Richard Arnell: "Elegy" MusicaNova Orchestra, Warren Cohen conductor

Recorded at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts on April 11, 2010.

Richard "Tony" Arnell (1917-2009) was a British composer who studied composition with John Ireland at the Royal College of Music. In 1939 he was in New York visiting the World's Fair when war broke out and he ended up spending the next eight years in the US. During this time he met Sir Thomas Beecham, who was to become his most ardent champion; he was prolific and happy, and his first three quartets and Symphonies date from this period. He returned to England in 1947, and except for a three year return to America in the late 60's and a period spent in France when he was already in his eighties, he lived there for the rest of his life. After his early successes, his music fell out of fashion and was neglected from the period from about 1960 until the turn of the present century. Since then, there has been a revival; we at MusicaNova have released a recording of his 4th and 5th Symphonies (available at http://www.musicanovaaz.org/arnellorder.htm. or from Amazon), and much of his orchestral music, including all the Symphonies, have been released on Dutton with Martin Yates conducting. The reviews have largely agreed with my assessment that Arnell is a real find, a composer with a unique voice expressed through a flawless compositional technique. Read more about my personal views at the MusicaNova blog http://www.musicanovamusings.org/2010/03/richard-arnell.html.

I arranged the slow movement of the Third Quartet for String Orchestra, because I thought it was beautiful and that it would work well in the context of a larger group. It shows Arnell the great melodist and master of counterpoint at the top of his game.

MusicaNova Orchestra has as its mission the performance of unjustly neglected music. Find out more at http://www.MusicaNovaaz.org. and the MusicaNova blog http://www.musicanovamusings.org

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Music

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• Richard
• Arnell
• American music
• classical music
• 20th century music
• MusicaNova
• Orchestra
• Warren
• Cohen Scottsdale
• Center
• beautiful
• string
• orchestra
• quartet

[TheVaughan5]

I am only just discovering the music of Richard Arnell, clearly a major composer who has been neglected far too long. His neglect from the late 50's on is not surprising given that these were the"bad old days" of William Glock in Britain (controller BBC music) where only avant garde composers were considered worth hearing, time of course has proved otherwise and we now live in more enlightened times, thank goodness. thanks for this upload.

[MyMarnus]

Also amazing. Sounds kind of like John Williams's soundtracks for most of Steven Spielberg's movies. These music are scarse. Please maintain

[hewsongs]

WONDERFUL!!