01. - 09. Belshazzar's Feast* [34'13]
10. Crown Imperial. Coronation Match [6'45]
11. Orb and Sceptre. Coronation March [7'20]
Christopher Purves- baritone, Simon Lindley-organ, Huddersfield Choral Society, Leeds Philharmonic Chorus, Laudibus*; English Northern Philharmonia conducted by Paul Daniel
Naxos 8.555869 [recorded June & July 2001* and July & October 1996; CD issued 2004]
[digital download; flacs, booklet, cover and inlay scans]
Recording venue: Leeds Town Hall, West YorkshireRecording engineers: Eleanor Thomason & Mike Clements* and David Harries
Producers: Andrew Walton* and and Chris Craker
Here is the fifth and last post in this series of recordings of works with orchestra by Walton made by Paul Daniel and the English Northern Philharmonia (the orchestra of Opera North) for Naxos. This series revealed Paul Daniel as one of Walton's finest interpreters and he is provided with consistently fine recorded sound even though each of the five issues were made with different recording teams. This recording of Walton's big choral work is no exception.
As a performance, Belshazzar's Feast is up against overwhelming opposition to which Daniel and his forces respond well but fail to make the very top grade, along with Andrew Litton and Andre Previn. Daniel's soloist, Peter Purves, is excellent but doesn't quite match Bryn Terfel for Litton or John Shirley-Quirk for Previn.
Both of the short Coronation march fill-ups, recorded five years earlier, are beautifully done but it's a shame that Naxos diddn't include more of Walton's choral works in the remaining space.