Catalogue

Summary:

“Fraser hasn’t just translated Elgar’s notes into rich and powerful orchestral terms, he has added the kind of touches of colour and splashes of figuration Elgar himself might well have introduced…on its own terms it’s beautifully realised, performed with warmth and understanding, and sympathetically recorded” ★★★★ – BBC Music Magazine

“To my ears Fraser’s richly upholstered orchestration works a treat yet also manages to be astutely appreciative of the simmering passion and sense of loss that permeate this wistful creation…plaudits, too, for Woods’s characteristically lucid and fervent performance with his own English Symphony Orchestra” – Gramophone

“Fraser’s orchestration fills out Elgar’s spare writing with great pomp and circumstance, and the finale sounds exhilaratingly Elgarian” – The Sunday Times

One “of the most exciting events I have experienced during a reviewing career approaching half a century,” was the verdict of the Birmingham Post’s critic after hearing the premiere performance of Elgar’s Piano Quintet in a new orchestration by Donald Fraser, with Kenneth Woods conducting the English Symphony Orchestra. This version, which was also named a “Premiere of the Year” by Classical Music Magazine, appears in a studio recording alongside Fraser’s choral arrangement of Elgar’s Sea Pictures with Woods conducting the English Chamber Orchestra and the Rodolfus Choir. Fraser has frequently orchestrated works by Elgar at the behest of individuals and organizations including Yehudi Menuhin and the Elgar Society. These two new arrangements will appeal to orchestras and choirs worldwide, and the recording will spread Elgar’s music to yet a wider audience.

Tracklist:

EDWARD ELGAR (1857–1934)
Orchestrated by Donald Fraser (b.1947)

Piano Quintet in A minor, Op. 84
1. I. Moderato – Allegro (13:58)
2. II. Adagio (13:09)
3. III. Andante – Allegro (11:18)

Sea Pictures, Op. 37
4. I. Sea Slumber Song (04:33)
5. II. In Haven (Capri) (01:51)
6. III. Sabbath Morning at Sea (05:43)
7. IV. Where Corals Lie (03:54)
8. V. The Swimmer (05:03)

Total duration (60:00)

English Symphony Orchestra
English Chamber Orchestra
Kenneth Woods, conductor
Rodolfus Choir | Ralph Allwood, director

Recording: 31 July 2013, Abbey Road Studios, London (4-8)
9 October 2015, Elgar Hall, Birmingham (1-3)
Recording engineers: Simon Fox-Gál (1-3) & Simon Kiln (4-8)
Mastering: Simon Fox-Gái • Recording producer: Donald Fraser
Publisher: FraserMusic Interactive (ASCAP)
Cover photography: © Peter K. Lloyd / Alamy Stock Photo
Cover design: Paul Marc Mitchell for WLP Ltd.

℗ & © 2016 FraserMusic Interactive/Donald Fraser