ANDREW DOWNES
Dr David C. F. Wright
My introduction to Andrew Downes's music was the Concert Overture: Towards
a New Age which is an incredible score. Among its many qualities is a
marvellous understanding and control of the orchestra. The music is very
loud and dramatic at times and almost unbearably exciting and yet the texture
of the writing is absolutely faultless. There are composers, some of whom
are famous, who, when writing orchestral tuttis do not care, or simply
do not know how to spread the orchestra and what range of each instrument
to use in a "big passage" to make its contribution the most effective. One
of the worst offenders was Britten but the two masters of this rare skill
were Wagner and Sibelius. It is interesting to note that Professor Downes
rates Sibelius highly for the qualities that are also evident in his own
music.
Towards a New Age was awarded a gold medal by the Institution of
Mechanical Engineers for their 150th anniversary. Malcolm Arnold wrote a
piece called Machines and Mossolov wrote Iron Foundry and the
Scottish composer, Robert Crawford, wrote Hammered Brass, a very good
piece, yet Downes's work depicting the same percussive aspects of craftmen's
skills is the finest piece of its kind. What it does convey is a strong beauty
that is inherent in the clever and often subtle workings of mechanical
technology.
Andrew writes music with traditional titles such as symphony, concerto, sonata
and string quartet which titles, being abstract, call for more imagination
from the listener and these forms usually call for greater discipline in
composition. A piece called Summer Night in Edinburgh, for example
tells the listener how to think, to conjure up the Venice of the North, the
kilt and the bagpipe, the spear thistle and,
perhaps, a reel or strathspey and an imbibing of Scotch which
Malcolm Arnold and Peter Maxwell Davies' can do very well. I mean compose
music with a Scottish flavour rather than become inebriated! But such a title
of a composition does not call for any highly personal response or imagination
but, rather, a looking for the landmarks in the music to indicate its
Scottishness. And yet Professor Downes is certainly not trammelled by the
past as implicit in the titles of two of his works: Towards a New Age
and the oratorio New Dawn.
In addition he has written a Sonata for eight horns and
a Sonata for eight flutes or flute choir as well as the Tone
Poem : Song of the Eagle for flute choir.
Andrew was born at 8 Goldshill Road, Handsworth, Birmingham, to Frank and
Iris, neé Fennell on 20 August 1950. He was the second of two children.
His sister, Judith Anne was born on 28 August 1946. His father, who is now
retired, was born on 21 November 1921 and was a professional horn player,
having been a student of the legendary Denis Brain, and serving in several
orchestras, the Sadlers Wells, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
under Sir Malcolm Sargent, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under
George Weldon and the BBC Midland Orchestra under Leo Wurmser who was a very
fine conductor. He also worked under the baton of Beecham, who was a very
limited conductor and who hated Beethoven and Elgar and with Rudolph Schwarz,
a very personable man, and the superb Sir Adrian Boult whom I also found
to be a very fine musician. Frank Downes took the part of the third horn
in the premiere of Humphrey Searle's Symphony no.4 in Birmingham under
the composer's direction. During the war Frank Downes was in the RAF Central
Band. >From 1970 he was Head of Orchestral Studies at the Birmingham School
of Music.
It was Frank Downes' playing of Mozart on the piano that probably awakened
Andrew to music and encouraged him to improvise on the piano. He began piano
lessons with his father in 1955. His mother, who was born on 17 May
1923, taught commerce and was a fine amateur singer. Sadly, she died on 13
June 1997. Both Andrew and Judith were brought up in a musical home. Andrew's
uncle is the distinguished viola player Herbert Downes who, among other fine
achievements premiered the Benjamin Frankel Viola Concerto at Cheltenham.
He was the first to play the splendid Bartok Viola Concerto after
William Primrose had premièred it in America. I remember talking to
Harry Danks, the principal viola in the BBC Symphony Orchestra and asking
him whom he thought our best violist was. He replied quietly and firmly,
"Bert."
One of Andrew's ancestors was a signatory to Charles the First's death warrant.
Andrew had lessons in piano and singing with Alvena Grant who, with her husband
Peter, founded the Midland Boys Singers.
Schooling was enjoyed, or endured, by Andrew at St Michael's School, Handsworth
(1954-5), Streetly County Primary School
(1955-61) and Aldridge Grammar School (1961
-8).
At school Andrew won a verse speaking prize three years running. He also
won a French verse speaking prize and two prizes for music. He played the
parts of Francis in Shakespeare's Henry the Fourth
(part one), Krushina in Smetena's The
Bartered Bride, Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Macheath
in John Gay's The Beggar's Opera.
His first composition was a setting of It was a lover and his lass for
voice and piano which dates from 1958. He was a fine singer and made his
debut at the Wigmore Hall in September 1969 as both a singer and a composer
singing solo songs by Schubert and Purcell and taking part in his motet 0
Magnum Mysterium. He sang the part of David in Handel's Saul alongside
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau which he considers was the most demanding role that
he has ever undertaken. This was at the Gottingen Festival in June 1975.
He was surprised that Fischer-Dieskau was a chain smoker and understandably
taken up with the soprano Julia Varady, a splendid artist.
But to return to his school years. He achieved seven GCE O levels and four
A levels in English, Music, Art and General
Studies. He became a choral scholar at St John's College, Cambridge from
1969-72 studying singing with Gordon Clinton and composition with Herbert
Howells. He had considered other careers such as law and architecture but
the appeal of music and the arts was very strong. In his teenage years
Renaissance music and that of Vaughan Williams appealed to him. As he had
learned to play the horn he was in the Staffordshire Youth Orchestra. He
did not identify with late romantic works such as those of Wagner and Liszt
but his appreciation of literature included Shakespeare, Tom Jones
by Henry Fielding and the poetry of Hardy, Wordsworth, Keats and Dylan
Thomas.
His first work performed by amateurs was a madrigal It fell upon a day
in the merry month of May in 1965 and was broadcast on the BBC
Home Service by the Midland Boy Singers. His first professional performance
was of his Piano Sonatina given by Malcolm Wilson in 1978 whereas
his first professional broadcast was of his Prelude, Fanfare and
Postludes for organ played by John Bishop on the organ of Bridlington
Priory on 27 December 1978.
Upon leaving college, he taught music at St Michael's School, Sloane Square,
London. In 1974 he began teaching at Thames Valley Grammar School in Twickenham.
The following year he became a lecturer at the Birmingham School of Music.
Five years later he was a senior lecturer and in 1987 became Principal. By
1992 he was Professor and Head of Studies of Composition and Creative Studies
at the Birmingham Conservatoire.
Andrew is blessed with a marvellous wife who is a tremendous support to him.
Her contribution cannot be praised too highly. She was born Cynthia Rosemary
Cooper. She read French and German at Royal
Holloway, University of London. She is a violinist having studied with Mary
Mitchell of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and with Hubert Veasey of
the Philharmonia. She is currently a teacher and publishes Andrew's
music.
Their wedding was in August 1975 at the village church of Codsall in
Staffordshire
The Downes have two daughters. Anna Rebecca was born on 19 February 1977
and is a music graduate from Exeter University. She studied the violin with
David Gregory of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and is currently
teaching at King's School, Tettenhall, Wolverhampton. Paula Rachel was born
on 13 December 1979 and is a choral scholar at Trinity College, Cambridge
and pursuing a career as a soprano soloist.
To return to Andrew's music. To date, there are three string quartets. The
String Quartet no.1 was completed in Blakedown, Worcestershire in
1977 and first performed by the Perry String Quartet in the following year.
Its first professional performance was given by the Arioso String Quartet
in Birmingham in February 1983. The Birmingham Post called it "a joyous
piece, rich in melodic invention and constructed with closely knit musical
sensibility." It is in three movements, an Allegro marked with vitality
which contains a brief Adagio expressivo and another featuring a
slackening of speed throughout its six minutes. The simplicity of the opening
material is notable. Tonic chords in root position and the cello takes up
the theme at once. The cello is the star of the show for the first 63 bars
and from bars 195 to the end. The simplicity of the music calls for a good
performance to prevent it from becoming commonplace, which it is not. The
slow sections possibly hinder the music's progress but the fugato
section is very rewarding. The slow movement Andante molto legato
is also noted for it simplicity. The theme is in octaves on the violins
over an Alberti bass. The introduction of jazz elements do not seem to belong
in a movement that intends to be serene. The final, allegro vivace has
a very strong jazz input. The material is linked to the opening movement
but the worrying feature to some may be when the cello takes on the role
of a pizzicato double bass in a jazz band. There appears to be a dance tune
and one wonders whether this suits this most intimate of classical mediums.
It contains some good music and a more persuasive performance than the one
I heard may have done the work justice. The work was not well received in
some quarters. Some actually thought that the content was not suited to this
classical medium. It may explain why its successor is so very serious.
The String Quartet no. 2 was completed in 1987 and premiered by the
Isis String Quartet at Birmingham's Festival of New Music and Art on
5 December 1989. The work was
commissioned with funds made available by West Midlands
Arts. Again, the Birmingham Post
gave it a good review writing "Downes's style seems to combine the least
cloying aspects of English pastoralism with dashes of European eclecticism."
It is in three movements. The opening Andante con moto is another
movement of frequent mood changes from the plainsong melody on the violins
to a passionate attack and a dreamlike quality. In the performance that I
heard the movement did not hang together which is always a problem when
tempi are varied. This is why a Haydn allegro is superb because
it keeps going and makes for a satisfactory movement. The second movement
is a scherzo but also suffers from slow sections which break the music
up but then the classical composers wrote scherzos and trios and
the trios were usually slow affairs. The finale is marked prestissimo
but the main unit of semiquaver gives way to the main unit being minims
thus slowing down the music considerably. It no longer sounds prestissimo
but a slow andante, a device Elgar used.
The String Quartet no. 3 of 1994 is probably his best quartet. It
was written for the Almira Quartet and is dedicated to the composer John
Mayer. There are three main ideas: one a slow and sad plainsong, the next
ragged, almost violent and the third, which is clearly influenced by Classical
Indian music and inspired after the composer visited Bengal in February 1994.
It is a long work of constantly shifting moods conveying
joy, tragedy and passion. In its best pages
there are many musical delights such as at figure NN, whereas the section
Y to AA seems very simplistic and gives the music an unintentional facile
sound. As in his Symphony no.4 it is difficult to appraise this work
because the quality of the material varies so much. But I think the real
problem is that the music is very personal and therefore may eliminate our
full enjoyment of it.
There are four symphonies. Symphony no.1, op.27 was completed
in September 1982 and was first performed by the Symphony Orchestra of the
Birmingham School of Music conducted by Mark Foster in All Saints Church,
Cheltenham in a concert to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death
of Gustav Holst, formerly organist of the church. The work is scored for
organ, brass, percussion and strings. It is not, however, an Organ Concerto.
The Birmingham Evening Mail called it a brilliant work, written as
a cry from the heart for the recognition of the horrors of nuclear war. It
is in four movements. The opening Prelude and Fanfare is an andante,
sombre, sinister and empty, beginning with lugubrious cellos and basses
over a low timpani E. The violins 'cry' by a falling semitone, a feature
that exists in the opening bass line. The opening of Shostakovich Eleven
is not far away. The organ's first entry is a reedy, quasi-snarling statement
joined by eight trumpets. The pace slightly quickens into a sort of march
which grows louder but the fanfare figures are neither fast nor brilliant.
The side drum has a subdued militarism and the trumpets con sordini have
a tragic resignation. The brass entry at
bar 80 leads to a tremendous climax and the peace is restored with the opening
theme on the full strings over the timpani E. Again, the indebtedness to
Shostakovich Eleven and Vaughan Williams Five is evident. A touching passage
for string quartet follows and the distant trumpets herald a big climax and
a broad theme at bar 132 which is very impressive and includes the main theme.
The movement ends with a passage for two solo violins and a solo viola
accompanied by a timpani D.
The second movement is marked ricercare and is an andantino con
moto which is another slow movement. It has more aggression but by bar
60 the momentum has slowed to the mood of the opening movement. The heart-beats
of the bass drum are very effective, a symbol of life that has to go on despite
adversity and man's hostility to his fellow man.
The third movement is entitled scherzo which has the feel of the Country
Dance as in Rawsthorne's Symphony no.2. It rushes with life but ends
with a rituendo and a few bars marked molto adagio. The finale,
postlude, is another slow movement, very introspective but which,
in a brass section tries to achieve optimism.
I have yet to hear a satisfactory performance of this piece. It is deep and
requires the finest of interpretation to do it justice.
The Symphony no.2 Op. 30 is a splendid work. It is scored for a chamber
orchestra, double woodwind, two of horns and trumpets, timpani and strings.
It was completed on 17 March 1984 and given its first performance by the
Sutton Coldfield Chamber Orchestra under Anthony Miller at the Town Hall,
Sutton Coldfield on Sunday, 17 November 1985. It was written to celebrate
the orchestra's tenth anniversary and funds came from sponsors and the West
Midlands Arts. There are three movements, Lento molto, Vivace and
Largo. It is a very fine score noted for its clarity and textural
integrity. Its quasi-classical design leads to an even greater enjoyment.
It is a score with life and a contrast that is so well-judged that it does
not sound episodic. The opening movement begins with a flute solo in a typical
Downes's style, simple but telling. In fact, the themes of this movement
are memorable. The rhythmic sections are invigorating and beautifully set
out for the orchestra. The Vivace starts lightly with deceptively
simple themes which make them all the more endearing; there are some clever
contrasts and a welcome open-air feel about the music. The finale also
has simple themes but they are never banal. The preoccupation with the interval
of the fourth has an integral part to play and there is a simply stunning
fanfare-like passage before the quiet close.
Any work in the same genre to follow this is already at a disadvantage. However,
the Symphony no.3 is another fine work. What is admirable in Downes's
work is that he does not find a style and reel off work after work in that
same style. All his symphonies are different as,
indeed, were those of Vaughan Williams. Lesser composers like
Elgar and Britten found a style which they adjudged to be people-friendly
and produced all their scores in that same predictable vein. Downes's
Symphony no.3 has the subtitle Spirits of the Earth and is
really a desire to bring all cultures together in their respective musical
styles. This suggests that the work is in great danger of being a hybrid
but the composer avoids that pitfall very cleverly.
The work was premièred by the Birmingham Conservatoire Symphony Orchestra
on 1 April 1993 in the Sir Adrian Boult Hall and the conductor was Andrew
Mogrelia. The work is dedicated to the NSPCC in recognition of their sterling
work among children in need, a cause close to my heart as well as to Andrew's.
The work is scored for a large orchestra with an amplified percussion section.
And to those prejudiced critics who respond to such information by implying
that composers who use large percussion sections are nothing more than noise
merchants should recant that absurd observation. The percussion is used to
great effect and very subtly at times. Of course, there are moments of tremendous
power and excitement but there can be very impressive triple fortes
whereas other composers just write noise. Consider Elgar's Cockaigne
Overture and compare it with Dvorak's stirring Carnival Overture,
for example.
There are five movements in this symphony. The first, allegro ma non troppo,
is a stunning piece full of rhythmic vitality and energy coupled with
melodic interludes that are almost beautiful. The use of the percussion evokes
the universal theme and the music has a refreshing virtuosity. There is real
excitement and a spirit of life itself. In one section, at figure H, the
composer instructs the brass section to stand, as if it were a dance band.
The second movement begins with three solo flutes who are instructed to play
in African folk style. The music does not sound very African to me but rather
like the flute incantation music we associate with Western movies when Red
Indians and their culture is being depicted. The whole symphony shows Andrew's
interest in paganism and/or the spiritualism that believe that the dead can
communicate by spirit to the living and thus the cycle of life goes on
uninterrupted. The movement proceeds apace with elements of jazz, again conjuring
up for me the North American continent. There are some absolutely tremendous
moments ... figure 1 and the five bars following, is just one example. Here
is life, full of vitality and joy and it
is magnificently captured. The third movement is marked molto vivace but
introduces music at a slower basic unit. The movement has an impressively
broad theme, unashamedly romantic, and, at figure K we are in Bali with gamelan
music briefly referred to. The fourth movement is sub-titled Belas Knap
referring to that part of the Cotswolds. Here Andrew's English pastoral
style is at its best with melodic fragments that are now definitely
beautiful. And his pastoral music
is never anaemic. Perhaps there is more than a hint of the British brass
band culture but the music is never vulgar. The finale, in my
view, is the least successful movement
and may suggest that the composer has run out of steam. It contains many
fine moments but the long slow ending, while often beautiful, may have been
better as a confident affirmation. Nonetheless there is a very great deal
to admire in this impressive symphony and my few honest reservations
(I am not referring to the Red Indians
now) will not deter from this fine
score. When one considers some of the music that has been commercially recorded,
a proportion of which is very poor, one wonders why these symphonies have
not been recorded.
I am undecided about the Symphony no.4, op. 59. It was commissioned
by Jan Sperling and the Albuquerque City Concert Band. It is inscribed "to
my lovely daughter Anna on her leaving for Exeter University." The first
movement, City, describes the composer's feeling on visiting this
city; the second movement allegro vivace is a portrait of the surrounding
mountains ; the third movement which employs a solo cedarwood flute is entitled
Sky City whereas the fourth movement depicts the desert. The finale
is entitled Rio Grande but is nothing like Constant Lambert's masterpiece
of the same title. The opening movement is really quite splendid depicting
a day in the life of Albuquerque just as James Wilson did in his portrait
of Dublin and the river Liffey. One feels that the music is too charitable
to accurately portray the city or any other city for that matter. It seems
to imply that it is a place without faults or a seedier side. That fine Scottish
composer, John Maxwell Geddes did the same with his Portrait of a City,
his city being Glasgow, and he paints another flattering picture. Downes's
opening movement is well-conceived and hugely enjoyable. The second movement
does not come off since the opening allegro vivace soon gives way
to slower music. It is not that the pulse changes but the time values do
and the music stutters. It breaks the flow of the music. A better performance would have eliminated these problems.
The third movement is a delight with the hollow and very human sounds of
the cedarwood flute making a tremendous atmosphere. The fourth movement is
a very successful adagio full of interest throughout. It does not
drag, meander or stop every few moments at musical traffic lights. The finale
does not quite work. Leisurely finales seldom do. There is a lack of drama
in this movement which is partly due to the music being too comfortable.
And so, we have a five movement symphony of which three movements are excellent
and two are disappointing. How does one assess such a score? And yet, my
assessment is probably due to the lack of a good performance so far. We must
wait until we have a definitive performance before we can give any accurate
assessment ... and that goes for all music.
This dilemma exists in many other pieces. I have been amazed at the number
of my fellow professionals who agree that only one movement of Berlioz's
Symphonie Fantastique is any good. The rest is canon fodder. I have
always loved Bruckner's Symphony no. 6 but I have to say that the
last two movements are not in the same class as the first two. There are
works that maintain the same high level of quality throughout the whole of
the work, for example, probably the three finest violin concertos of the
twentieth century, those by Sibelius, Reger and Berg. There is a long Mahler
symphony that has two magnificent minutes that appeal to me very deeply.
This passage is superlative but the rest ... Of course, some of this may
be due to the performance. I took a friend to hear Simon Rattle conduct
Sibelius. It was awful. She vowed never
to hear the piece again. But she did and when she heard a great performance
under Sir Alexander Gibson she was bowled over.
A stunning orchestral work of Downes is the Centenary Fire Dances
which has been given a professional performance and more than confirms my
previous observations. This is, without doubt, one of the most exciting scores
of any British composer. The magnificent orchestration, the sheer brilliance
and the, above all, masterly skill are all evident here. It is
an absolute winner. But how many people know the work? It is
more impressive than Tippett's Ritual Dances and Britten's Sea
Interludes from Peter Grimes. And, as an added bonus, it is not
trite or superficial as some grand orchestral showpieces can be.
There are concertos for two guitars, another for two pianos and strings and
one for native American flute.
There is a wealth of instrumental music. The Piano Sonata was admired by
the late John Odgon and another famous player is about to take it up. The
Sonata for two pianos, a work associated with Bracha Eden and Alexander Tamir,
is as engaging as Milhaud's Scaramouche and there are sonatas respectively
for horn, violin, flute, piccolo, viola, brass quintet and the piece on the
drawing board at the moment is the Sonata for cello and piano. The horns
of the Czech Philharmonic have recorded his Sonata for eight horns, a magnificent
piece in which the composer avoids the usual trap of writing blaring
music. So much of it has a remarkable tenderness. Of particular note
is his Sonata for flute choir which I have found to be very rewarding.
There is accomplished music for children particularly the
opera Odysseus and the Cyclops. I was amazed at how simple techniques
could be so effective, Andrew's involvement with the voice has lead
him to write impressive vocal and choral music. His daughter Paula has
just recorded Lost Love, a cycle of songs for soprano, flute,
cello and piano, Old Love's Domain for voice and piano and Songs
from Spoon River which the distinguished singer Sarah Walker has
performed. The tenor, John Mitchinson has sung Old Love's Domain
and The Marshes of Glynn which the composer believes was his
first public success. His instrumental, chamber, vocal and choral work
needs more attention and appraisal than I can give at the moment but
what is clear is that we have a composer who needs promoting and whatever
his view on his own music is he cannot promote himself since he is not an arrogant or pompous man. But who will?
................................................................................
ANDREW DOWNES'S NEW CONCERTO
In my forty five years of listening
to music seriously there have been some notable and unforgettable milestones.
These include the first hearings of such masterworks as Beethoven's
Symphony no. 7, Dvorak's Carnival Overture, Hunmphrey Searle's The Riverrun
( and, indeed, all else that he wrote) Irving Fine's The Hour Glass,
the music of Webern and now, Andrew Downes's Concerto for four
horns and orchestra Op.77, a truly staggering
piece.
I heard the premiere in Prague .
The Concerto was written for the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and dates
from the year 2002.
The premiere with that orchestra
under Vladimir Valek was nothing short of sensational . I have not heard
horn playing of this excellence ever before and I suggest neither have
you.
The work is in three movements linked
by a clever use of material. It is scored for four very brave horn players,
piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons
, double bassoon, two horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani,
percussion and strings. It lasts about 23 minutes.
This is both a real concerto and
a true symphonic work.
The first movement is marked Allegro
vivace and starts with an ostinato figure on violas and lower strings.
This ostinato figure proceeds to the lower woodwind with brief brass
melodic lines which melodic fragments are shared by the high woodwind.
The soloists enter in a expansive, almost secondary role, and here the
composer's usual wisdom is employed. He does not introduce his soloists
with a bang or a display. All is in control. The music is broader accentuating
minims as opposed to quavers and semiquavers as in the opening ostinato
figure. But for all this the music does not lose interest. The first
emphatic statement is not given to the soloists ( another clever move
by this inspirational composer) but the soloists enter with the ostinato
idea fortissimo and there is a fascinating interplay between the soloists
and the orchestra. The climax is short lived and after five bars of
broader music the timpani takes up the ostinato figures of rising minor
thirds and major seconds. The horn parts are smooth over a more violate
orchestra but it makes for an excellent contrast. At bar 218 the soloists,
having established their presence, begin to enter into a display but
I must say it is not crude like brass band virtuosity. This is still
real music.
Andrew has among his many gifts a
wonderful sense of orchestration and texture. In the loud passage for
sustained strings ,bar 236 onwards, he has spread the instruments perfectly
to get the required effect but then he shows us immediately how to acquire
gorgeous hushed sounds from woodwind, horns and strings. The music picks
up excitement again and Andrew wisely avoids overkill. There is nothing
pompous, thick or turgid in his orchestration and his clarity I have
noted in other works of his, notably the splendid second and third symphonies.
The limited use of the timpani with unleashed power is another wise
employment. The ostinato figure returns but its use is so reserved that
it never becomes tedious. The very quiet passage for high strings at
bar 332 is glorious and sets the calm before a brief and exciting climax
with a wonderful ambiguity of tonality.
The second movement is headed Adagio
e molto expressivo and is introduced by a curious theme on cellos and
basses. Curious , since it is broad and stately but not stuffy. It has
a march like quality and speaks of the need of the music to keep moving.
It shows how good horn horn players can play legato and acquire soft
top notes. There are so many little things that the composer does which
make for a continuity. The Cinderella of the orchestra, the viola ,
has a say, three recurring crotchets as a triplet, the thirds in the
flutes and the sixths in the oboes and clarinets and the way that simple
devices generate alternatively a glowing beauty and then a tremendous
excitement. The triplets figures in contrary motion on the horns ( bar
40 onwards) above strings in alternating fifths and sixths makes a wonderful
sound. There are some strong timpani entries and the orchestral brass
have some great moments particularly bar 44 onwards. There is so much
to admire here. And still Andrew has not introduced any vulgar writing
from either soloists and orchestra. He does not make a long slow movement
to pad the music out as do lesser composers. The first movement takes
about eight minutes and the second only five.
Perhaps the most notable aspect of
Andrew's music is that although it is not complicated it is never banal.
I know no other modern composer who can write music that adheres to
simple but effective design with such telling results.
The finale is one of those rare pieces
that is genuinely very exciting and, indeed, spell-binding. While it
may be called a tour de force it is still music for music's sake.
It begins with another ostinato figure
which is the reverse of the opening movement and the horn writing is
stunning.
And yet, note well, Andrew does not
use any horn cliches... no open air hunting horn sounds, no fanfare
figures, no ghastly Edwardian pageantry but just music which is strong
even in the delightful quiet passages.... but there is also that infectious
swagger. The powerful dramatic high horn sequence which first appears
at bar 34 is nothing short of stupendous and throughout the piece Andrew
has impeccable orchestration . To quote but many many strokes of genius
the high flutes about the horns in full flight adds a marvellous crystal
clear scintillation. There is a rhythmic drive and exuberant energy
and , again, little touches of sheer class such as two notes on the
glockinspiel with high violin writing, bar 174 for example. The final
pages are ecstatic and thrilling and overwhelmingly exciting.
It makes Schumann's Konzertstuck
for four horns and orchestra, good though it is, a kindergarten piece.
However, it must be said that this
premiere performance was so outstanding that to get another performance
to match it may be very difficult!
David C F Wright
See also Len Mullenger's report on a talk
by Andrew Downes
Andrew Downes
website
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