An Early Evening Stroll

In this episode, we venture into England and focus our attention on a prominent 20th-century composer: Gerald Finzi (1901-1956). His work has been affected by several tragedies in his life: he lost his father and three bothers at a very young age and his first musical teacher, Ernest Farrar, was killed during World War One, which deeply upset Finzi. He found solace in poems from poets like Thomas Traherne, Thomas Hardy and Christina Rossetti.

Today, we’ll take a walk through Finzi’s oeuvre, and frame this with works from composers who inspired him.

Playlist:

1. Gerald Finzi, Five Bagatelles, op.23, no.1-5, Michael Collins, clarinet, Michael McHale, piano. 
2. R.O. Morris, Canzoni ricercati no.1-6 ; Risoluto, non troppo allegro and Lento sostenuto (in modo penitentis), Lindsay String Quartet.
3. Howard Ferguson, Four short pieces for clarinet and piano, op.6, no.1-4. 1. Prelude, 2. Scherzo, 3. Pastorale, 4. Burlesque, Janet Hilton, clarinet, Clifford Benson, piano.
4. Gerald Finzi, Interlude for oboe, violins, violas and cello, op.21 in A minor, Nicolas Daniel, oboe, Doric String Quartet.
5. Gerald Finzi and Howard Ferguson, Elegy for orchestra, op.20, “The fall of the leaf”, Northern Sinfonia of England conducted by Richard Hickox.

Encore:

1. Gerald Finzi, A Lullaby, Blossom Street conducted by Hilary Campbell.