Première recording of Percy Sherwood's Double Concerto

[Alan Howe]

I emailed Joseph Spooner earlier today.

[jerfilm]

Not at that price......

[Gareth Vaughan]

To what, please, is your cryptic comment a response?

[Alan Howe]

$75 (just over £49) seems a perfectly reasonable crowdfunding sum to request...

[Gareth Vaughan]

I see. Ok. I agree, Alan. If we want this unsung repertoire we have to be prepared to pay for it. As has been said many times before, making a CD of orchestral music is a very costly undertaking.

[Alan Howe]

The problem, though, is that there seems to be a rather big gap between the amount raised so far (£3,104) and the target (£11,489). After all, who's heard of Percy Sherwood? And why would people take a punt on a CD featuring his music? There's just not enough information 'out there'. Perhaps some brief excerpts from the Double Concerto might draw punters in...

[Gareth Vaughan]

Again, I agree wholeheartedly. Soundbites can be very helpful, even if they are only midi files.

[Mark Thomas]

It looks as if the difference between this fund raising attempt and the previous one is that by using RocketHub the promoters get to keep all the money they've raised even if they don't raise their target. I don't quite understand what happens then, though. Is it just held in escrow until the project does come off and the money is spent, however far in the future that may be, or returned to the sponsors if it doesn't work? I'm all for the making of this recording, but at present these questions prevent me from committing more than just encouragement.

[Alan Howe]

Agreed. There's too little information about the project (which Cowen symphony?) and the funding arrangements. Audio samples would also be a distinct advantage...

[Alan Howe]

I understand from Joseph Spooner that the Cowen symphony to be recorded is No.5. The crowdfunding blurb should be updated soon.

[Alan Howe]

The crowdfunding blurb has now been updated. Many thanks to Joseph and Rupert for clarifying things.

[badams@nl.rogers.com]

I'm curious as to what may be next with this project, and I wonder if either Joseph or Rupert might care to enlighten us.  The funding proposal, I believe, fell significantly short of it's target, so does this mean the project is dead in the water or are the proponents simply regrouping to pursue yet other avenues of funding?  While I was/am not in a position to contribute at this time, especially at the suggested minimum amount of (presumably US)$75, that's not to say I wouldn't be prepared to make a more modest/manageable contribution towards underwriting this recording (I recently contributed in a small way towards the Cliffe Symphony no 2 project).  Ultimately, of course, if this recording ever gets made, I will, at a minimum, support it in the most basic way possible: I will buy a copy!

Brian

[C R Lim]

If anyone comes across Cowen's delightful autobiography, "My Art and My Friends" (London, Edwin Arnold 1913) they are in for a treat. Of the 4th Symphony he says:

"In 1884 ...I started again on more important work, one result of which was the production of my fourth symphony, "The Welsh," at one of two Philharmonic Concerts I conducted that season." I do not remember at the moment whether I gave it this title myself, but in any case it had a certain amount of Celtic flavour about it, and I expect its composition was not unconnected with the recollections of my rambles, my broken-down old piano, the hymn-singing, and the honeymooners of two years before."

No mention of Cambrian. Ordovician, Silurian or any other geological connection ...

[badams@nl.rogers.com]

Pulling this dormant topic up from the depths to ask (as I did once before) what the current status of this project may be?  If it's dead then it's dead and I will accept that as the final word.  But if there's still some hope, to say nothing of definite plans, that this recording will yet see the light of day, then I will patiently await the outcome.   

Brian

[Gareth Vaughan]

May I suggest you contact Rupert Marshall-Luck directly, via his website: http://www.rupertmarshall-luck.com/
and perhaps report back to the forum?