Philip Heseltine, aka Peter Warlock, was an enigma in many ways – song-writing and arranging genius; fine orchestrator – but also a political animal, bon-viveur and ultimately a self-absorbed depressive who took his own life. This 2 CD set comprises (with one exception) all the recordings of Warlock’s work issued on standard-groove records, between 1925 and 1951 – all lovingly collected by the late John Bishop, stalwart of the Peter Warlock Society, which has generously assisted with the production of this album whcih can be seen as a tribute to one of England’s most influential composers of the early 20th century. Detailed notes on the man and his music, and these recordings, are included. Performers include some of Britain’s finest of the age.
The ‘missing’ item is a recording of ‘The Curlew’ by John Armstrong with the International String Quartet – this omission was not taken lightly, but would have required a 3rd CD making the set quite expensive – the recording is available via Pristine Audio
TRACKS:
Capriol Suite
London Chamber Orch/Bernard
Serenade for Strings
NGS Chamber Orchestra/Barbirolli
Purcell/Warlock: Fantaisie no. 3
The Pasquier Trio
Purcell/Warlock: 2-Part Fantasia no. 9
The Griller String Quartet
Capriol Suite (arr. Szigeti)
Josef Szigeti & Nikita Magalov
The Curlew
Soames, Nielsen, Aeolian String Quartet
Serenade for Strings
Capriol Suite
Constant Lambert String Orch. /Lambert
Captain Stratton’s Fancy
Peter Dawson
Oh Good Ale;
Flow not fast ye fountains; There is a garden; O eyes, O mortal stars; Come, my Celia
John Goss
Corpus Christi
The English Singers
Sleep; Chop Cherry
John Armstrong/ International String Qt.
The Fox; Sleep; Take o take those lips away; Sweet and Kind; As Ever I Saw; The Passionate Shepherd
Parry Jones
Corpus Christi
Ann Jones, Peter Pears, BBC Chorus
A Cornish Christmas Carol
BBC Chorus/Woodgate
Six Nursery Jingles
Cecil Cope
Milkmaids; Captain Stratton’s Fancy; Sigh no More; Pretty Ring Time; Passing By; My Own Country; Fair and True; Piggesnie
Roy Henderson
Sweet and Twenty; Sleep
Nancy Evans
Rest Sweet Nymphs
Truro County Girls’ School Choir
The First Mercy
Billy Neeley
Corpus Christi
Flora Nielsen, Rene Soames, Festival Singers
The Frostbound Wood; The Fox
Dennis Noble
Captain Stratton’s Fancy
Oscar Natzke
