Search - Herbert Howells, George Dyson, London Divertimenti :: Howells: In Gloucestershire; Dyson: Three Rhapsodies

English pastoral music with a cry of lament at its heart

Oliver Owen | Texarkana, TX USA | 01/25/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The string quartet by Howells is remarkable in its evocation of mood. It is written in the "English pastoral" style, but the cry of lament that lies at its heart tells us that this is much more than simply a musical picture-postcard of a cow looking over a gate. The opening bars of the first movement instantly bring to mind the green, lush hills of the English countryside, seen through the vanishing mists of a summer's morning. There is a sense of melancholy rapture similar to that evoked by Vaughan Williams in his third symphony. The second movement evokes the feel of a vigorous walk on the downs on a blustery day. Ivor Gurney heard in it "a great spring wind blowing the hair of the exultant traveller wandering without purpose save to find beauty and be comrade with the wind." The heart of the work, however, is the third movement, a deeply felt elegy in which the composer gives painful expression to feelings of grief over some devastating loss. This is some of the saddest music I have ever heard, beautiful, yet heartwrenching in the sense of loss that it conveys. Once heard, it cannnot be forgotten. The three rhapsodies by Dyson are in a lighter mood. They are very lyrical and enjoyable, but for me, it is the Howells' quartet that is the real masterwork on this disk."