Review extracts for all Fand publications
Ordered by Fand product code; click on any heading to go to the associated product page.
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…a constant delight throughout. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…cries out for revaluation as a genuine 20th Century musical maverick… |
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| —EPTA Journal
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Carey was essentially a miniaturist, but the range and beauty of his creations were very evident here. |
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| —Brian Hick, Lark Reviews, 20th May 2012
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…the delightful concert at The Warehouse […] on May 19, marking what would have been Carey Blyton’s 80th birthday, brought not only a representative selection of Blyton’s music but also music by his friends and pupils, performed by musicians who clearly found themselves instinctively in sympathy with his art. The result was an unalloyed delight … An excellent and, in its way, moving evening of music. |
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| —Robert Matthew-Walker, Musical Opinion (July–August 2012 p51–52)
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…Blyton’s impressive Lachrymae […] was most excellently conveyed by the evening’s main artists, Alison Smart (soprano) and Katharine Durran (piano). |
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| —Robert Matthew-Walker, Musical Opinion (July–August 2012 p52)
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Blyton’s songs found admirable interpreters in these two musicians; as did those by the other composers represented. |
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| —Robert Matthew-Walker, Musical Opinion (July–August 2012 p52)
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…there was enough variety in the programme to display the many facets of this interesting composer… |
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| —Malcolm Rudland, Peter Warlock Society Newsletter 91
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…the concert displayed much of Carey’s playfulness, pastiche and humour. |
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| —Malcolm Rudland, Peter Warlock Society Newsletter 91
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…fertile adventurous musical mind with a keen sense of humour. |
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| —Malcolm Rudland, Peter Warlock Society Newsletter 91
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Your CD represents high level playing. Bravo and keep going. |
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| —János Starker (September 2011) |
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Apart from the sheer technical security and virtuosity of his playing, Handy brings a virile, tight-muscled, lithe-limbed, sinewy strength to his reading that accentuates the score’s edgy energy. The moments of lyrical repose—and there are many, for this is still, at heart, a very romantic work—are thereby all the more set off in relief and repose. |
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| —Jerry Dubins, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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While I’m now fairly well-acquainted with Lionel’s playing […] this is my first time encountering his violinist sister Thelma, and I have to say I am mightily impressed. She has an amazing technique and a gorgeous tone to match, which she draws out like spun gold… |
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| —Jerry Dubins, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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Cadenza’s recording could not have captured these three artists any better. Very strongly recommended. |
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| —Jerry Dubins, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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The music requires the cellist to cover the instrument’s entire range from the highest delicate tones to the strongest bass notes, and Handy has no trouble filling the bill. Natalie Clein plays it on a 2010 Hyperion disc, but I don’t think her virtuosity is quite up to the level of Handy’s. |
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| —Maria Nockin, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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As a whole, I find the recording by the Handys and Nigel Clayton to be an excellent 21st-century rendition of Kodály’s most important compositions. |
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| —Maria Nockin, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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[Lionel Handy] shows himself to be a superb solo performer … these are colorful and imaginative performances, technically assured [and] expert in their sense of ensemble… |
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| —Peter J. Rabinowitz, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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Handy’s assurance, both technical and interpretive, is most impressive […] This performance of Kodály’s op 8 Sonata shows him to be a well organised player who enters wholeheartedly into the composer’s passionate idiom. |
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| —Guy Aron, MusicWeb International (November 2011)
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The Handys are very well-matched tonally … Their interplay is unselfish, each receding into the background when the other has the melodic interest … The recording is highly successful, achieving a vivid sound picture without any feeling of artificiality. |
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| —Guy Aron, MusicWeb International (November 2011)
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The pair create an impressive sound of almost orchestral sonority, and conjure up real dramatic tension in the Adagio. Both instruments are sensitively recorded and balance is excellent. |
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| —Janet Banks, The Strad (October 2011)
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Handy’s partnership with pianist Nigel Clayton in the op 4 Sonata draws some inspired playing … the spirited folk rhythms […] are infectiously delivered. |
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| —Janet Banks, The Strad (October 2011)
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This is a superbly planned and no less superbly executed disc … Handy’s and Clayton’s planning would be for nothing were their musicianship only average. It is very clear, though, that we are in the best of hands. Handy’s tone is exceptionally clean. His use of vibrato, while never obtrusive, instils the notes with life. |
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| —International Record Review (January 2010)
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The interpretations [Lionel Handy] gives here demonstrate an intuitive feeling for large-scale form combining with a meticulous attention to the detail of the music. |
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| —Gavin Dixon, MusicWeb International (December 2009)
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…the CD is a rewarding listen, the sheer discipline and interpretive integrity of the performers distinguishing it from much of the competition. |
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| —Gavin Dixon, MusicWeb International (December 2009)
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Handy, a teacher at London’s Royal Academy of Music and the Birmingham Conservatoire, has a clear affinity with Carter’s 1948 Sonata. |
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| —Janet Banks, The Strad (December 2009)
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…in Martinů’s Sonata the Allegro con brio finale, forceful and well controlled, comes across as a joyous celebration… |
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| —Janet Banks, The Strad (December 2009)
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It’s intriguing that I hear nothing of the Westerner’s Arabic cliché in this music. It is more Western 20th century but it’s certainly not avant-garde. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International
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Looking for an ambitious choral work that breaks free from the usual subjects? Try this: A sea-change into something imaginatively blessed and strange. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International
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An appealing programme, whose high-spots include York Bowen’s entrancing 1925 miniature, The Way to Polden, the dreamy Bolinge Hill by Peter Thompson and Frank Bridge’s Three Sketches |
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| —Gramophone
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This unpretentious recital of ‘Pictures in Sound’ is an intriguing variety of beautifully played pieces… |
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| —Colin Scott-Sutherland, MusicWeb International
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Williams’s playing is essentially English – unfussy, no unnecessary emphases, but full of conviction … The playing throughout is clear and finely articulated – but loses none of the poetry. |
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| —Colin Scott-Sutherland, MusicWeb International
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…a player of the highest calibre and I cannot recommend this disc too highly |
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| —The Organ
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…finely-wrought mood studies in one movement, finely written for the instrument. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…showed a fine understanding of the keyboard. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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[Hallas’s Bax editions] are a model in the class of Howard Ferguson’s editions of early music. |
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| —Eric Parkin (pianist) |
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An important Bax issue… |
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| —Piano
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[Hallas’s Bax editions] are a model in the class of Howard Ferguson’s editions of early music. |
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| —Eric Parkin (pianist) |
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…great poetic beauty… |
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| —Piano
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[Hallas’s Bax editions] are a model in the class of Howard Ferguson’s editions of early music. |
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| —Eric Parkin (pianist) |
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…fragrant and full of character – beautiful! |
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| —Piano
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Fascinating… |
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| —Musical Opinion
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A ravishingly beautiful and moving rhapsody, […] both old-fashioned and contemporary. The writing is immensely graceful, an unpretentious, personal piece from a composer who really knows the piano. |
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| —Classical Piano (1999)
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…Especially moving, […] all evocations of the sea—Debussy in the Hebrides, if you will, with that strange emotional ambivalence of a major-key lament. |
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| —Tempo (1999)
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…An exciting seven-minute Toccata that bounds along, now sinister, now brilliant, in relentless triple meter. |
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| —American Record Guide
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Pott’s spellbinding Toccata …was as energetic as it was dextrous and as powerful as it was demanding. |
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| —Musical Opinion (2006) [live performance review]
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…five interesting movements… |
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| —Piano
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…imaginative and colourful |
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| —BBC Music Magazine
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The Chagall Suite is brilliantly colourful and has all the delights of a Poulenc or Casella… |
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| —Colin Scott-Sutherland, MusicWeb International
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Excellent new repertoire for imaginative grade 3–5 pupils. |
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| —Piano
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I like this composer’s language, pungent and spicy, and the writing is idiomatic and grateful. |
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| —John York, Piano
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…a genuinely creative talent. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…a generous volume… |
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| —Piano
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…evocative work… |
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| —ISM Journal
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…an imaginative and enormously effective piece… |
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| —Musical Opinion
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Full of original thought and emotive music of considerable power |
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| —British Music Society News (1998)
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…in the top rank of significant British chamber music of recent decades |
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| —British Music Society News (1998)
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…an extended elegiac composition, emotionally charged, making full and fine use of the ’cello’s expressive capabilities. |
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| —Records International (1998)
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This may be one of the finest ’cello sonatas to come out of the British Isles this century. |
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| —Records International (1998)
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…major addition to the cello-sonata repertoire. |
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| —Tempo
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A composer of distinction and skill |
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| —The Singer
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Striking setting… |
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| —Gramophone
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Interesting |
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| —Double Reed News
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…great fun |
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| —Double Reed News
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Exquisitely written |
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| —Double Reed News
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…warm, effective and entertaining and most appealing to the listener |
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| —Yehudi Menuhin |
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…an attractive and tuneful work |
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| —Double Reed News
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…has an intimate quality which seems to speak to each member of the audience individually |
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| —Classical Guitar
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…an effervescent, joyous work |
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| —Organists Review
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Lyrics from the East shows a striking variety of mood and tone colour … Blyton was Britten’s editor in the 1960s and it is easy to imagin[e] Peter Pears singing many of the songs presented here. |
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| —Amazon review (June 2012)
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…surprisingly effective |
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| —Michael Pilkington, Singing
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…extraordinarily moving |
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| —Michael Pilkington, Singing
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…hauntingly beautiful settings… |
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| —ISM Journal
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The work sounds very English in character, so much in the vein of fine British composers such as Jack Moeran, that I greatly admire […] It is deserving of concert violinists taking a look… |
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| —John Mitchell, YouTube
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Christina Rossetti’s 1872 collection of poems for children … imaginatively reawakened |
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| —The Singer
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…a genuine snip |
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| —BMS News
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…intriguing |
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| —Michael Hurd, Petersfield Herald
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…lively and contrasting work … always interesting |
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| —Walton Herald & News
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…am absolutely THRILLED with it … a truly beautiful book … congratulations to all involved. |
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| —customer feedback |
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What we have here are all the poems of Arnold Bax … or, at least, all the ones known to Colin Scott-Sutherland, the editor, who is also the first Bax scholar in modern times. The poems are as written under Bax’s own name as well as those published under the name of his Irish ‘doppelganger’, Dermot O’Byrne. The editor has also in-gathered a selection of the composer’s teenage love letters. |
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| —Rob Barnett, British Music Society News 92 (December 2001)
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Colin’s dogged determination to the Bax cause – sharing Bax’s creative work with the world – complements the now more celebrated work of fellow Baxian, Lewis Foreman. |
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| —Rob Barnett, British Music Society News 92 (December 2001)
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Each poem in IDEALA is carefully footnoted to explain obscure references. Alternative versions are also recorded with variorum diligence. |
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| —Rob Barnett, British Music Society News 92 (December 2001)
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The book … is very solidly case-bound in bleached cream boards inlaid with gold stamped titling and using rondel designs from an early edition of Swinburne’s Atalanta in Calydon. |
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| —Rob Barnett, British Music Society News 92 (December 2001)
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I do not underestimate the dedication invested in this work by the editor and the publisher. It must have been a phenomenal task. |
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| —Rob Barnett, British Music Society News 92 (December 2001)
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This sumptuously presented book is a prominent landmark in the Bax literature and another magus-key to one window into Bax’s musical legacy: a magical casement indeed. |
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| —Rob Barnett, British Music Society News 92 (December 2001)
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This extensive collection of poems by Bax and his alter ego Dermot O’Byrne, annotated copiously by Bax’s first biographer [Colin Scott-Sutherland] (Arnold Bax, Dent, 1973) and beautifully produced by Fand Music Press, illuminates those years of ardent youth to which he said ‘farewell’ in his autobiography of 1943. The collection includes a 30-page memoir of Arnold and his brother Clifford by their tutor, Francis Colmer, especially written for Scott-Sutherland, and derives its title not only from an early setting of Bjornson – published as The Flute (1923) – but evoking the ideal love of Bax’s many romantic liaisons. Its theme became Bax’s for life: pursuit of unattainable beauty: romantic and realistic. |
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| —Ronald Stevenson, International Piano Quarterly
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Scott-Sutherland’s ‘IDEALA’ is illustrated (or, rather, illuminated) by an extensive array of photographic plates, most never published before: rare photos and the whole score of The Princess’s Rose-Garden, in homage to Harriet Cohen’s garden, a sumptuous example of Bax’s piano writing, and most unlike much well-mannered English Music. If Bax’s originality had little feeling for scholarly historic perspective, his brother Clifford Bax (also featured in the new book) was a poet with a keen sense of such perspective. His splendid and extensive English anthology, Vintage Verse, has illuminating introductions to each selection (Hollis & Carter, London, 1945). |
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| —Ronald Stevenson, International Piano Quarterly
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Arnold Bax set to music only four of his own poems: two of them with authorship attributed to his nom-de-plume, Dermot O’Byrne. I recall asking the Scots Gaelic poet Sorley Maclean, “Who is a Gael?” He replied: “One who has the language, the Gaelic.” Now that this ancient language’s survival is threatened, the point is all the more clamant. That authoritative view (from the acknowledged doyen Gaelic poet of recent history) deserves consideration. It is facile to ridicule Bax’s alter ego of Dermot O’Byrne, but Bax had the Irish Gaelic language. The volume under review reproduces the MS of his translation of Synge’s play, The Shadow of the Glen, into Bax’s Irish Gaelic. Synge did not write in Gaelic. Neither did Yeats. Bax did. He justified his nom de plume, Dermot O’Byrne. |
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| —Ronald Stevenson, International Piano Quarterly
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Detail has been lavished on the book’s presentation. The cover design is appropriately from Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Two young Scottish pianists have recently been playing Bax: Joseph Long and Jeremy Limb, who is a family descendant of Bax. Names to remember. So, after moribund years, Bax is reconsidered. It may herald a renaissance that can only enrich what sometimes seems the recent dry period in British piano music. |
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| —Ronald Stevenson, International Piano Quarterly
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…written by a phenomenally gifted musician … collected and published by loving hands… |
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| —International Record Review
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…collected and published by loving hands … written by a phenomenally gifted musician (Bax’s) literary gifts were not insignificant … of appeal to devotees … the editorial notes are useful… |
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| —Robert Matthew-Walker, International Record Review
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here is a beautiful and lovingly produced quality volume … exceptional collection |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…here is a beautiful and lovingly-produced quality volume of his poems, including all of those he wrote under the pseudonym of Dermot O’Byrne, together with some of his Love Letters, happily preserved and made available by the Bax Estate … reading many of the poems is akin to hearing the music contained in the sound of speech. The love letters amplify the poems, all of which is illuminated by the music… |
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| —Musical Opinion (September 2001)
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IDEALA – a resplendent luxury volume of Bax’s poems and love letters – is a monument to professionalism and to delight in beauty. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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…an absorbing collection of about 260 poems, mostly from the full flowering of Bax’s youth … This splendid case-bound and gold-blocked volume is a pleasure to hold and an essential adjunct to Lewis Foreman’s biography of the composer. |
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| —Stephen Lloyd, MusicWeb International and BMS News
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This splendid case-bound and gold-blocked volume is a pleasure to hold and an essential adjunct to Lewis Foreman’s biography of the composer. One is extremely grateful to Colin Scott-Sutherland and others who have supplied material to make this invaluable collection possible. |
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| —Stephen Lloyd, MusicWeb International and BMS News
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The book is a landmark and is essential for all Baxians |
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| —The Delian
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Colin Scott-Sutherland is to be well and truly congratulated on his achievement in so expertly marshalling and editing all the material … the paper used in this hard-back volume is of high quality, with many photographs, drawings, and other reproductions. There is also a striking front cover design (after Rossetti) in gold embossed on a cream ground, which was inspired by the 1911 deluxe edition of Clifford Bax’s Poems Dramatic and Lyrical. This is a fascinating book, and nobody with a real interest in British music or in the byways of English poetry should be without it … lavish publication… [Graham Parlett is author of A Catalogue of the Works of Sir Arnold Bax (OUP)] |
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| —Graham Parlett, The Sir Arnold Bax Website
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Buy this book and read it; enjoy the gentle humour and wonder about a man who so loves to write he does it in words, songs and music; and all very well indeed. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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[Readers] may well be surprised, one hopes pleasantly, by this lovely and entertaining collection of [Carey Blyton’s] short stories, written over a period of thirty years. |
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| —Gary Higginson, MusicWeb International
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Some are whimsical, some ironic, a few sentimental and one or two autobiographical – parallels to his compositions, perhaps. All are readable and pleasantly written… |
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| —Philip Scowcroft, MusicWeb International
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…fascinating as an insight into Carey [Blyton]’s formative experiences… |
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| —Cliff Watkins, Salisbury Journal
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Peter Thompson’s Sonatina for Cello and Piano, from the disc From Bohemia to Wessex, is a fine example of tonal British music written in the 1980s. It is intelligent without being grating and is infused with rich and brooding British landscape. Try playing the slow movement, Andante sostenuto (4½ mins). |
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| —Julian Farmer |
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Really rather a terrific piece… |
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| —Warren Mailley-Smith (pianist) |
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Thompson’s musical style is quite individual, and his work here has many memorable and varied ideas. |
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| —John R. Mitchell, Amazon review (June 2014)
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Thompson’s three-movement Sonatina is lyrically captivating. |
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| —Jan Smaczny, BBC Music Magazine (October 2014 p111)
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The music is fluent, lyrical and full of poetry, stylistically referencing the great tradition of English music from the early twentieth century as well as Martinů in the third movement. A gem. |
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| —Krzysztof Stasiak, MusicWeb International
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Thompson’s Cello Sonatina is in three short movements … It is a tonal and dreamily accessible piece … It does not lack for drama: its exciting Allegro feroce finale is notable for its brusque and virile attack contrasted with glittering piano pages. The moods portrayed and established throughout are mature. The composer shows no hankering after rhetorical convention to close each of the three movements. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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…six inventive and colourful pieces… |
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| —J. E. Ormerod, Recorder Magazine
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…more advanced players should not overlook these pieces as they will find much in them to interest and stimulate. |
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| —J. E. Ormerod, Recorder Magazine
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…showed the accomplished grip of youthful capability. |
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| —Music and Musicians
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I can imagine him on those hills plucking sounds from the air. |
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| —John Betjeman |
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…vocal lines are relatively straightforward but underpinned by a varied and at times quite virtuosic piano part |
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| —The Singer
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…individual, attractive music … contemporary approach to harmony… [review of original Tenor setting] |
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| —The Singer
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…highly recommended |
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| —Church Music Quarterly
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…attractive tone-painting |
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| —Piano
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…a lovely, longish concert piece that plays and sounds very well |
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| —Piano
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…beautifully sculptured […] imaginative and beautiful setting … distinctive and eminently worth the attention of genuine music-lovers and aspiring concert singers. |
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| —Robert Matthew-Walker, Musical Opinion (July–August 2012 p52)
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Skilfully pitched for a not-too-ambitious SATB or SAB … might be just the ticket… |
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| —The Singer
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– modal, dreamy, beautiful! Good music, good price |
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| —Piano
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…quasi-improvisational sketches that provide tonal interest for the younger ear… |
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| —Muso
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…tiny sketches that resemble improvisations in a sensitive language, easily and attractively contemporary. |
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| —Piano
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…evocative settings… |
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| —Music Teacher
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…this set of songs is of such quality as to make me wish to see and hear other music by this gifted composer. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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Singers who may initially baulk at singing in Parsi should be reassured that a full pronunciation guide is included, and the music itself is impressive. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…could and should be very successful; contemporary, quite challenging, short, dissonant, well written… |
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| —Piano
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…well arranged here for five recorders, with all sharing the interest amid a variety of texture … enjoyable work… |
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| —Music Teacher
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…very adroitly scored… |
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| —Music Teacher
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A most musical and impressive piece. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…a particularly well-written work, scored with notable character and mastery of [the] forces. |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…an attractive collection of short pieces … Beautifully set and painstakingly edited… |
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| —Philip Mead, International Piano (3 May 2005)
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These highly individual pieces serve up a tasty treat of originality for the left hand |
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| —Alec Boulton, Music Teacher (August 2005)
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Sprained right hand, anyone? |
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| —Tom Scott, Muso
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…full of short yet charmingly accessible works. |
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| —Margaret Fingerhut, Pianist
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It is a fascinating collection on its own merits… |
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| —Liz Gibson, Piano Professional (January 2006)
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…effective and imaginative… |
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| —Music Teacher
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…very attractive arrangement… |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…makes a strongly personal statement… |
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| —Piano
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…a good right-hand study … the title speaks volumes. |
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| —Piano
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…the writing is unfussy… |
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| —Music Teacher
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… (will) reward a second glance. |
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| —Piano
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…attractive piece of musical fluff … a nice encore piece … very effectively laid out… |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…the Fugue is witty, lively, robust and fun to play … I love the binding, paper quality, font and layout… |
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| —Viola da Gamba Society
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Effective quartet textures and sonorities abound … in a convincing manner |
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| —Music Teacher
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…definitely deserves a place in the repertoire of a string quartet … a well-written tonal piece. It lies well for all the instruments… |
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| —Music Teacher (February 2006)
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Thompson is a genuinely musical composer and I commend this piece to any ensemble looking for a contemporary work… |
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| —Musical Opinion
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Provides a jolly 6/8 romp that would keep a grade 6–7 player entertained |
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| —Music Teacher
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…effective moments … the piece grew on me… |
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| —Music Teacher
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The language is very attractive without being banal, the piano writing very rewarding and the music really good. |
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| —Piano
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There are a number of highly refreshing things about this wonderful work: For one thing, here is a composer firmly set in the “English tradition” of symphonic writing who IS actually composing symphonies (which in recent times have become “unfashionable” to compose). There again, and bucking the contemporary trend, writes music that has real contrast and holds the attention. How refreshing, therefore, to listen to a piece of such varied tempo and not predominantly slow (a malaise that afflicts many present day composers). Here is a composer with something to say but, and of equal importance, something to say that people will want to hear! |
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| —Mark Andrews, YouTube
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Thompsonʼs music shows striking originality within a tonal idiom |
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| —Philip Mead |
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Here is much to enjoy and explore |
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| —Piano
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…would introduce pupils to different compositional styles… They are all convincing pastiches and enjoyable to play… |
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| —Music Teacher
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…show resourcefulness and imagination and would be brilliant repertoire for around Grade 3. |
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| —Piano
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[Higginson’s] collection of eight pieces inspired by some of Shakespeare’s most famous lines could be especially valuable for enterprising students immediately after Grade 8. |
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| —Murray McLachlan, International Piano (September/October 2010 p72)
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In one continuous movement, it is not simple to sum up its essence […] it is not immediately similar in style to anything more familiar, but the music is tonal and accessible. I would best describe it as ‘powerful’… |
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| —John R. Mitchell, Amazon review (June 2014)
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It is a closely argued work built up in substantial sections … this is music which is constantly searching and journeying, with a sense of direction and purpose… |
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| —Krzysztof Stasiak, MusicWeb International
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[John Barton Armstrong’s Cello Sonata] is an accomplished work, and receives an excellent performance from Lionel Handy and Nigel Clayton. |
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| —Krzysztof Stasiak, MusicWeb International
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[John Barton Armstrong’s] darkly eddying Cello Sonata is a massive musical statement running over half an hour in a single unbroken span. He pulls no punches. The progress of the music encompasses some dramatic dissonance but the predominant voice is subtle, melodic and ultimately moving. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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…well worth investigating for a flavour of this little-known but attractive composer. |
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| —Music Teacher (March 2013 p75)
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…it immediately creates a lugubrious yet luminous backcloth of exquisite pianistic figurations, out of which emerge fragments of themes, melodic motifs and dancing rhythmic figures. The textures are quintessentially orchestral and look pianistically awkward on paper, but are in fact extremely idiomatic and sympathetically laid out for keyboard. |
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| —Murray McLachlan, International Piano (March/April 2014)
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This is music for recital-standard performers to tackle – and for the general music-loving public to listen to. A worthy and important addition to the repertoire. |
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| —Murray McLachlan, International Piano (March/April 2014)
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‘Soliloquy’ for solo piano is intriguingly crafted, with strikingly original harmonic and contrapuntal movement that takes your fingers, if not your ears, by surprise. |
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| —Murray McLachlan, International Piano (May/June 2015)
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The music sounds like an orchestral transcription and […] is in fact a pleasure to play through, especially at the sustained chordal climaxes towards the end. |
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| —Murray McLachlan, International Piano (May/June 2015)
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…the composer uses tonality in a very individual and original way, with frequent sudden shifts which always hold the attention of the ear.
…this is a fine and original orchestral work, very deservedly awaiting a premiere performance; it is certainly the kind of contemporary music that we ought to be hearing much more regularly at The Proms. Please give it a listen! |
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| —John Mitchell, YouTube
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…individual, attractive music … contemporary approach to harmony… [review of original Tenor setting] |
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| —The Singer
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The editions are attractively presented […] The layout of each piece is very clear both in print quality and the spacing between staves. […] The arrangements have been devised carefully in order to make them approachable for competent pianists. |
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| —Jonathan Carne, Peter Warlock Society News (#206 Spring 2020 42–3)
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The piano arrangements of Sleep and the other songs in these volumes are able to work rather well as solo pieces by virtue of their harmonic strength coupled to purposeful, often dance-like rhythms and varied textures. |
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| —Jonathan Carne, Peter Warlock Society News (#206 Spring 2020 42–3)
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The editions are attractively presented […] The layout of each piece is very clear both in print quality and the spacing between staves. […] The arrangements have been devised carefully in order to make them approachable for competent pianists. |
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| —Jonathan Carne, Peter Warlock Society News (#206 Spring 2020 42–3)
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The piano arrangements of Sleep and the other songs in these volumes are able to work rather well as solo pieces by virtue of their harmonic strength coupled to purposeful, often dance-like rhythms and varied textures. |
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| —Jonathan Carne, Peter Warlock Society News (#206 Spring 2020 42–3)
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This handsome publication is a very bold venture in today’s uncertain times; an ambitious sixteen movement piano cycle inspired by an eclectic range of paintings, with each of the artworks shown in full colour next to the pieces they inspired. |
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| —David Jennings, MusicWeb International (August 2020)
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This movement [Miniature Theme and Variations] adds immeasurably to the richness and variety of the entire work; it shows real confidence to add such an adventurous piece within a cycle that is intended for less experienced pianists. |
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| —David Jennings, MusicWeb International (August 2020)
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All in all, this is a richly rewarding cycle. The music is resourceful, often moving and never bland; this is a remarkable piece which demands to be commercially recorded at the earliest opportunity. |
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| —David Jennings, MusicWeb International (August 2020)
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…Philip Mead’s lovely carol… |
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| —Tim Brown, conductor
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…the choir enjoyed singing your carol and were very complimentary. The congregation at the lessons and carols were likewise most appreciative. I think you may have a ‘hit’ on your hands! |
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| —Tim Raymond, conductor
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This is a really strong and powerful work… some really great moments of progressive harmony, and effective use of dissonance… good tension building and release keeps things moving forward… I like the pretty much continuous presence of contrapuntal textures… |
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| —John Caruso, YouTube
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This is another splendid orchestral score from Peter Thompson—very dramatic […] In the main the Labyrinth of the title seems to be an inimical one, although from time to time there are occasional lyrical interjections; indeed, the tension is completely relieved in the final bars which conclude on a glowing chord of C major—pure magic, maybe suggesting that the protagonist has somehow managed to ‘escape’ from this scary labyrinth! |
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| —John Mitchell, YouTube
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…enjoy this feast for the ears. |
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| —Cinnamon Sticks, Australia
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…rare sensitivity and captivating charm… |
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| —ISM Journal
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Bax isn’t necessarily an easy composer to understand as a listener or performer, but this recording really brings to life the music and demonstrates that it’s repertoire that should be more widely known. Handy and Clayton together create a clear path to some really touching and affecting moments in the music. |
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| —Amazon review (April 2013)
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Vintage Bax. Folk-Tale is a fine creation, while Rhapsodic Ballad for solo cello is an untypical rarity and pungently inventive. Exceptional performances. ★★★★★ |
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| —Malcolm Hayes, BBC Music Magazine (July 2013 p97)
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These excellently-recorded clean-cut performances… |
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| —Chris Bye, British Music News (issue 139 p109)
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Highly polished playing and a deep understanding of the composer’s complex scoring techniques relentlessly drives the Bax message home. |
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| —Chris Bye, British Music News (issue 139 p109)
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It’s clearly meat and drink to this highly professional duo… |
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| —Chris Bye, British Music News (issue 139 p109)
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The performances are excellent. Cellist Lionel Handy plays with full, rich tone and precise rhythmic control. He avoids excessive vibrato and the kind of nasal sound that can sometimes afflict cellists in high-lying passages. Nigel Clayton negotiates the demanding piano parts with precision and spontaneity. Sound quality is excellent as well, exemplary in spaciousness, clarity, focus, and smoothness. The piano tone is firm and well defined, and the acoustic has just the right amount of reverberation. |
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| —Daniel Morrison, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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I strongly endorse the present release, for the excellence of its performances and sound quality and the value of this unfamiliar music. |
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| —Daniel Morrison, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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…commanding playing and sympathetic performances lavished on these pieces by Lionel Handy and Nigel Clayton. |
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| —Jerry Dubins, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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Handy deserves special commendation for the nerves of steel he displays in undertaking the solo cello Rhapsodic
Ballad. But the piano parts in the duo pieces also demand the highest level of technical skill, which Clayton amply possesses and demonstrates. |
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| —Jerry Dubins, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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This excellent recording … the sound [of an alternative CD] cannot compete with the current Handy and Clayton disc. |
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| —Maria Nockin, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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Handy and Clayton play this readily accessible three-movement work with floods of radiant tone and foot-tapping rhythms. |
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| —Maria Nockin, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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Handy plays the Ballad with a wide range of dynamics and tonal color that suffuses his music with emotion. He energizes his artistry with conviction… |
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| —Maria Nockin, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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[Lionel Handy] shows himself to be a superb solo performer … these are colorful and imaginative performances, technically assured [and] expert in their sense of ensemble… |
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| —Peter J. Rabinowitz, Fanfare (37:3, Jan/Feb 2014)
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This is unquestionably the most exciting new Bax disc to be released in quite some time. |
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| —Richard R. Adams, The Sir Arnold Bax Website
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…superlative performances of several lesser known Bax works by an artist who has obviously thought long and hard about how best to perform this music. |
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| —Richard R. Adams, The Sir Arnold Bax Website
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Anyone with an interest in 20th Century cello music should investigate this disc and in the process discover some of Bax’s most fascinating works – all performed and recorded here to perfection. |
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| —Richard R. Adams, The Sir Arnold Bax Website
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…compiles Bax’s most appealing works in the form in performances that are easily the equal and in many cases superior to the versions that have come before. |
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| —Richard R. Adams, The Sir Arnold Bax Website
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[The Folk-Tale presents] a melancholy but turbulent journey that Lionel Handy points up eloquently. He drifts magically into nothingness at the end. |
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| —Edward Bhesania, The Strad (September 2013)
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[The Rhapsodic Ballad creates] a gnarly interior dialogue, which Handy grapples with head-on, clearly laying out its dramatic profile. |
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| —Edward Bhesania, The Strad (September 2013)
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Peter Thompson’s Sonatina for Cello and Piano, from the disc From Bohemia to Wessex, is a fine example of tonal British music written in the 1980s. It is intelligent without being grating and is infused with rich and brooding British landscape. Try playing the slow movement, Andante sostenuto (4½ mins). |
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| —Julian Farmer |
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Really rather a terrific piece that sits wonderfully on the disc. [Thompson’s Cello Sonatina] |
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| —Warren Mailley-Smith (pianist) |
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Lionel Handy shows a very wide range of cello tone in these works. […] It is cello heaven. Nigel Clayton’s playing is also terrific. |
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| —Amazon review (July 2014)
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A warmly recommended CD, both for the works being performed (two of which are not available elsewhere), and the most accomplished playing of Lionel Handy and Nigel Clayton. |
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| —John R. Mitchell, Amazon review (June 2014)
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Peter Thompson’s Sonatina for Cello and Piano is what earns the CD its place […] a real gem. |
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| —Mr J.M.D. Farmer, Amazon review (June 2014)
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Two of the three works presented here, the Sonata No 2 by Bohuslav Martinů and the Sonatina by Peter Thompson, are, without doubt, masterpieces […] performed with consummate artistry by Lionel Handy and Nigel Clayton. |
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| —Coley, Amazon review (September 2014)
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Strong melodic and rhythmic lines in Martinů’s Sonata put the companion works into perspective. Thompson’s three-movement Sonatina is lyrically captivating. Eloquent performances. ★★★★ |
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| —Jan Smaczny, BBC Music Magazine (October 2014 p111)
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[John Barton Armstrong’s Cello Sonata] is an accomplished work, and receives an excellent performance from Lionel Handy and Nigel Clayton. |
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| —Krzysztof Stasiak, MusicWeb International
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[H]ere is a far from hackneyed collection of cello sonatas, well performed and presented and leaning towards the provocative. |
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| —Krzysztof Stasiak, MusicWeb International
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[John Barton Armstrong’s] darkly eddying Cello Sonata is a massive musical statement running over half an hour in a single unbroken span. He pulls no punches. The progress of the music encompasses some dramatic dissonance but the predominant voice is subtle, melodic and ultimately moving. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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…we have [Martinů’s] Second Sonata presented as idiomatically fast-flowing, life-enhancing and effervescent. The playing and recording nicely catch the flood and flow of Martinů’s music – typical of his early, seemingly euphoric, years in the USA … This is very fine Martinů playing… |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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Thompson’s Cello Sonatina is in three short movements … It is a tonal and dreamily accessible piece … It does not lack for drama: its exciting Allegro feroce finale is notable for its brusque and virile attack contrasted with glittering piano pages. The moods portrayed and established throughout are mature. The composer shows no hankering after rhetorical convention to close each of the three movements. You will leave this part of the disc wanting to hear more. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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The liner-note, variously by Richard Hallas and Peter Thompson, is most informative and is an example of how pleasing appearance and functional value can be combined. Well done. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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This far from hackneyed collection of cello sonatas is well performed and presented and is all the more welcome for leaning towards the provocative. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (August 2016)
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The composer of hit children’s song Banana [sic] in Pyjamas (and nephew of Enid), Carey Blyton proves himself an artful composer in this charming, well performed collection of fishy wind quintets [sic]. ★★★ |
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| —Rebecca Franks, BBC Music Magazine (January 2017)
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Before I had even played any of the music, I realised at once that this was a ‘quality item’. The presentation box, the booklet and the explanatory notes all combine to make it a very attractive publication for potential buyers. |
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| —Frank Bayford, composer (private correspondence)
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The Shoal of Fishes design is terrific – a lovely presentation and certainly “stands out from the crowd”. Many thanks indeed. |
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| —Mary Blyton, composer’s widow (private correspondence)
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The music speaks of a salubrious and dignified creative imagination. Carey Blyton knew music’s art and craftsman’s measure and wrote nothing ugly or dull or at odds with art or craft. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (December 2016)
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…a deluxe production with an attractive ‘picture disc’ label. There is a 16-page full-colour booklet that includes extensive music notes […] It's an alluring production all-round… |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (December 2016)
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Love your design! |
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| —Michael Ponder, Sound Engineer/Producer (private correspondence)
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…the music is, as always with Blyton, an attractive mixture of brevity and immediacy of appeal… |
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| —Musical Opinion
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…this superb new album … very strongly recommended… |
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| —Musical Opinion
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Carey Blyton […] is master of his musical idiom. There is often a dark intensity that is well expressed. There is nothing bland here. Vaughan Williams, Holst and Britten in particular come to mind. |
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| —Amazon review (June 2012)
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The performances are outstandingly good and deeply sympathetic throughout and [show] very deep affinity with the music. |
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| —Amazon review (June 2012)
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…that blessed force of nature, Ian Partridge. His gift for purity of enunciation and miraculous breath control are bywords, so much so that on occasion he has led me to explore music I would not otherwise have touched. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (December 2016)
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There’s litheness about Blyton’s music and his way with words is very appealing. You can hear this instantly in the Lyrics From The Chinese. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (December 2016)
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Admiration for this tuneful and poetry-centred vocal music can only be increased by hearing this disc. Lovers of English song must have this strong Blyton cross-section. Certainly the song-cycles here should be part of their active listening experience. |
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| —Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International (December 2016)
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Anyone with an ear for Vaughan Williams, Delius or Britten can’t fail to respond… |
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| —The Independent
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General comments
Comments in this section are unrelated to any specific publication, and are probably about Fand generally. These comments may appear on the site, but will only ever be used at the foot of the left-hand navigation bar (the ‘Words from critics’ comment picked at random on each new page-load).
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New scores from the enterprising Fand Music Press imprint are well worth the attention of enquiring music-lovers… |
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| —Robert Matthew-Walker, Musical Opinion (May–June 2005)
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