CHAN 10046 BOOK.Qxd 24/4/07 11:44 Am Page 2

CHAN 10046 Front.qxd 24/4/07 11:43 am Page 1 CHAN 10046 CHANDOS MOVIES CHAN 10046 BOOK.qxd 24/4/07 11:44 am Page 2 The Film Music of Richard Addinsell (1904–1977) premiere recordings (except tracks 4, 9, 10, 14, 15 & 18) Suite from ‘Goodbye, Mr Chips’ 10:24 (reconstructed by Philip Lane) 1 Main Titles and School Song* 3:22 2 In the Mountains 5:34 3 Finale* 1:28 From ‘Dangerous Moonlight’ (arr. Roy Douglas) 4 Warsaw Concerto† 8:25 Suite from ‘Love on the Dole’ 12:43 (reconstructed by Philip Lane) 5 Main Titles / Sally Awakes 4:20 6 Courting Couples 4:42 7 Blackpool Outing 1:53 8 End Titles 1:47 From ‘Blithe Spirit’ 9:54 (reconstructed by Philip Lane) 9 Prelude 5:01 10 Waltz 4:53 Suite from ‘The Black Rose’ 7:43 (reconstructed by Philip Lane) 11 Main Titles and Opening Scene 2:07 12 In the Empress’s Palace 2:50 13 The Black Rose Theme 2:45 Richard Addinsell 3 CHAN 10046 BOOK.qxd 24/4/07 11:45 am Page 4 The Film Music of Richard Addinsell 14 Suite from ‘Scrooge’* 13:59 In 1941, war-weary cinema-goers attending 1922 he went up to Hertford College, Oxford, (arr. Steven Bernstein) the latest ‘British film’ at the Regal Cinema, ostensibly to read Law, but stayed for little Marble Arch, in London’s West End, were struck more than eighteen months without, naturally, 15 Overture: ‘Tom Brown’s Schooldays’ 7:40 not so much by the acting, dialogue or sets, as taking a degree. His interests were already (reconstructed by Philip Lane) by a piece of music that pervaded the whole turning to music, so he enrolled at the Royal film, climaxing in a virtually complete College of Music for the Autumn term of From ‘The Admirable Crichton’ 5:40 performance of it in a concert setting within 1925, but remained there only until the (reconstructed by Philip Lane) the scenario. The film company had no idea following Easter. Lessons in theory must have 16 Polka and Galop 1:43 that it would have such an effect on audiences, seemed positively prosaic compared with the 17 Waltz Sequence 3:57 and had not prepared a commercial recording prospect of writing songs for that year’s From ‘Out of the Clouds’ for sale. The film was Dangerous Moonlight, André Charlot revue, some with the legendary and the piece everyone was talking about, and Noel Gay, of Me and My Girl fame. Addinsell (arr. Robert Sharples) humming as they left the cinema, was the was later to pursue his own line in education, 18 The Flame Tango 2:30 Warsaw Concerto by Richard Addinsell. After and in 1929 he travelled Europe, visiting TT 79:50 fifty years, more than a hundred separate major theatres and musical centres and recordings and sales in excess of three million, spending most time in Berlin and Vienna. Martin Roscoe piano† its appeal remains undimmed and it still One of the most enduring and productive outshines, in the public’s mind, everything else artistic collaborations of Addinsell’s career Chetham’s Chamber Choir * the composer wrote. But he wrote a great deal, began when he met the writer Clemence Dane Manchester Cathedral Choir * and this disc attempts to show the breadth of (1882–1965). His first work for her was Martin Bussey chorus master his achievement beyond the Warsaw Concerto. incidental music for the play Adam’s Opera in Richard Stewart Addinsell was born on 1928, and they continued to work together BBC Philharmonic 13 January 1904 in London, the younger of from time to time right up to her death, most Yuri Torchinsky leader two sons of a successful businessman father notably with the combined version of Alice in Rumon Gamba and an adoring mother, who became so Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. protective of him that he was educated at An earlier play, Moonlight Is Silver, introduced home. Some might say this made him rather him to Gertrude Lawrence, who recorded the wary of institutions of all kinds thereafter. In title song (with dialogue from one of the 4 5 CHAN 10046 BOOK.qxd 24/4/07 11:45 am Page 6 scenes) with her co-star, Douglas Fairbanks In 1942, on the steps of the National ‘expand’, and in the film world it is still the and concert music, as well as becoming Jnr. During the war, Dane’s cycle of religious Gallery after one of its famous lunch-time norm. It is too easily passed over that the Vaughan Williams’ amanuensis.) Leonard Isaacs plays for radio, The Saviours, also benefited concerts, Addinsell met Joyce Grenfell, whose great Erich Wolfgang Korngold rarely scored also worked with Addinsell, on the stage from Addinsell’s deft touch. friendship he valued for most of his life his own film music, but left it to the likes of shows Alice and The Happy Hypocrite, and on It was Fairbanks and Clemence Dane who thereafter. Together they wrote numerous Hugo Friedhofer (himself a distinguished several films including Fire Over England and were responsible for introducing the composer songs for revues or Joyce’s one-woman shows, composer in the field) and others. Today many Blithe Spirit, directed by David Lean. The to films in Britain in 1936, through one of the earliest being ‘I’m going to see you in the industry do little more than a ‘top line’ period from 1947 to 1957 is shrouded in The Amateur Gentleman, which starred the today’, which they recorded together. They and then pass that to other hands to some mystery, but it is a fair guess that American actor and was partly scripted by continued collaborating up to the mid-sixties, embellish. However, in the British film world of Leighton Lucas was involved at some time, Dane. (Addinsell had nearly started his when Addinsell’s failing health prevented his the period Addinsell was a relative exception probably on Hitchcock’s Under Capricorn, as cinematic career in Hollywood, where he had playing the piano and writing the memorable to the rule, not being first and foremost a he had worked extensively for Louis Levy gone some years earlier to work at RKO studios tunes for Joyce’s witty and touching lyrics. composer of concert music like his since the thirties, and Levy conducted the on what turned out to be an abortive project After a few less noteworthy films, Addinsell contemporaries William Alwyn, Alan score. From 1957 to 1965 Addinsell’s regular involving the Czech-born actor Francis Lederer, renewed his working relationship in 1950 with Rawsthorne and, slightly later, Malcolm Arnold. musical associate was Douglas Gamley. following the American opening of Alice.) the Irish producer/director Brian Desmond While one of Addinsell’s associates has The 50s produced films like Beau Brummel, After this début film came South Riding, Hurst, who had directed Dangerous Moonlight, voiced his sour grapes in print, another has The Prince and the Showgirl, A Tale of Two Dark Journey, Farewell Again and Fire Over and two films emerged that produced some of praised his innate ability to evoke place Cities; and the 60s, The Roman Spring of England in 1937, Vessel of Wrath in 1938, his best music – Tom Brown’s Schooldays and and mood almost at will. It has to be said Mrs Stone (1961) starring Vivien Leigh, and the following year the first propaganda Scrooge. that all these fine musicians had opportunities Greengage Summer, one of the composer’s feature film of the war, The Lion Has Wings. All through the 40s and 50s, Addinsell during their professional lives to make a mark own favourite scores, Waltz of the Toreadors, The same year saw his first real international wrote for BBC radio plays and features in as strongly as did Addinsell, but they based on the Jean Anouilh play, and The War success with Goodbye, Mr Chips, and 1940 between film and stage work. In all this singularly failed to do so, lacking that Lover (all in 1962). With the completion of brought Dangerous Moonlight and Gaslight endeavour, his method of working was the evasive spark that engages the ear and excites Life at the Top three years later, Addinsell (the first version, that MGM sought to suppress same. He would play what he had composed the senses. decided to retire from the professional world in favour of their later American production). at the piano, making small notes of the Addinsell’s first collaborator was Roy of music. Clemence Dane died at this time, Love on the Dole, This England and The Big outline of the material, but leaving the Douglas, who had begun by ‘doubling’ for and in the years that followed the composer Blockade followed in 1941, and The Day Will detailed work of arranging and orchestrating Vivien Leigh (on the virginals) in Fire Over helped his great friend, Victor Stiebel, the Dawn a year later. However, Addinsell spent a to other hands. This was nothing new. It has England, and worked through to the middle of couturier, through the debilitating illness of large part of the war scoring some twenty happened throughout musical history in some the war taking in most of Addinsell’s films muscular sclerosis, and when he died in 1976 documentaries for the Ministry of Information way or another; even the ‘greats’ working (virtually all twenty documentaries) including Addinsell felt his time had come too. On 14 and similar organisations, culminating in the against the clock would pass such work to Dangerous Moonlight, although not Mr Chips.

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