20th Century British Works for Solo

works for solo cello

DRAKEFORD • DILLON • D. MATTHEWS • MAYER • PAREDES Rohan de Saram w

Richard DRAKEFORD (1936–2009) David MATTHEWS (1943–) Suite No. 2 for Solo Cello (1957–1959) [8:26] Songs and Dances of Mourning [27:48] 1 I. Prelude: Lento ma non troppo – Vivace [1:56] (1976, rev. 1979, 1998) 2 II. Fugato: Allegro moderato [2:14] 7 [0:00] Andante – Inquieto – Presto – 3 III. Sarabande: Andante [1:38] [6:01] Fast blues – Presto – 4 IV. Badinerie: Allegro molto [1:27] [9:10] Slow blues – Presto – 5 V. Coda: Lento ma non troppo [1:11] [17:23] Grave: tempo di ciacona

Hilda PAREDES (1957–) James DILLON (1950–) 6 Zuhuy Kak (1997) [12:58] 8 Eos (1998) [12:46]

John MAYER (1929–2004) Sannyasin (late 1990s) [7:40] 9 I. Moderato assai [2:19] A II. [3:09] B III. Senza misura [0:50] C IV. Allegro [1:22]

Total Timing: [70:03]

Rohan de Saram cello

℗ & © 2019 The copyright in these sound recordings is owned by First Hand Records Ltd DILLON • DRAKEFORD • D. MATTHEWS • MAYER • PAREDES 20th Century British Works for Solo Cello

The present collection follows on from an earlier release 1957–1959 for Rohan de Saram. Its five brief and purposefully [FHR49] and is devoted to works that were written for and contrasted movements almost inevitably call to mind Bach, but were premièred by Rohan de Saram, his championing of new the presence of contemporary figures such as Shostakovich and unfamiliar music having been a hallmark of a career which and Rawsthorne can also be detected. The Prelude unfolds, now stretches back across six decades. A repertoire that is from a vivace section, in a mood of sombre contemplation, as extensive as it is varied in overall range, encompassing with the melodic lines punctuated by pizzicato gestures prior as this does many of those stylistic traits that have emerged to a suddenly incisive close. Proceeding at a slightly faster during the post-war era and which here eschew the mutual tempo, the Fugato is more animated and impulsive – qualities exclusiveness that has too often proved an obstacle to the which, in the lyrical Sarabande, are much less evident. The reception of contemporary music. A vindication, if such were Badinerie is audibly the scherzo of this sequence as it unfolds necessary, of Rohan de Saram’s advocacy. with no mean impetus towards its emotionally heightened ending, whereas the Coda reverts to something like the Richard Drakeford (1936–2009) was a composition pupil mood at the start – its eloquent strains providing a thoughtful of Herbert Howells and . He studied at conclusion. Worcester College, Oxford where he was Organ Scholar during 1955–1958. In 1961 he co-founded the Little Missenden Festival David Matthews (1943–) was born in and acted as its music advisor until his death. He was also active and studied Classics at Nottingham University. as a music teacher and critic, writing for several publications The earliest pieces he acknowledges only emerged in his including The Musical Times. He taught at Harrow School during cello mid-20s, yet he has since amassed a catalogue of more than Rohan de Saram 1961–1985, and also served as its Director of Music from 1976. 150 compositions including nine symphonies and 13 string Chamber and vocal music are to the fore in his output. quartets. The first of each of these unfolds within a single movement, as too does Songs and Dances of Mourning. ℗ & © 2019 The copyright in these sound recordings is owned by First Hand Records Ltd Drakeford’s Second Sonata for Solo Cello was composed during Composed in 1976, and dedicated to the memory of the

̶ 5 ̶ ̶ 3 ̶ composer’s father, it was premièred by Rohan de Saram on 9 agitated. A sequence of downward thrusting and repeated- March in Nottingham then revised in 1979 and 1998. note gestures comes to the fore, from where the discourse accelerates then disperses into a ‘slow blues’ as alternates The work commences with an Andante in the cello’s lowest between plaintive cantilena and strummed pizzicatos. At register, here with an element of pizzicato to offset the length the music takes on renewed impetus for some of the prevailing inwardness, and this ‘lamenting pastoral’ becomes work’s most vehement writing – this ‘fast blues’ soon reaching a refrain between several types of dance. The ruminative an emotional apex which duly winds down into a passage of discourse transfers eventually to the upper register, from contemplative calm. For a while it continues this course, while where a dance-like character becomes more pronounced, taking in sustained notes at either end of the instrument’s then the music takes on an ominous and often menacing compass, before settling in the lower register for a lengthy character as the writing consequently becomes strenuous and and solemn chaconne such as only slowly gains in animation ̶ 4 ̶ when it heads into a passage of plangent trilling on the ascent. What proves to be the work’s culmination now comes into focus as the music forcefully restates its underlying motivic ideas; following which, it makes its final descent into the lower register to recall the mood as this was originally expounded, then concluding with three quietly resigned chords.

One of the leading Mexican composers, Hilda Paredes (1957–) has resided in London since 1979. A participant at Dartington Summer School, she studied with , Harrison Birtwistle and Richard Rodney Bennett. Graduating from the Guildhall School of Music, she obtained her MA at City University, London and her PhD at Manchester University. Her music has been acclaimed by the critics for the refinement of her craft, marked by the intensity of the relationship between time, dramatic force and poetic approach. Its Mayan title meaning ‘new fire’, Zuhuy Kak was written in 1997 and premièred by Rohan de Saram on 5 October at the Salle l’Aubette in Strasbourg. As the composer explains, ‘It refers to launched with a trenchant four-note pizzicato gesture and those fires that were lit by the Toltecas during their religious soon contrasted with sustained chords, to which elements of ceremonies to prevent the end of the world and to mark the crescendo and glissando are included. Encompassing many new time cycle every fifty-two years. In the context of this work, of those techniques which came into their own during the it refers to an innovative approach of rhythmic material taken post-war era, the music still retains its formal and expressive from the Kandyan drumming of , where its dedicatee focus throughout – not least through conveying the sense of has his roots.’ Unfolding in four well-defined sections, it is an evolving discourse in even its more combative passages. At ̶ 5 ̶ length this assumes an almost martial aura on the approach to new impetus as it heads towards an ending where speculation a resolute close, but this proceeds to vanish into nothingness. and resolve are held in unlikely accord.

James Dillon (1950–) studied design, linguistics, piano, Born in Calcutta, John Mayer (1929–2004) studied with acoustics, Indian rhythm, computer music and mathematics, Phillipe Sandre and Melhi Mehta in Bombay. In 1952 he won though is self-taught as a composer. Honours include first a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music in London. prize at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival in He was active as a violinist with the London Philharmonic 1978, the Kranichsteiner music prize at Darmstadt in 1982 Orchestra (1953–1958) and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and four Royal Philharmonic Society awards for composition. (1958–1965), while composing fusions of Hindustani classical He taught at Darmstadt during 1982–1992 and has been a and Western classical forms with jazz elements. From 1967 his guest lecturer/composer at various institutions. He taught at Indo-Jazz Fusions combined a jazz quintet with five Indian the University of Minnesota School of Music in Minneapolis musicians. A new incarnation emerged during the 1990s and during 2007–2014. continued to play live until Mayer’s death.

Written during 1998 then premièred by Rohan de Saram on 3 Written for Rohan de Saram in the late 1990s, Sannyasin refers April at the Bachfest 1999 in Cologne, Eos is the Greek goddess in Hinduism to religious ascetics who renounce the world by of dawn who – according to Homer – drives her chariot across performing their own funeral and, by doing so, abandon all the sky each evening. From this a process of ritual and renewal claims to social or family standing. Mayer reflects this process is enacted in the music. The piece begins with a succession of through a sequence of four brief pieces. The first piece centres fragmented and sometimes intangible gestures, though these upon rapidly unfolding and rhythmically abrupt phrases – can increasingly be perceived as merging into longer and more replete with a determinedly rhetorical quality, whereas the sustained phrases, even paragraphs, of activity as the music second piece opens with speculative pizzicato gestures then pursues its eventful yet speculative course. Towards mid-point proceeds in a ruminative manner which is both eloquent this appears to freeze into a succession of near-immobile and atmospheric in its content. The next two pieces are gestures, but activity increases with vehement and heavily both relatively brief, with the third a little more than a single chorded passagework, out of which the music emerges with unfolding phrase of mounting decisiveness, while the final ̶ 6 ̶ These five works were chosen by FHR to represent some of the solo cello works written for me over the years from the 1960s to the early 21st century.

Richard Drakeford and I were founder members of the Little Missenden Festival in Buckinghamshire in 1960. We met during my first years in the UK whilst living in Oxford where Richard was an undergraduate at Worcester College studying with Edmund Rubbra. I had come to live in as a teenager after winning the Suggia award in 1956. Drakeford wrote his Suite No. 2 for me between 1957 and 1959 and I gave its première at the Little Missenden Festival.

David Matthews and I happen to share the same birthday, 9 March. Matthews wrote Songs and Dances of Mourning for me in 1976. Written in memory of his father, the work was premièred by me in March 1976 at Nottingham University. piece might be thought a ‘moto perpetuo’ of hectic activity as Hilda Paredes wrote Zuhuy Kak for me in 1997. This piece it surges onward to a terse yet decisive closing cadence. This incorporates the Gajaga Vannam, or Elephant Vannam, one final movement is based on a taan (a fast series of notes) and of the Vannams of Sri Lanka. Vannams, representing different uses a traditional subdivision of 3, 3, 2 semiquavers in a 2/4 animals, were a type of entertainment during the time of the bar. Kandyan kings and incorporated dancers, singers and Kandyan drummers, the Kandyan drum being an instrument which I © 2019 Richard Whitehouse have played since my childhood in Sri Lanka. ̶ 7 ̶ James Dillon’s Eos was commissioned by Köln Philharmonic Rohan de Saram was born in Sheffield of Sinhalese parents. Society and written for me for the International Bach Festival He began studying the cello at the age of nine with Martin in Köln in 1999 where six different cellists were invited to play Hohermann in Ceylon then, aged twelve, with Gaspar Cassadó one Bach Suite each, together with one new work each that at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena, Italy. At the age of 16, in was especially written for that occasion. I later also gave the 1956, he received the Suggia Award which enabled him to UK première of Eos at a concert at Wigmore Hall, London, in study with in Puerto Rico and with January 2000. Eos was James’s second piece for solo cello. I in London. Casals said of him: ‘There are few of his generation had played his first piece, Parjanya Vata, many years earlier in that have such gifts.’ Darmstadt and have also recorded it. As a soloist he has played throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, John Mayer’s piece Sannyasin for solo cello was dedicated to New Zealand, the USA, Canada and the former Soviet Union me. The work is undated but was written towards the end of with the major orchestras and leading conductors of the world his life. Mayer had already written his Six Ragamalas for me, such as John Barbirolli, , Colin Davis, , for cello with tampura drone, and Prabhanda for cello and and Malcolm Sargent. His début appearance in piano for myself and my brother Druvi. I gave the premières the USA was with the Orchestra at and have recorded both these earlier works [available on First Carnegie Hall at the invitation of Dmitri Mitropoulos. Among Hand Records, FHR14]. the composers he worked with at that time were Kodály, Shostakovich, Poulenc and Walton. After a recital in America, © 2019 Rohan de Saram Piatagorsky presented him with a special bow which he uses for concerts.

De Saram is also an outstanding interpreter of contemporary music, and has worked personally with many leading contemporary composers. One of the first was whose Kottos for solo cello was given its UK première by de Saram. His performance of Nomos Alpha won him great praise from the composer who invited him to play it at the Xenakis friends around the world, bringing together composed and Festival in Bonn. Later Xenakis wrote two works for him, improvised music, both eastern and western, from a range Epicycles for cello and ensemble and Roscobek for cello and of musical periods, including classical and contemporary. double bass. He had also worked with György Ligeti, giving the In December 2004, de Saram was awarded an honorary D. première of his solo cello sonata; with , giving Litt. from the , Sri Lanka, and in the world première of Racine 19, a work based on a 19-note December 2005, he was awarded the Deshamaniya, the scale and dedicated to him; and with , giving the national honour of Sri Lanka. In 2016 he was honoured UK première of his work for cello and orchestra, Il ritorno degli with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Sri Lanka Snovidenia. After the performance, Berio wrote to de Saram: Foundation in Los Angeles. His recently published book, ‘Your performance of Ritorno is splendid, but besides Ritorno, Conversations, between himself and Joachim Steinheuer your sound, your perfect intonation, your phrasing and from Heidelberg University, has been described as ‘a treasure bowing technique make you a great performer of any music.’ trove of musical jewels’ (available from the German publisher, As a result, Berio wrote Sequenza XIV for de Saram: this [email protected] and from Amazon). wonderful piece incorporates in a unique way the rhythms of the Kandyan drum of Sri Lanka, an instrument which de Saram For further biographical details, reviews, discography and has himself played since his childhood in Sri Lanka. repertoire on Rohan de Saram including the many works written for him, For many years de Saram was the cellist of the for please see visit: whom a great number of new works were written, resulting in www.rohandesaram.co.uk world premières and many recordings. The Quartet was awarded the Siemens Prize for its services to music and a GRAMMY Award for its recording of works by , including his Sonata for Cello and Piano and Figment for solo cello.

At the end of November 2005, de Saram left the Arditti Quartet in order to work with other artists, composers and ̶ 10 ̶ Recorded at St Mary Magdalene Church, Willen, Milton Keynes, UK, 17 June 2015 (7), 24 November 2015 (1 – 5 & 8) and 1 December 2015 (6 & 9 – C) Engineered and produced by David Jones 24bit, 48kHz hi-resolution recording and mastering

Publishers: 1–5 unpublished 6 © 2005 University of York Music Press 7 © 1999 Visible Music 8 © 1998 Peters Edition Ltd, London 9–12 © 1999 Mayer Estate

Photos: Album cover by David Murphy (The Hive, Kew Gardens, London) Page 4 by © Tony Hutchins Page 3 by David Jones Page 6 by Gillian Mayer Page 9 taken by © David Julien Waring

FHR thanks Peter Bromley, and Rohan and Rosie de Saram

̶ 10 ̶ Rohan de Saram releases on FHR

2019 New Release! IVOR KEYS Sonata for Cello & Piano Works for Solo Cello SIBELIUS BAX Malinconia, Op. 20 CASSADÓ BRAHMS DALLAPICCOLA Violin Sonata No. 1 LIGETI (arr. cello & piano) with Benjamin Frith piano

[FHR49 ] [FHR34] “a remarkable display.” “The cellist’s identification with and mastery of (BBC Music Magazine) Keys’ sonata makes for compelling listening.” (MusicWeb International)

PFITZNER Harmonic Labyrinth Cello Concerto J.S. & C.P.E. BACH MAYER LOCATELLI Prabhand • Ragamalas HINDEMITH with DE SILVA Druvi de Saram piano with Netherlands Radio Preethi de Silva Orchestra harpsichord

[FHR14] [FHR11] “ Rohan de Saram is on inspired form throughout…” “…his masterful performance of the Hindemith Sonata (Gramophone Magazine) for solo cello immediately impresses by its freshness…” (Gramophone Magazine)

Available direct from the FHR website: www.firsthandrecords.com ̶ 11 ̶