Tír Na HiFi

Great work Fergus. Your notes have really helped me in understanding this work. It's a piece of music that I've rarely listened to.
I have the HvK/VPO spinning on the TT at the moment.

fergus wrote:

cybot wrote:
I own six versions on vinyl including two electronic versions and, would you believe, I still prefer the very first version I bought, namely, the Steinberg!!

Nice of you to wander over Dermot. That is interesting that you have six versions and I presume one of those would be Tomita. What other versions do you own?

Thank you Fergus! You're right about the Tomita version too! Here's the rest:

1. Beyond the Sun - The Planets by Patrick Gleason on the Eu Polyphonic Synthesizer

2. Sir Malcom Sargent on Ace of Clubs. No year indicated? Probably early 60's

3. Sir Adrian Boult with the New Philharmonia Orchestra with the Ambrosian Singers on HMV
Greensleeves (1967)

4. Sir Adrian Boult with the London Philharmonic Orchestra with the Geoffrey Mitchell Choir on EMI newly recorded in 1979 and presented in association with Kef speakers....

Diapason wrote:Listening to this movement as I read, and it's utterly gorgeous. It even reminds me of Debussy in places (that's meant as a compliment) but still retaining that English pastoral sense. Lovely.

Exactly! I listened to it last night (Steinberg version) and I was nearly overcome. Absolutely gorgeous!

Diapason wrote:Listening to this movement as I read, and it's utterly gorgeous. It even reminds me of Debussy in places (that's meant as a compliment) but still retaining that English pastoral sense. Lovely.

Agreed Simon; it is a beautiful piece.

DaveF wrote:Your notes have really helped me in understanding this work. It's a piece of music that I've rarely listened to.
I have the HvK/VPO spinning on the TT at the moment.

Delighted that you enjoyed the listen Dave. As I have said before it really is a work that benefits from close attention.

cybot wrote: Thank you Fergus! You're right about the Tomita version too! Here's the rest:

1. Beyond the Sun - The Planets by Patrick Gleason on the Eu Polyphonic Synthesizer

2. Sir Malcom Sargent on Ace of Clubs. No year indicated? Probably early 60's

3. Sir Adrian Boult with the New Philharmonia Orchestra with the Ambrosian Singers on HMV
Greensleeves (1967)

4. Sir Adrian Boult with the London Philharmonic Orchestra with the Geoffrey Mitchell Choir on EMI newly recorded in 1979 and presented in association with Kef speakers....

Cheers for that Dermot. I have to get myself a copy of a Boult recording!

Mercury, the Winged Messenger

Movement highlights:

• the fleeting scherzo nature
• staccato in strings and woodwinds
• trio section

The mythological Mercury, the winged messenger fleet-footed and happy, is said to represent a messenger; in this case, it is said that Mercury is carrying a message from Scheherazade.

In this movement shafts and flashes of orchestral colour dart backward and forward in daringly opposed tonalities. By way of a trio, a fragmented tune on solo violin, the music gathers momentum through a sequence of keys until a climax is reached. Apart from this everything is fleeting and impressionistic.

This is the quickest and, in duration, the shortest movement of the suite and is full of staccatos and scherzos in strings and woodwinds. The music scurries to and fro. Aside from its speed, however, its particular quality comes from the opposition of two simultaneous keys and two simultaneous rhythms. The two keys, which are sounded in the very first bar, are B-flat and E (which, being separated from one another by the interval of the tritone, have no note in common). The two rhythms arise out of different groupings of six beats, the first being ONE-two-three-FOUR-five-six, the second being ONE-two-THREE-four-FIVE-six. This opposition of contrasting patterns is one of Holst's principal characteristics, and other examples of it can be found not only in The Planets but abundantly throughout his works.

Mercury, the “Winged Messenger of the Gods” is Holst’s scherzo (literally “joke”), portraying a trickster with a playful, child-like ease of movement. The virtuosic scalar runs that bounce almost imperceptibly from instrument to instrument suggest, as Richard Greene has pointed out, “the nimbleness of the thought-processes of a genius too quick to follow.”

Mercury shows Holst as not only a poet, but a consummate professional and master of orchestral colour.

Mercury is witty, fond of jokes, and is learned.

Jupiter, The Bringer of Jollity

Movement highlights:

• large horn opening
• rocketing scales in upper woodwinds
• brass fanfare
• gorgeous ballad section in the middle (andante maestoso)

Jupiter, the bringer of jollity, is the most well-known and most popular of all the movements, with the majestic hymn-like melody in the middle. It has an overall air of grand importance and the jolly feel is highlighted because of the C major key in which it is written. It is almost as if Jupiter knows that he's above all else, and has no need to prove it. The movement abounds with cheerfulness and joyousness.

Jupiter has large limbs and possesses a spirit which gives faith and abundant hope. “The Bringer of Jollity” is the most clearly maestoso, or majestic, of the movements. The exuberance of this movement shows itself not only in its tempo and rhythm but also in the multiplicity of subjects, each one related to the last. You can count four, five or six of them, depending on whether you divide the first two into their component parts - they do behave like independent themes. Jupiter might well be designated as 'the English movement' because it shows how profoundly Holst was influenced by the folk music of his country and on the folk-song style cultivated by fellow composers Elgar, Delius, and Vaughan Williams so successfully. Certainly this is rustic English, music for a fair; there are crowds of people in it and infinite good spirits. The movement shows Holst’s clear love of English folksong and dance. The grand tune that ends the parade of themes has become the setting for a patriotic hymn with the words 'I vow to thee my country'. The lack of transitional material or development portrays a character without complexity of thought, simply wrapped up in the noble pageantry of the moment.

Jupiter does several difficult things at once convincingly, including the juxtaposition of at least two very different moods – bustling and swaggering.

Jupiter symbolizes hedonism, generosity and good-nature.

fergus wrote:

bombasticDarren wrote:What recordings can you recommend Fergus?

I would be happy to recommend any of the above recordings (either CD or LP version) with the possible exception of the Solti but even that has something worthwhile to offer and I suspect that the Holst recording would not be acceptable to many modern listeners. The von Karajan would be a very strong recommendation and the Gardiner and Stokowski are both very good as well but my favourite is the Steinberg version. I am not sure about the availability of the vinyl versions on CD but I am sure that they should be no problem.

I certainly have enjoyed both the HvK recordings I own. The Steinberg is, for me, a real standout and I do enjoy the Gardiner.

Of the ones I have heard that I didn't spot in your VT, I would advocate for Jurowski (a very recent recording) and Andrew Davis.

Note: a vast majority of my CDs are boxed up due to impending window replacement and redecoration. It could be a couple of months before I am reunited. But also I have kept my 'to be listened to pile' until last so I can have them close by...

^^ I forgot this one. I bought it very cheaply and knowing very little about it's reputation. It turned out to be a wise purchase and a dynamic and colourful reading to boot!