Havergal Brian Gothic Symphony from Hyperion

[hattoff]

I stopped buying Gramophone when it was sold to Haymarket, there was an immediate drop in standards. The copies I have seen since do not warrant a change of mind.

There is no reason for you all to not boycott the rubbish and it's rubbish critics. Leave it for the people it's designed for, there's plenty of them

[Latvian]

From the Havergal Brian Society website:

The magnificent Proms performance of Brian's Gothic symphony (Two-disc set, Hyperion CDA67971/2) has entered the UK Specialist Classical Music Chart at number 16 within a week of its release. This is great news for the recording, which has also been nominated by Musicweb as its International CD of the Year as well as being nominated as its Recording of the Month... The recording also appears at no. 7 at the US-based ArkivMusic.com, and features as a top seller at MDT.

So much for the doltish comments from Gramophone!

[Dundonnell]

The trouble is that so many of the critics will argue that this just demonstrates the fascination of the cultish, obsessives who continue to argue HB's cause

(Sorry, I am in an increasingly depressed state of mind tonight as I contemplate the future for the symphonic, orchestral music I have loved for half a century )

[Jimfin]

I feel very positive about Brian, in the wake of: the Dutton releases of the 10th and 30th, etc, and the Cello Concerto; the Toccata releases; the release of the Boult Gothic, the dutton release of old broadcasts of Brian (admittedly not easy to listen to), the Brisbane and Proms Gothics and of course this Hyperion release. I think one of the worse things that happened to Brian was the Marco Polo promise of a full cycle stopped anyone else recording his music and then when they ground to a halt, it all looked very depressing. On the other hand, listening to the broadcasts from the 1970s, one hears the same kind of optimism way back then... But I'm sure that the Gothic performance and recording will have won a lot of new fans for Brian.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

I feel the same as Jimfin. When you read the reviews and comments on the several Amazon sites, you see that people have been 'bitten by the Brian bug', as one of them put it, by hearing (parts of) the Gothic and even joined the HBS. When I learned the Gothic would be performed, my one hope was that it would help solidify Brian's reputation and gain him some new listeners. This has happened. Though many critics are still entrenched in their negativism, the audience reaction has been the complete opposite, and that - in the long run - is what counts. I have loved Brian's music since 1977, when I was 16, and joined the HBS in December 1982. I think 2011 marks the beginning of the second wave of the 'Brian Renaissance'. And now enthusiasts have their own means of communication and of disseminating information. I can't wait to see what 2012 will bring, the 40th anniversary of Brian's death. Havergal Brian hasn't gone and never will.

[Alan Howe]

The problem remains the paucity of concert performances - apart from the magnificent Proms Gothic, of course. It has been the same for my own favourite unsung, Felix Draeseke: a plethora of recordings over the past decade or so, but hardly a significant concert performance to speak of. The cognoscenti have their recordings, but the wider world remains untouched and so the ignoramuses who peddle their critical wares in the press feel able to repeat their prejudices ad nauseam.
Yours pessimistically...

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

The HBS want to stage (a) concert(s) next year, featuring several symphonies. That would, perhaps, make people aware of the fact that Brian is more than 'just' The Gothic. Yours (guardedly) optimistically...

[Gareth Vaughan]

I broke the habit two years ago, changed to IRR, and haven't looked back. I miss The Gramophone like one misses a bad cold.

[Alan Howe]

For me the trouble is that I've been reading it since September 1968. But I agree, IRR's the one to get.

[Alan Howe]

Nick Barnard at MusicWeb is clearly one of the good guys...
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2011/Dec11/Brian_Gothic_CDA679712.htm

[Dundonnell]

Nick Barnard at MusicWeb is clearly one of the good guys...
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2011/Dec11/Brian_Gothic_CDA679712.htm

Agreed......but did you note the last paragraph of his review

This contains a recent quote from our friend Andrew Clements of The Guardian. Clements is writing about Delius's 'Mass of Life' and he writes:

"Hardcore English-music enthusiasts are easy enough to spot. Male, conservatively dressed and middle-aged (you suspect most of them looked middle-aged when they were in their 20s), they invariably have an air of disappointment, as if the music they support so enthusiastically has never quite lived up to the expectations they load upon it."

This is just about the most downright objectionable, offensive, patronizing, sneering comment that even this gentlemen has penned to date

How in heaven (or earth) someone who, presumably, purports to love music can wish to so gratuitously insult, offend and denigrate other music-lovers is utterly beyond my comprehension

The carefully and very properly maintained civility which marks this forum exists between members and should be, as far as humanly possible, extended to others but really..........

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Andrew Clements is a case of English self-hatred.

[Alan Howe]

Of course, Clements is quoted in order that his argument may be comprehensively refuted...

[vandermolen]

That little piece tells you all you need to know about the modern Gramophone, its shallowness and bias. Although I do have Gramophone on subscription, it's as much out of habit as anything else. If you want to return to the good old days of Gramophone, buy the International Record Review. Serious reviews from open-minded, knowledgeable reviewers who you can respect.

Very much agree with you. I get the Gramophone on subscription but am invariably disappoined with it. I often prefer BBC Music which may be less 'high brow' but includes a complete work on the accompanying CD. Highlights have been live performances of Walton's 1st Symphony (Boult) and Vaughan Williams's 9th Symphony (A. Davis). I wish they's issue Moeran's Symphony and Bax's No 2 from recent prom performances.

[isokani]

Andrew Clements is a case of English self-hatred.

Clements is mocked by British musicians, and considered an idiot. For examples of the high esteem in which he is held, read this
http://www.r3ok.com/index.php/topic,1623.330.html