COMPOSERS: Howells
LABELS: Chandos
WORKS: A Garland for de la Mare; Peacock Pie; Four French Chansons; In Green Ways,
PERFORMER: Lynne Dawson, Catherine Pierard (sopranos), John Mark Ainsley (tenor), Benjamin Luxon (baritone), Julius Drake (piano)
CATALOGUE NO: CHAN 9185/6 DDD
Fifty-eight delightful songs: many unpublished, most unrecorded, including many enchantingly dream- like de la Mare settings. The soloists shine; Dawson pure-toned and beautifully expressive in ‘Cendrillon’ and the French songs and Luxon heightening the drama and humour of ‘Old Skinflint’ and ‘The Brisk Young Widow’. The piano parts are miniature jewels and Drake burnishes them brightly. An album you wish would never end. Ian Lace
Howells: A Garland for de la Mare; Peacock Pie; Four French Chansons; In Green Ways,
Fifty-eight delightful songs: many unpublished, most unrecorded, including many enchantingly dream- like de la Mare settings. The soloists shine; Dawson pure-toned and beautifully expressive in ‘Cendrillon’ and the French songs and Luxon heightening the drama and humour of ‘Old Skinflint’ and ‘The Brisk Young Widow’. The piano parts are miniature jewels and Drake burnishes them brightly. An album you wish would never end. Ian Lace
Published: January 20, 2012 at 2:31 pm