Search - Ralph Vaughan Williams, Bryden Thomson, Kenneth Sillito :: Ralph Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 4 / Concerto Accademico for Violin & String Orchestra - Bryden Thomson

Strong

David Saemann | 11/30/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Fourth Symphony is a test of any conductor and orchestra. There have been famous recordings by the composer and also by both Mitropoulos and Bernstein with the N.Y. Philharmonic. Thomson's recording stakes out territory of its own. It has plenty of power and drive. But the moments that really stand out are the quieter sections. Thomson has found a way to express the questioning and doubtful aspects of the composer's vision, in a way that escapes most other interpreters. The second movement is probably the best I've ever heard. Also the excellent sound engineering enables Thomson's clarity of texture to stand out to an unusual degree. This may not be the most forceful recording of the symphony, but it probably is the most reavealing of the stature of the work since the composer's own. The Concerto goes very well. I've never heard a bad recording by Kenneth Sillito. It probably says something about the Neo-Classical style of this concerto that Sillito has made fine recordings of the Bach concertos. His tone here is not big but it is pleasant, and his articulation is easy and outstanding. The Tranquillo movement is just that, tranquil. Except for a short playing time of 50 minutes, this is an exemplary Vaughan Williams disc."