专辑简介

Paul Carr writes music that is without pretence, fluent and fluid, singing, concise and joyous. The Clarinet Concerto leads us through a limpidly flowing landscape part Finzi, part Nyman (soul partner to the John Harle inspired Where the Bee Dances- a glorious piece to which I was introduced by Evelyn Glennie's BBCTV series), part Coates. The Occasional Postcards are soloistic sketches catchy and reflective - listen to the slinky sax of Andrew Sutton in Summer Evening with its half hints of Sibelius 2 and the bassoon invocation from Rite of Spring. Summer heat drapes heavily over the Concerto for two saxophones and time drawls easily by providing a centre of gravity for the latina rumba-bump, bounce and crunch of the vivace and vivo. Girl on a Beach under a Sunshade (a miniature for bassoon and orchestra) was inspired by a Sir Alfred Munnings sketch of Carr's great aunt, Gwenneth Jones-Parry on a Cornish beach in 1916. It is not languid enough to have quite the sensuality suggested in the liner note but it remains a rhapsodic charmer. The Collage Concerto is in a single meandering movement and despite the glances across entrancing vistas is the least satisfying of the six works here. It is also where the orchestra's string section is revealed in its least flattering light. A plusher tone would have helped. The Nocturne was recorded at night at the end of the first day's sessions. It provides a chill-out winding down and logically concluding the disc. MWI ©Rob Barnett