Sir John Barbirolli – Delius – Appalachia & Brigg Fair (2021) [FLAC 24bit/192kHz]

Born in London of Italian-French parents, Sir John Barbirolli (1899–1970) trained as a cellist and played in theatre and café orchestras before joining the Queen’s Hall Orchestra under Sir Henry Wood in 1916. His conducting career began with the formation of his own orchestra in 1924, and between 1926 and 1933 he was active as an opera conductor at Covent Garden and elsewhere. Orchestral appointments followed: the Scottish Orchestra (1933–36), the New York Philharmonic (1936–42), the Hallé Orchestra (1943–70) and the Houston Symphony (1961–67). Barbirolli guest conducted many of the world’s leading orchestras and was especially admired as an interpreter of the music of Mahler, Sibelius, Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Delius, Puccini and Verdi. He made many outstanding recordings, including the complete Brahms and Sibelius symphonies, as well as operas by Verdi and Puccini and much English repertoire.

Barbirolli was a late convert to the music of Gustav Mahler. He had first come across it in 1930 when the Fourth Symphony, as heard for the first time at somebody else’s rehearsal, struck him as being thin, certainly by comparison with Berlioz and Wagner. After some early excursions at the beginning of his career – such as in 1931, when he conducted the Kindertotenlieder for Elena Gerhardt at a Royal Philharmonic Society concert in London – Mahler scarcely even figured in his programmes until 1946, when he included Das Lied von der Erde in his third season with the Halle Orchestra. Then in 1952 his friend, the critic Neville Cardus, recalling that Sir Hamilton Harty had given England its first hearing of the Ninth Symphony during his reign as Hallé conductor (1920–33), urged Barbirolli to consider conducting it himself. It was, said Cardus, “the ideal work” for him. Two years later the thing happened: moreover, that first-ever performance by Barbirolli of a Mahler symphony opened the floodgates to a 16-year period in which he embraced them all save No.8. The First, Fifth, Sixth and Ninth he subsequently recorded commercially, and radio recordings of several of the others have also appeared on CD.

Tracklist

1. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Introduction. Slow, Pastoral
2. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Theme. With Easy Movement
3. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation I
4. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation II
5. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation III
6. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation IV
7. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation V
8. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation VI
9. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Interlude I. Slow and Very Quietly
10. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation VII. Rather Quicker but Not Hurried
11. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation VIII
12. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation IX. With Easy Movement
13. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation X
14. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation XI. Slow, With Solemnity
15. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation XII. Maestoso
16. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Interlude II
17. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation XIII. Gaily
18. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation XIV
19. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation XV
20. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation XVI
21. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Interlude III. Rather Quicker
22. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Variation XVII. Rather Slower, Very Broadly
23. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody”: Coda. Very Quietly
24. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Introduction. Molto moderato – Tranquillo – Poco più
25. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Theme. Andante
26. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation I
27. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation II. Moderato
28. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation III. Più vivo
29. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation IV. Molto moderato
30. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation V. Con moto
31. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation VI. Giocoso, allegro moderato
32. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation VII. Lento e molto tranquillo
33. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation VIII. Misterioso
34. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation IX. Andante con grazia
35. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation X. Lento sostenuto e tranquillo
36. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation XI. Allegro alla marcia
37. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation XII. Marcia. Molto lento maestoso
38. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation XIII. L’istesso tempo
39. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Variation XIV. Misterioso lento
40. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia: Finale. Lento – Più mosso
41. Hallé Orchestra – Brigg Fair “An English Rhapsody” (Rehearsal Version)
42. Hallé Orchestra – Appalachia (Rehearsal Version)