01. - 03. Concerto for Double String Orchestra [22'23]
04. - 08. Five Negro Spirituals from 'A Child of Our Time' [10'22]
09. Little Music for Strings [10'36]
10. - 11. Evening Canticles [7'44]
12. Fantasia Concertante on a Theme of Corelli [18'30]
English String Orchestra conducted by William Boughton.
Choir of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford conducted by Stephen Darlington* and Choir of St John's College, Cambridge conducted by George Guest with Alexander Martin- organ#.
Nimbus NI 7026 (recorded 1987 & 1991, 1990* and 1991#; this compilation and CD release 1995)
(CD-rip; flacs, booklet, cover and inlay scans)
Recording venues: Great Hall, Birmingham University; Dorchester Abbey, Oxfordshire* and Chapel of St John's College, Cambridge#
Recording engineer and Producer: Not disclosed.
Following Andrew Davis' Tippett disc posted a few weeks ago, here are Tippett's two most popular orchestral works in a collection with the lesser known Little Music for Strings, an a capella setting of the Five Negro Spirituals and a choir with organ setting of Evening Canticles. All were drawn from Nimbus' extensive back catalogue and all are model performances of their kind.
The smaller body of strings provided by William Boughton's English String Orchestra is particularly noticeable in comparison with Andrew Davis' BBC Symphony in the two works in common on the two releases . Here the orchestra sounds fine in the ample acoustic of Birmingham University's Great Hall.
Although often dismissed by music critics as not working well outside of their original context in A Child of Our Time, I am particularly fond of this setting of the Five Negro Spirituals, especially in this fine performance from Christ Church Cathedral choristers. Tippett's setting of Mag and Nunc, written for George Guest and St John's College, is much more angular than the other works on this disc but very effective. This excellent performance appears to be the work's only recording.
Download from MEGA.