Fanfare Reviews
from March/April 1982

Reviews: Holst

HOLST: Suites for Band: No. 1 in E-Flat, Op. 28, No. 1; No. 2 in F, Op. 28, No. 2. Hammersmith--Prelude and Scherzo, Op. 52. VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: English Folk Song Suite. Toccata Marziale for Military Band. London Wind Orchestra conducted by Denis Wick. MUSICAL HERITAGE SOCIETY MHS 4433, $4.95.

This album originally reached these shores on the Nonesuch label and was favorably reviewed by our own J.D. in Fanfare IV:3. I'd like to second the motion, though I should point out that MHS' surfaces are not always as polite as the British audiences presumably were for these "minor masterpieces" (the latter designation being conductor Wick's assessment of his program). Otherwise the sound is more than acceptable, though less so than Telarc's, still the optimal place to hear this music. Similarly, Fennell's performances outrank Wick's, though not by nearly as much as the price differential suggests: with the Holst Suites on one disc and the Vaughan Williams on another, digitally duplicating this program (via Telarc) could deleteriously deplete your cash reserves. Let your accountant be your guide.

George Chien

Copyright © 1982 by Fanfare, Inc. Reprinted by permission from Volume 17, No. 5 (March/April 1982), pages 168-169. This article reviews an LP version of ASV Quicksilva 6021. 

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