I was looking at the upcoming releases on the Hyperion Records website few days ago and saw that they are finally issuing a new installment to their "The Romantic Cello Concerto" series.
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA67859&vw=dc (http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dc.asp?dc=D_CDA67859&vw=dc)
How much of unsung man is he? I have never heard of him before. What good did he write?
He's one of the great unsungs. Here's a listing...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_compositions_by_Charles_Villiers_Stanford (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_compositions_by_Charles_Villiers_Stanford)
Quote from: Norbit on Friday 05 August 2011, 20:43How much of unsung man is he? I have never heard of him before. What good did he write?
The music of Stanford is certainly enthusiastically endorsed by several members of the forum, and he has his own thread here -
http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,863.0.html (http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,863.0.html)
This new Hyperion disc should be a real winner - I've never heard the Rondo in F, but all the other pieces are more than worthwhile - the 3rd
Irish Rhapsody is amongst the most beautiful of the six that he wrote and
Ballata and Ballabile is a very attractive score written towards the end of his life, proving that after the First World War he was not the clapped-out old dinosaur he was widely perceived to be.
:)
...of course, it depends what your tastes are, Norbit. If you like piano concertos, I'd start with No.2 - the recent recording on Claves is hard to beat...
http://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/Charles-Villiers-Stanford-1852-1924-Klavierkonzert-Nr-2/hnum/4968665 (http://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/Charles-Villiers-Stanford-1852-1924-Klavierkonzert-Nr-2/hnum/4968665)