Composer: Malcolm Henry Arnold
Performer: Peter Fisher, Margaret Fingerhut
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Somm
Catalogue: SOMMCD0640
Release: 2021
Size: 1.13 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Solitaire
01. No. 6, Sarabande (Arr. A. Poulton for Violin & Piano)
02. Lola’s Theme (From “Trapeze”) (Arr. A. Poulton for Violin & Piano)
Violin Sonata No. 1, Op. 15
03. I. Allegretto
04. II. Andante tranquillo
05. III. Allegro vivace
4 Scottish Dances, Op. 59 (Arr. D. Gedge for Violin & Piano)
06. No. 1, Pesante
07. No. 2, Vivace
08. No. 3, Allegretto
09. No. 4, Con brio
5 Pieces for Violin & Piano, Op. 84
10. No. 1, Prelude
11. No. 2, Aubade
12. No. 3, Waltz
13. No. 4, Ballad
14. No. 5, Moto perpetuo
15. Allegro (From “Hobson’s Choice”) (Arr. A. Poulton for Violin & Piano)
16. Violin Sonata No. 2, Op. 43
English Dances, Set 2, Op. 33 (Excerpts Arr. P. Harris for Violin & Piano)
17. No. 1, Con brio
English Dances, Set 1, Op. 27 (Excerpts Arr. P. Harris for Violin & Piano)
18. No. 2, Andantino
19. No. 3, Mesto
English Dances, Set 2, Op. 33 (Excerpts Arr. P. Harris for Violin & Piano)
20. No. 4, Grazioso
21. No. 5, Allegro non troppo
22. Thème pour mon Amis (Arr. A. Poulton for Violin & Piano)
23. Madrigal (From “The Chalk Garden”) [Arr. A. Poulton for Violin & Piano]
SOMM Recordings is delighted to mark the 100th anniversary of Sir Malcolm Arnold’s birth with seven first recordings of arrangements for violin and piano. This album reflects both the serious and lighter sides of one of the most distinctive voices of post-war British music, and also a prolific composer with a prodigious gift for memorable melodies and technical brilliance.
Heard for the first time are arrangements by Malcolm Arnold Society chair, Alan Poulton, of three film excerpts: the Suite from one of Arnold’s most characterful and well-loved scores, Hobson’s Choice (1953), Lola’s Theme from the 1956 Gina Lollobrigida-starring Trapeze and Madrigal from the 1964 psychological thriller The Chalk Garden. Arnold’s ballet music is referenced in Poulton’s arrangement of the limpid Sarabande from Solitaire, while his take on Thème pour mon Amis, originally written in tribute to the critic and broadcaster John Amis, was approved by Arnold himself.
Two other arrangements receive premiere recordings: the decidedly European-sounding Five English Dances (taken from two sets produced in the early 1950s) by Paul Harris, and David Gedge’s re-working of the Op. 59 Four Scottish Dances, which was first performed by Peter Fisher and Margaret Fingerhut in 2016 to mark the tenth anniversary of Arnold’s death. Completing the programme are Arnold’s two Sonatas for Violin and Piano – the three-movement First from 1947 and the single-span Second of 1953, together with the enigmatic, Yehudi Menuhin-dedicated Five Pieces for Violin and Piano (Op. 89, 1964).