He evokes the English countryside and folk traditions very effectively. "The Lark Ascending" is relaxing while also being a virtuoso piece of work. Makes me wonder if J.R.R. Tolkien, with his love for rural England, ever attended a concert by Vaughan Williams...

Highly recommended! :)

Beautiful Music.......2007-01-29

Each piece on this CD is wonderful to listen to. My 2 year old daughter takes her nap everyday with this CD playing softly in the background. This CD is a great deal as it includes 2 CD's including Vaughan Williams: Fantasies; the Lark Ascending; Five Variants. Which is also a wonderful CD, we got it for 2 friends at our church. But better to get this CD with 2 CD's for the price of one. My favorite is Fanatasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis!

I love this composer.......2006-03-17

While not all his works are to my taste, his pastoral ones are so gorgeous that you don't really care that the more boisterous ones are wanting.

Balanced & Refined English Folk Song Adaptations.......2005-02-04

Vaughan Williams is certainly one of the consummate English composers who took the folk song of his country and compsed delightful orchestra works around them.

This budget worthy 2-CD set displays this in two parts, the first performed by the Acadamey of St.Martin in-the-Fields while the second disc features more period instruments with the New Queen's Hall Orchestra and the London Philharmonic.

Celia Nicklin is superb with the Oboe Concerto nusancing this pastoral yet lively offering. Iona Brown likewise contributes a fine solo violin performance with "The Lark Ascending"

The strings also provide a strong offering on the "Tallis Fantasia", one of his strongest compositions on this selection.

Excellent example of this prominent English composer's love with folk song interpretation, in this recording done passionately and naturally.

A great CD.......2004-02-10

English Folk Song Suit is one of my favorite pieces ever! I first heard the song when I played it in Windensambe. It's an exciting piece to play and to listen to. I would recommend this Cd to anyone with an intrest in great music.

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Variants

Average customer rating:

A Sterling Compilation
A good program, woodenly played
Not just the more famous works
Excellent Vaughan Williams
Wonderful music, beautiful recordings

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Variants

Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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Similar Items:

Vaughan Williams: Serenade to Music; The Lark Ascending; Fantasia on Greensleeves; English Folk Song Suite; In the Fen Country; Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1
Vaughan Williams: Fantasies; The Lark Ascending; Five Variants
Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Fantasia on
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ASIN: B00000419V
Release Date: 1995-04-11

Tracks:

The Wasps
Fantasia On A Theme By Thomas Tallis
In The Fen Country
Variations For Orchestra
Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1 In E Minor
Five Variants Of 'Dives And Lazarus'

Amazon.com

This 1993 digital recording is not likely to be surpassed for warmth of conception and smoothness of execution. Sir Neville Marriner is at the top of his form, the interpretations are first rate, and the strings of the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields play with polish and great beauty. The recorded sound is superb. --Ted Libbey

Customer Reviews:

A Sterling Compilation.......2006-01-24

This recording features exquisite performances, flawless sound, and a very well-chosen program. A previous reviewer categorized the playing as "wooden," but I disagree; perhaps the sublime subtlety of some of these pieces struck that listener as being timidity on the part of the orchestra, especially after the rousing opener, the "Wasps Overture."

I own a number of Vaughan Williams recordings, but this compilation is by far my favorite [it is rarely out of my CD player]. The symphonies are masterworks and the multitudes of songs and choral works are very effecting, but these orchestral works are magnificent in their breadth of styles -- Vaughan Williams really knew how to make use of all the colors an orchestra can create, alternating from huge tuttis to quartet soli; he was a master of writing, for lack of a better phrase, "just the right amount of music" at any given moment, never afraid to have the majority of the orchestra tacet for dozens of bars so that simplicity may reign.

When I first got this CD, I was unfamiliar with the "Norfolk Rhapsody" or "In the Fen Country", but was soon very happy to have encountered them. Though this recording contains the oft-recorded Tallis Fantasia, this is by far the best reading of that magnificent work -- Marriner brilliantly gives all of Vaughan Williams' orchestration tricks their due, from the manipulation of using simultaneous unison and divisi writing to emphasize harmonics, to a striking short section of sustained chords played con sordino that sounds like a church organ; it's simply gorgeous and breathtaking. Above all, I'm grateful this recording does not include the Greensleeves Fantasia that seems to be on virtually every other Vaughan Williams recording.

This recording makes a superb introduction to Vaughan Williams for neophytes [I've gifted this CD to numerous people over the past few years]. Though British music has a reputation for being pretty but restrained, Vaughan Williams' works are passionate, extremely melodic, fetchingly harmonic, and at times achingly bittersweet. A passionate Englishman -- what a concept!

A good program, woodenly played.......2003-01-07

You'll want to buy this CD for the lively recording of Vaughan Williams' "The Wasps" overture--a surprisingly well-crafted piece from his undergraduate days at Cambridge. And overall, it's an interesting compilation of Vaughan Williams' shorter works for orchestra.

But by the time you get to the last track--the beautiful "Five Variants on Dives and Lazarus"--you run up against the limitations of Sir Neville Marriner, and his band, the Academy of St. Martins in the fields. Listen to this rendering, and then compare it with William Boughton and the English String Orchestra. You'll see how it's possible to play the notes in tune, with the correct rhythm, as written, and yet totally rob the piece of it's music.

Sir Neville is the most-recorded conductor ever(searching Amazon.com alone returns 551 hits)but you can't help but feel that he long ago gave up quality for quantity. With a lack of specialization, he has no distinctive "voice" as compared with, say, Sir Charles Mackerras has with his recordings of Mozart symphonies, or Harnoncourt achieved with ancient instruments.

Not just the more famous works.......2002-12-29

Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St Martins in the Fields presents a fine recording of one of Vaughn William's more famous works, along with a few lesser known and hardly played works.

Begining with "The Wasps", this collection of orchestral works by Vaughn Williams will satisfy even the more demanding listener. Marriner proves why he was knighted with his masterful rendition of Vaughn Williams' "Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis". His familiarity with Vaughn William's works continues thru renditions of "In the Fen Country", "Variations for Orchestra", the "Norfolk Rhapsody" and concluding with "Five Variations of Dives and Lazarus".

Vaughn Williams manages to evoke images of the English countryside he knew so well in many of the musical numbers on this disc. His "Norfolk Rhapsody" was originally meant to be a full symphony, but Vaughn Williams finally presented it in this form.

The only fault I found with this disc is that I thought it could have included Vaughn Williams' other famous work, "Fantasia on a Theme of Greensleeves", but that work, as well as "Thomas Tallis", get so much airplay that it is almost a relief to see a disc that does not include both works.

This totally digital recording belongs on the shelves of every classical music station as well as a look for other classical music libraries.

Excellent Vaughan Williams.......2002-03-27

I was unfamiliar with the majority of the pieces on this CD, which made it attractive for me. The music comes from widely spaced periods of Ralph Vaughan Williams's life (1903 to 1957). The familiar works, The Wasps and Thomas Tallis, are very well played by the Academy of St Martins in the Fields, as indeed are the other selections. I liked the phrasing in Tallis and The Wasps overture was played with great fun and spirit.

In the Fen Country, Norfolk Rhapsody (based on folk songs from Norfolk) and Five Variations of Dives and Lazarus recall Vaughan Williams's The Lark Ascending and his Third and Fifth symphonies. There are serene, bucolic works that have the feel of the English countryside in them. The Variations for Orchestra was written when the composer was 85 for wind band, but is played here in an orchestration by Gordon Jacobs. The variations recalling the then large-scale work the composer was writing - his Ninth symphony, but is even reminiscent of his Fifth.

To conclude, this is a disc of beautiful music well played by St. Martins in the Field, under their longtime conductor Neville Mariner. Not to be missed by lovers of Vaughan Williams's music.

Wonderful music, beautiful recordings.......2000-09-15

This CD is a delightful collection of some of Vaughan Williams' best-known and best-loved works. All of the recordings are superb, nothing less than what is expected of Marriner and the Academy. If there is any gripe at all, the earlier recording of the Thomas Tallis Fantasia by Marriner and AMSF (on the Argo label) has a little more of the "grab-you" effect when the full orchestra comes cascading in after the first pizzicato statement of the melody. Haitink's performance of the Norfolk Rhapsody (coupled with the Symphony #5) is a little more driven and striking... but folks, these are very minor points. All in all, you will be hard-pressed to find a more satisfying collection of these pieces. When you hear "the wasps" buzzing in the first 10 seconds of the CD, you will know you are in for a treat.

Vaughan Williams: The Nine Symphonies; Job (Box Set)

Average customer rating:

RESTORES ONE'S FAITH IN HONEST MUSIC MAKING
Excellence throughout

Vaughan Williams: The Nine Symphonies; Job (Box Set)

Manufacturer: Class. for Pleas. Us
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Ballets | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

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Vaughan Williams: Symphonies 1-9 / Boult
Vaughan Williams: Complete Concertos
Bax: The Symphonies
Vagn Holmboe: The Complete Symphonies
Kurt Atterberg: The Symphonies (Box Set)

ASIN: B00006J3LP
Release Date: 2002-11-06

Tracks:

A Sea Symphony
A London Symphony
Symphony No. 8 In D Minor
English Folk Song Suite
A Pastoral Symphony
Symphony No. 4 In F Minor
Flos Campi
Oboe Concerto In A Minor
Symphony No. 5 In D
Symphony No. 6 In E Minor
Symphony No. 9 In E Minor
Fantasia On "Greensleeves"
Serenade To Music
Partita For Double String Orchestra
Sinfonia Antartica
Fantasia On A Theme By Thomas Tallis
Five Variants Of Dives And Lazarus
Job - A Masque For Dancing

Customer Reviews:

RESTORES ONE'S FAITH IN HONEST MUSIC MAKING.......2007-03-29

Thank God for Tod Handley. I vividly recall a year or two back, feeling particularly jaundiced after a succession of glitzy, superficial concerts by conductors far starrier and younger, having my faith in real music making restored by a Handley concert which included a scintillating Schubert Little C Major and a profoundly moving VW Sea Symphony.

That work, of course, is the springboard for this cycle of complete VW symphonies. And a very satisfying journey through this inspiring canon of nine it is, too. Handley's affinity with English music needs no reiterating, but his relationship with Vaughan Williams in particular is a special one. More than most, he is alive to the changing and developing nature of the different symphonies through Vaughan Williams life - from the rich Romantic panoply of the 1st, taking in the influence of study with Ravel in the 3rd, the violence of Nos.4 & 6 and the idealisation of his Pilgrim music as well as that of his beloved Tudor composers in the Fifth, right through to the exploration of new sonorities and form in 7, 8 and 9. Throughout the cycle, this is music making that is honest, perceptive, communicative and frequently illuminating and inspiring.

Handley's Sea Symphony has terrific sweep in the opening movement, ideal rhythmic crispness in the scherzo and real depth in the long, questing Finale. Its one drawback is perhaps the somewhat cramped acoustics of Liverpool's Philharmonic Hall compared to, say, the fuller sound of the Kingsway Hall in Boult's second recording. His London Symphony is as fine as any, though I do now miss the passages opened out in Hickox's recording of the Original Version.

I'm inclined to think this the best Pastoral of any on disc: it finds Handley very sensitive to all the overtones of VW's experiences of the Great War that lie behind its overt pastoralism - Flanders Fields as much as English ones. This is followed by a stunning Fourth, matched only by the composer's own performance. The grinding dissonances of its motto motif, the bounce of the jazzier rhythms, the dark Beethovenian transition to the Finale are all perfectly realised: "I don't know if I like it, but it's what I meant" in VW's famous phrase and I feel sure Handley's performance is just what he meant.

The Fifth finds fierce competition from Boult (twice), Barbirolli (twice) and Haitink (most purely symphonic of all). But Handley strikes a fine balance between the Pilgrim's Progress antecedents of much of the material and the `absolute music' arguments to which it is subjected. This disc is almost worth it for the glorious horn counterpoint at the climax of the first movement alone, picked out by Handley as by no other conductor in my experience. His Sixth is another blistering reading to set beside that of his mentor, Boult, in mono for Decca. Handley's pp final movement here is too mystical to be mistaken for the post-nuclear landscape it's often compared to - it seems closer to VW's great friend, Holst's, Neptune. Pacing and colour are the strengths of this Antarctica, but only Haitink really succeeds in making it sound truly symphonic. And No.8 was always the domain of its dedicatee, `Glorious John' Barbirolli, who seemed to have the secret of its somewhat obtuse Variations without a Theme opening movement, its Bartokian Strings only and Wind only inner movements and the clangour of its Finale with `all the phones and spiels know to the composer'. However the elusive 9th is one of the best of Handley's set. He really seems to understand its deep, dark, Hardyesque mysteries, grounded as those novels seem to be in the very earth and land of England, as well as its further explorations of intriguing sonorities with the use of flugelhorn and saxophones.

The fill-ups from the original discs are here as well, including a fine Job and a superb Flos campi, another elusive work that seems to speak of secrets that are not to be found in the VW biographies. These are all considerable performances that reflect Handley's long-standing empathy with and authority in this music. And all at a bargain price.

Excellence throughout.......2004-10-16

On balance, this is probably the best set of Vaughan Williams symphonies out there today. Vernon Handley was a protege of Adrian Boult and you can hear a likeness in the way the two approach the music of their countryman. Boult may have had an advantage, being alive at a time Vaughan Williams was composing and premiering a number of the symphonies after they were composed.

The passage of time has left us two outstanding sets of Vaughan Williams symphonies by Boult, including a latter stereo version. I have heard both sets and they are wonderful. I prefer this one, however. Handley does things with some of the lesser played Vaughan Williams scores that, I believe, gives him an edge as the best of today's interpreters.

His version of the "Sea" Symphony No. 1 -- which is not a favorite of mine -- stacks up with anything out there. It avoids the bombastic approach taken by some conductors that do not completely understand the music or Vaughan Williams style. Even the new Atlanta Symphony version of the "Sea" Symphony does not exceed the vigor, loveliness and fine singing on parade under Handley's baton.

Handley also does wonderful things with the lesser known Symphonies 8 and 9, which some critics went wow over when Bernard Haitink recorded them together on one CD a few years back. Personally, I never heard the message of the dramatic 8th Symphony until I listened to this set.

Handley is hardly at a loss in the more well-known symphonies, either. His renditions of the "London" Symphony 2, "Pastoral" Sympony 3, Symphony 4 and "Antarctica" Symphony 7 are up with the best versions ever recorded. Handley's version is the first time I ever heard the chimes of Big Ben in the "London" symphony. His trip to Antarctica in Symphony 7 is probably the best one out there today and rivals the famous mono version Boult did 50 years ago, less the spoken tracts at the beginning and between sections.

Handley is equally fine in Vaughan Williams two violent symphonies, Nos. 4 and 6. In Symphony 4, he is especially visionary, understanding that the composer was not really writing about the impending world war when he penned the symphony in the late 1930s. Vaughan Williams said it was more about human interaction and communication and you hear this from Handley, who eschews much of the needless violence other conductors put into the score.

It is only the Symphony No. 5 where I find a clear preference to versions by Andre Previn in either of his stereo versions. Previn's 1988 Telarc recording also includes "Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis", perhaps Vaughan Williams' best-known melody. This is preferable to Handley's Symphony 5 diskmate, the "Flos Campi" Suite, which provides another moment for the Liverpool Philharmonic Choir to shine. Previn endows the wonderful symphony with more romance and emotion than Handley.

That's not to say Handley's recording is a dog. Hardly! His is an exquisite recording of some of the world's most beautiful music. It lacks little and competes with the best out there. All told, this is a five star set with beautiful and, when appropriate, powerful and visceral playing from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

There are other fine Vaughan Williams set extant -- both Boult sets, the exceptionally well-recorded Thomson on Chandos, various recordings by Previn & Hickox and those by Bakels on Naxos -- but no complete set quite captures Ralph Vaughan Williams as three dimensionally as this one. My only complaint is Classics for Pleasure could have mated Handley's equally brilliant version of "Job: A Masque for Dancing" with one of the shorter symphonies and did not.

Vaughan Williams: The 9 Symphonies [Box Set]

Average customer rating:

Vaughan Williams: The 9 Symphonies [Box Set]

Manufacturer: RCA
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B000003FDR
Release Date: 1993-11-09

Tracks:

A Sea Sym (No.1): I. A Song For All Seas, All Ships-Andante Maestoso: Behold, The Sea Itself - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): I. A Song For All Seas, All Ships-Andante Maestoso: Today A Rude Brief Recitative - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): I. A Song For All Seas, All Ships-Andante Maestoso: Flaunt Out, O Sea - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): I. A Song For All Seas, All Ships-Andante Maestoso: Token Of All Brave Captains - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): I. A Song For All Seas, All Ships-Andante Maestoso: A Pennant Universal - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): II. On The Beach At Night, Alone-Largo Sostenuto: On The Beach At Night, Alone - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): II. On The Beach At Night, Alone-Largo Sostenuto: A Vast Similitude Interlocks All - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): III. Scherzo: The Waves-Allegro Brillante - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): IV. The Explorers-Grave E Molto Adagio: O Vast Rondure, Swimming In Space - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): IV. The Explorers-Grave E Molto Adagio: Down From The Gardens Of Asia Descending - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): IV. The Explorers-Grave E Molto Adagio: O We Can Wait No Longer - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): IV. The Explorers-Grave E Molto Adagio: O Thou Transcendent - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): IV. The Explorers-Grave E Molto Adagio: Greater Than Stars Or Suns - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): IV. The Explorers-Grave E Molto Adagio: Sail Forth, Steer For The Deep Waters Only - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin
A Sea Sym (No.1): IV. The Explorers-Grave E Molto Adagio: O My Brave Soul! - Benita Valente/Thomas Allen/Philharmonia Chor/Leonard Slatkin

Tracks:

Norfolk Rhap No.1 - John Chambers
Fant On A Theme By Thomas Tallis - Hugh Bean/Nicholas Whiting/John Chambers/Matthias Feile
A London Sym (No.2): Lento/Allegro Risoluto - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
A London Sym (No.2): Lento - John Chambers/Jane Marshall
A London Sym (No.2): Scherzo (Nocturne): Allegro Vivace - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
A London Sym (No.2): Andante Con Moto/Maestoso Alla Marcia (Quasi Lento)/Allegro/Lento/Epilogue... - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin

Tracks:

Fant On Greensleeves - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
A Pastoral Sym (No.3): Molto Moderato - Linda Hohenfeld/Hugh Bean/John Chambers/Jane Marshall
A Pastoral Sym (No.3): Lento Moderato - Linda Hohenfeld/Mark David/Nigel Black
A Pastoral Sym (No.3): Moderato Pesante/Presto - Linda Hohenfeld
A Pastoral Sym (No.3):Lento: Moderato Maestoso - Linda Hohenfeld
Sym No.4 in f: Allegro - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.4 in f: Andante Moderato - Kenneth Smith
Sym No.4 in f: Scherzo: Allegro Molto - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.4 in f: Finale Con Epilogo Fugato: Allegro Molto - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin

Tracks:

Sym No.5 in D: Prld: Moderato - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.5 in D: Scherzo: Presto Misterioso - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.5 in D: Romanza: Lento - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.5 in D: Passacaglia: Moderato - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.6 in e: Allegro - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.6 in e: Moderato - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.6 in e: Scherzo: Allegro Vivace - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.6 in e: Epilogue: Moderato - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin

Tracks:

Quick March-Sea Songs - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Five Vars Of 'Dives And Lazarus': Theme (Adagio) - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Five Vars Of 'Dives And Lazarus': Var I - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Five Vars Of 'Dives And Lazarus': Var II - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Five Vars Of 'Dives And Lazarus': Var III - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Five Vars Of 'Dives And Lazarus': Var IV - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Five Vars Of 'Dives And Lazarus': Var V - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sinf Antartica (Sym No.7): Prld (Andante Maestoso) - Linda Hohenfeld/Women Of The Philharmonia Chor
Sinf Antartica (Sym No.7): Scherzo (Moderato) - Linda Hohenfeld/Women Of The Philharmonia Chor
Sinf Antartica (Sym No.7): Landscape (Lento) - Linda Hohenfeld/Women Of The Philharmonia Chor/Leslie Pearson
Sinf Antartica (Sym No.7): Intermezzo (Andante Sostenuto) - Linda Hohenfeld/Women Of The Philharmonia Chor/John Anderson
Sinf Antartica (Sym No.7): Epilogue. Alla Marcia, Moderato (Non Troppo Allegro) - Linda Hohenfeld/Women Of The Philharmonia Chor

Tracks:

Flourish For Glorious John - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.8 in d: Fant (Vari Senza Tema): Moderato/Presto/Andante Sostenuto/Allegretto... - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.8 in d: Scherzo Alla Marcia (Per Stromenti A Fiato): Allegro Alla Marcia/Andante/Tempo I... - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.8 in d: Cavatina (Per Stomenti Ad Arco): Lento Espressivo - Hugh Bean/David K. Jones
Sym No.8 in d: Toccata: Moderato Maestoso/Animato/Largamente - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.9 in e: Moderato Maestoso: Tranquillo - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.9 in e: Andante Sostenuto - David Mason
Sym No.9 in e: Scherzo: Allegro Pesante - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin
Sym No.9 in e: Adante Tranquillo - Philharmonia Orch/Leonard Slatkin

Vaughan Williams: Orchestral Favourites, Vol. 3

Average customer rating:

Boughton nails Vaughan Williams
Outstanding introduction to Vaughan Williams

Vaughan Williams: Orchestral Favourites, Vol. 3

Manufacturer: Nimbus Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Bantock: Hebridean Symphony; Celtic Symphony; The Witch of Atlas; The Sea Reivers

ASIN: B0000037I7
Release Date: 1994-05-02

Tracks:

Overture: The Wasps
The Lark Ascending
Fantasia On Greensleeves
Oboe Concerto: I Rondo Pastorale
Oboe Concerto: II Minuet And Musette
Oboe Concerto: III Scherzo
Fantasia On A Theme - (Solo Quartet)
Five Variations Of Dives And Lazarus

Customer Reviews:

Boughton nails Vaughan Williams.......2003-01-07

Vaughan Williams was responsible for a great renaissance in English music through the development of a distinctive style based on the melodies of folk songs. You can hear excellent examples here on the Greensleeves Fantasia and the Five Variants on Dives and Lazarus. At first these appear to be almost student exercises: Take a theme and play with it. But the resulting pieces have great beauty and William Boughton's conducting shows more than a deep understanding of the music. The phrasing is sensitive without being sentimental. You'll play each track again and again.

The Tallis Fantasy is based on a very simple hymn tune, but is a remarkable piece. Scored for a double orchestra, the strings play lightly with a tone that evokes a softly playing organ at the distance in a large cathedral. Although many critics instantly recognized the timeless quality of this piece on its first performance at the Three Choirs Festival in 1910, one local paper carried a review that said, in essence, nice enough, but we'll never hear this performed again. Wrong!

The oboe concerto is a well-crafted spirited piece that does well in performance. Maurice Borgue plays enthusiastically. Unfortunately, the solo instrument is so closely miked, you can hear the pads click on the ebony!

This is an essential CD to own for any serious lover of English classical music.

Outstanding introduction to Vaughan Williams.......1999-08-11

This recording is highly recommended as an introduction to a composer who wrote some of the most beautiful music ever written. The English String Orchestra gives a completely idiomatic and technically brilliant performance, including a Wasps Overture that leaves the listener breathless. The oboe concerto is a particularly haunting work and is performed brilliantly.

Average customer rating:

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Variants

Manufacturer: Angel Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Cantatas | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

General | Pop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000005GQN
Release Date: 2000-05-23

Tracks:

Toward The Unknown Region - City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Norfolk Rhapsody No.1 In E Minor - City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Fantasia On A Theme By Thomas Tallis - City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Five Variants Of 'Dives And Lazarus' - City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
1. The Conspiracy - Bournemouth Symphony Chorus
2. Drinking Song - Bournemouth Symphony Chorus
3. Falstaff And The Fairies - Helen Field
4. Wedding Chorus - Bournemouth Symphony Chorus
5. Epilogue - Bournemouth Symphony Chorus

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on; Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

Average customer rating:

A fine assemblage in Thomson's typical style
A Vaughan Williams Devotee
Partial Review

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on; Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

Manufacturer: Chandos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Fantasia on
Vaughan Williams: Serenade to Music; The Lark Ascending; Fantasia on Greensleeves; English Folk Song Suite; In the Fen Country; Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1
Vaughan Williams: Fantasies; The Lark Ascending; Five Variants

ASIN: B00002EPN3
Release Date: 1999-11-30

Tracks:

Norfolk Rhapsody No.1 In E Minor
In The Fen Country: Symphonic Impression
Fantasia On A Theme By Thomas Tallis
Five Variants Of 'Dives And Lazarus'
Fantasia On 'Greensleeves'
The Lark Ascending

Customer Reviews:

A fine assemblage in Thomson's typical style.......2007-02-09

Compared to Vaughan Williams specialists that capitalize on the bucolic nature of the Englishman's compositions, Bryden Thomson approaches his countryman differently. Based on evidence presented in his complete recording of Vaughan Williams symphonies, this disk and others, Thomson's interpretations tend to be more refined, linear and objective that conductors such as Boult, Previn, Barbirolli and Hickox, to whom Thomson relates most readily.

You can hear this pretty easily if you compare Thomson's opening item, the "Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1" -- which was originally part of three rhapsodies the composer was going to sink into a symphony -- against readings by any of the others mentioned.

Thomson's work eschews some of the atmospheric disturbance prevalent in Boult's work in both mono and stereo. His approach to "Five Variants on Dives and Lazarus" in judicious and relates the score but lacks the rustic appeal given it by the Abravanel-Utah Symphony Orchestra. And his version of "In the Fen Country" is less folksong than score reading.

Does Thomson's literal style diminish the music? That's mostly a matter of personal preference; I don't think so. I prefer Boult's monaural readings of half these scores (still available from Haydn House) to Thomson's recording but it doesn't render them deficient or second rate.

Thomson has proven he knows his way around a Vaughan Williams score and his style sometimes improves the product -- as it did with VW's Symphony No. 3, a piece almost always overinterpreted for unnecessary ethereal affect. The recordings here are very much in that vein -- outstanding projections of the Vaughan Williams scores in five of his most popular orchestral items. Vaughan Williams the way Vaughan Williams wrote the music, you might say, not the way others interpret it.

With good notes by Max Harrison, this well-filled (79:26) CD will bring joy and magic to anyone that will listen. Chandos' 1990 sound is a tad dated compared to modern SACD standards but still worthy. I'd like this CD a lot more if it was marketed and sold for a sticker price below $10, which would make it an outstanding value.

A Vaughan Williams Devotee.......2007-01-05

When I saw my five favorite V.W. short pieces on a good label with two fine orchestras, I took it as a 'must buy.' These are nearly flawless recordings, Bryden at his interpretive best. Michael Davis' violin gives us a spiritually evocative 'Lark Ascending.' And the incomparable 'Dives and Lazarus' variants speak with such exquisite poignancy it tests the limits of one's emotions. Adrian Boult would applaud.

You don't want to miss this one.

Partial Review.......1999-12-04

I first heard selection #3 on a movie I watched called, Rowing with the Wind, starring Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley. The music was beautiful and haunting, and I couldn't forget it. When I looked for the soundtrack to the movie, I couldn't find one. This composer was mentioned, though, and his work. I can't wait to hear it again, and those of you who like this music should see the movie mentioned above. I am planning to rent it again.

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Flos Campi; etc. [Hybrid SACD]

Average customer rating:

Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis; Flos Campi; etc. [Hybrid SACD]

Manufacturer: Vanguard Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0001IN0F8
Release Date: 2004-04-27

Average customer rating:

THE recording of "Toward the Unknown Region"

Toward the Unknown

Manufacturer: Klavier
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Classical | Indie Music | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000009J6L
Release Date: 1992-06-01

Tracks:

Vaughan Williams: Toward the Unknown Region
Vaughan Williams: Norfolk Rhapsody
Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis
Vaughan Williams: Five Variants on 'Dives and Lazarus'
Mendelssohn: The Hebrides (Fingal's Cave) Overture

Customer Reviews:

THE recording of "Toward the Unknown Region".......2006-01-02

I do not possess this particular compilation, so cannot comment on the Mendelssohn.

The Vaughan Williams' items have appeared in several previous compilations, one of which I still have.

I have heard several other recordings of "Toward the Unknown Region" - Matthew Best, and the recent Naxos disc "Willow Wood".

They are very good, but del Mar's version goes up in flames.

Buy it for that track alone!

Music Review:

Music Review

music review

Music Review

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Biber: Battalia in D; Ballettae A4

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