George Butterworth - Fantasia for Orchestra

[britishcomposer]

George Butterworth, who died in WWI, left a tantalisingly small amount of music. He stopped composing altogether when he volunteered in August 1914.
His last compositional project was a Fantasia for orchestra. Michael Barlow, Butterworth's biographer, suggests that it was begun in 1914 "since a Bayswater address is written on the score, and here Butterworth was living before war broke out."
(Michael Barlow, Whom The Gods Love: The Life and Music of George Butterworth. Toccata Press 1997. p. 177)

Barlow continues:
"A short score is referred to in these sketches, but there is no trace of it. A hushed, dark-coloured opening, on bassoons and divided violas and cellos, leads to an andantino section in which one basic theme, first heard on oboe and violas is developed, but the score is too fragmentary for constructive comment. A vivace section of only a few bars includes a promising figure on trumpets, but there the music stops." (ibid.)

Barlow quotes two fragments of the music and acknowledges the folksong idiom but "there are also changes in Butterworth's compositional style, with not a few influences from European composers." (ibid.)

According to Barlow Vaughan Williams's "A London Symphony" has had some influence on his orchestral writing. The fragment "is scored for a large orchestra, including triple woodwind." (ibid., p. 178)

Now the indefatigable Martin Yates has attempted a completion of the work. It is to be premiered at the opening concert of the 2015 English Music Festival.
http://www.englishmusicfestival.org.uk/programme.html

Apparently the conductor Kriss Russman has also realised a performing version, already premiered (in piano score) in November 2014.
A performance and recording of the orchestral version is planned for 2016.
http://krissrussman.com/

More information on Butterworth:
http://musicbehindthelines.org/composers/featured-composers/george-butterworth/

[Alan Howe]

Thanks. Very interesting indeed.

[Aramiarz]

I have all orchestral music by Butterworth. I like it very much. Excellent news!

[musiclover]

I was at the English Music Festival performance of The Fantasia. It is a substantial work with all the finger prints of Butterworth. The climax was so powerful and expressive whilst the clever use of the trumpets at the end moved everyone in the audience. Martin Yates has done a first rate job by taking what was orchestrated by Butterworth and then making a convincing development out of the material, much in he way Butterworth had done in his other works. I can honestly say that had I not been aware of the history of this piece I would not have known that it was not by Butterworth in its entirety. There was so much chat about the work after the concert and it was all positive and we all agreed that this is a major addition to the Butterworth catalogue. I waited to see if I could talk to Martin Yates afterwards but there was such a queue of people I'm afraid I couldn't stay any longer. I did notice two major publishers talking to him, so I expect we may see it published and available before too long. I urge all of you on this forum to listen out for the broadcast. It will be well worth your while. The BBC Concert Orchestra played superbly throughout the concert, which also had The New Age by Richard Arnell, a superbly robust opening work, the Bucolic Suite by Vaughan Williams, a piece with a beautiful slow movement, the surprisingly good 3rd English Suite by Havergal Brian and the Finzi Cello Concerto, given a fabulous performance by Raphael Wallfisch. All in all it was a perfect evening for lovers of neglected English music. Listen out for the Radio Three broadcast.

[eschiss1]

"the surprisingly good 3rd English Suite by Havergal Brian"
huh?
a brief work for (small?) orchestra from around 1919 (or maybe 1919-1921). I'm guessing people were fearing and expecting it to sound like his works from the 1960s, or something... ...
Anyway...

[musiclover]

Yes, people were expecting a work more dense and complex then it turned out to be. It isn't for a particularly small orchestra, indeed there were four percussionists as well as triple wind and harp. I have to admit I don't understand any fuss that there is about Brian, but this piece was good.

[semloh]

Thank you so much for that very engaging account of the concert, and Butterworth's Fantasia. I hope the Russman recording materializes, but if not, then let's hope those talks that publishers were having with Martin Yates bear fruit. 

[musiclover]

I would bet on Yates recording his version with Dutton. I should think that is most likely. I hope so anyway.