CHAN 9653 FRONT.qxd 24/10/07 12:20 pm Page 1 Chan 9653 CHANDOS THE GRAINGER EDITION VOLUME NINE Works for Chorus and Orchestra 3 SUSAN GRITTON soprano PAMELA HELEN STEPHEN mezzo MARK TUCKER tenor STEPHEN VARCOE baritone TIM HUGH cello JOYFUL COMPANY OF SINGERS CITY OF LONDON SINFONIA RICHARD HICKOX GGRAINGER CHAN 9653 BOOK.qxd 24/10/07 12:24 pm Page 2 Percy Grainger (1882–1961) 1 Mock Morris [RMTB No. 1] 3:21 premiere recording in this version Trad. 2 The Power of Love [DFMS No. 4]*|| 4:23 (edited by Barry Peter Ould) premiere recording in this version 3 Died For Love [BFMS No. 10] 1:29 (edited by Dana Paul Perna) The Percy Grainger Society Grainger The Percy Trad. 4 Love Verses from The Song of Solomon†‡|| 6:45 5 Shepherd’s Hey! [BFMS No. 3] 2:07 premiere recording in this version 6 Early One Morning [BFMS Unnum.] 2:02 (edited by Barry Peter Ould) Percy Grainger Trad. 7 The Three Ravens [BFMS No. 41]§|| 4:04 premiere recording 8 Scherzo [YTW Unnum.] 1:40 (edited by Barry Peter Ould) 3 CHAN 9653 BOOK.qxd 24/10/07 12:24 pm Page 4 9 Youthful Rapture [RMTB Unnum.]¶ 5:11 Trad. 16 Dollar and a Half a Day [SCS No. 2]‡§|| 3:21 premiere recording 17 10 Random Round (Set version) [RMTB No. 8]*†‡ 6:01 Molly on the Shore [BFMS No. 1] 4:08 (edited by Barry Peter Ould) TT 62:34 premiere recording in this version Susan Gritton soprano* 11 The Merry King [BFMS No. 39] 4:22 Pamela Helen Stephen mezzo-soprano† (edited by R. Mark Rogers) Mark Tucker tenor‡ Stephen Varcoe baritone§ premiere recording Tim Hugh cello¶ Rev. John Park (1804–1865) Joyful Company of Singers|| 12 O Gin I Were Where Gadie Rins [SON No. 13]†§|| 1:43 Peter Broadbent chorus master (edited by Barry Peter Ould) City of London Sinfonia Trad. Richard Hickox 13 Skye Boat Song [SON No. 3]|| 3:30 BFMS – British Folk Music Settings (edited by Barry Peter Ould) DFMS – Danish Folk Music Settings KS – Kipling Settings premiere recording in this version RMTB – Room-music Tit-bits Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936) SCS – Sea Chanty Settings 14 Danny Deever [KS No. 12]§|| 3:16 SON – Songs of the North (edited by Barry Peter Ould) YTW – Youthful Toneworks premiere recording in this version 15 Irish Tune from County Derry (1952) [BFMS Unnum.] 3:36 (edited by Barry Peter Ould) Ian Watson Solovox 4 5 CHAN 9653 BOOK.qxd 24/10/07 12:24 pm Page 6 seven brothers challenge the lover to combat The Love Verses from The Song of Percy Grainger: Works for Chorus & Orchestra 3 because he has made love to her without Solomon (Part 2) are recorded here in asking their permission. In the fight that Grainger’s 1931 revision. The original version ensues he kills all seven men, but the maiden (1899–1901) for chorus and large orchestra Many influences went into making Grainger significance for Grainger appear under swears that even if he had killed her father will appear later in the Chandos Grainger the composer he was, and by the time he and several guises in quite disparate works. This she would not leave his side. Grainger Edition. It was Grainger’s intention to set the his mother left for America at the onset of may suggest that Grainger himself saw no collected this ballad during his trip to Jutland whole Song of Solomon (in fourteen parts) to the First World War, Grainger had already inherent contradiction in choosing such a with Evald Tang Kristensen in 1922. The music after hearing his friend and fellow developed his style and had amassed a large wide variety of sources – linguistic, cultural singer, Mrs Ane Nielsen Post, remembered Frankfurt student, Roger Quilter, reading collection of manuscripts and sketch-books and ethnically unique – and that he lavished only the last verse, which Grainger sets twice. aloud passages from the Authorised Version of upon which he would draw for the on all his sources the same respect and Grainger wrote: the Bible to which Grainger would note remainder of his life. Grainger’s musical artistic striving. Grainger’s concern for the Love’s sway is firm and ruthless. The tune and down the rhythms in musical notation. These interests were wide reaching. He was equally underdog, his unfailingly democratic spirit, words of ‘The Power of Love’ seemed to me to irregular rhythms fascinated Grainger and at home with the music of far-flung lands as his compassion for the tragedy of ordinary, match my soul-seared mood of that time – my many of his scores from this period change he was with Maori legends and Icelandic suffering humanity and his belief in the new born awareness of the doom-fraught time at every bar. Grainger said that at slow sagas, feeling that as much could be gained transcendent power of love – all are reflected undertow that lurks in all deep love. speeds such rhythms were only a mild from an acquaintance with Chinese or Zulu in his choice of texts and the trenchant This setting, indeed, is dedicated to the novelty, while in quick music they proved a music as from Scarlatti or Schoenberg. musical originality with which he expresses memory of Grainger’s mother, who had drastic innovation. As it was, he managed to Grainger’s eclecticism, indeed, may be seen as those leading ideas of his approach to life. committed suicide. The melody alone was complete only this work, and a setting of part of his originality, at a time when music Mock Morris was originally called ‘Always later to be used in the Danish Folksong Suite. ‘King Solomon’s Espousals’ (Part 5). still tended to be resolutely Eurocentric. Merry and Bright’ after the title of the song Died for Love was originally a setting by Shepherd’s Hey! is a setting of an English As a boy, Grainger was spellbound by which Lionel Monkton composed for his Grainger for voice and piano of a folksong morris tune collected by Cecil Sharp and Anglo-Saxon sagas and narrative poetry, and musical comedy The Arcadians. As one of collected by Lucy Broadwood and himself given to Grainger around 1908. The tune of longed to write music inspired by that the pieces on which Grainger’s reputation from Joseph Taylor at Brigg, Lincolnshire on Shepherd’s Hey! (which is akin to the imaginative world, far removed from his rested for many years, the original string 28 July 1906. The memorable and effective Northumbrian air ‘The Keel Row’) is widely antipodean origins. Notwithstanding this version as recorded here, with its infectious impact of the tune may perhaps be explained found throughout England. The version for diversity of influence, the listener may syncopated rhythms, still retains a delightful by its combination of poignancy and room-music twelve-some recorded here was nevertheless discern within Grainger’s total freshness. succinctness. Grainger made four different written between 1908 and 1909. output a motivic and thematic unity. Indeed, The Power of Love tells the story of a versions of the melody, including the version Early One Morning was originally set certain themes and phrases having special maiden who has a clandestine lover. Her for strings recorded here. by Grainger as a single verse for voice and 6 7 CHAN 9653 BOOK.qxd 24/10/07 12:24 pm Page 8 piano as one of twenty-five settings of and one can sense the young composer thereby sacrificing the freedom he had The Skye Boat Song also comes from the melodies from Augener’s The Minstrelsy of trying to find his way. wanted to achieve. This ‘set’ version, same collection of Scottish pieces which was Old England. In 1901, he returned to these Youthful Rapture dates from 1901, when recorded here for the first time, was written given to Grainger at the time of his first early works and made a number of new it was originally called ‘A Lot of Rot’. It was in March 1943. walking holidays in Scotland. The well- sketches including a new harmonization of written for Grainger’s fellow Frankfurt The Merry King is a folksong from West known tune and words are equally at home the present piece. The sketches lay student and cellist friend, Herman Sandby Sussex that Grainger collected from the sung as a solo or unison choir but here both untouched until 1939, when Grainger began (his closest male friend) and was taken on singing of Mr Alfred Hunt at Wimbledon, are used. The simple accompaniment of work on a projected album of his tour with them during 1905. In 1929 South London in August 1905. Originally wide-spaced chords in the piano part, written compositions for piano entitled ‘The Easy Grainger ‘elastically’ scored the piece, and in sketched for chorus it was later worked out when Grainger was eighteen years old, is a Grainger’. To the well-known melody he this form it was given its premiere for piano and winds or strings, or both, in mark of true genius. added a new harmonization, and in the same performance at the 1929 Harrogate Music 1938 with the piano solo ‘dish-up’ following As with many of Grainger’s Kipling year made this transcription for string Festival with Beatrice Harrison as soloist. She soon after. Settings, the composition of Danny Deever orchestra. subsequently recorded the work with O Gin I Were Where Gadie Rins comes occupied him for a number of years, twenty- The Three Ravens is based on an old Malcolm Sargent.