Reviews

GLCD 5129 The Golden Age of Light Music – Beyond The Blue Horizon

More From The Golden Age of Light Music Series on Guild

Guild GLCD 5126.Soloists Su­preme. 25 tracks. TT: 77:22.

Guild GLCD 5129. Beyond the Blue Horizon. 27 tracks. TT: 76:04

Guild GLCD 5130. 1950s'-Volume 4 Cornflakes. 29 tracks. TT: 73:21.

Regular readers know that I have more or less raved over this se­ries of Light Music reissues by various conductors and bands from the 1920's through the 1950' s. Many of the selections (and there is no duplication!) are taken from commercial 78's or from Library Music recorded for various publishers such as Chap­pel or Boosey & Hawkes.

Guild GLCD 5126 features recordings that use soloists of all ­sorts dating mostly from the 1950's but with a few from the late 40's and late 30's. Dance of the Three Old Maids by Reginald Porter-Brown features Reginald Kell in a rare pop vein with Camarata and His Orches­tra. Edward Rubach is piano soloist in the Last Rhapsody theme with Sidney Torch and His Orchestra. Charles Williams and His Concert Orchestra use Reg Leopold, violin. in Laugh­ing Violin, and Valse Vanite with Peter Yorke and His Concert Orchestra has Freddy Gardner on also saxophone just to give a sampling of the rarities on the CD.

Guild GLCD 5129 presents pieces with a color in the title with 14 blues, 4 reds and a few others. No greens! The title tune is played by Melachrino and his orchestra. Then there are The Queen's Hall Light orchestra con­ducted by Robert Farnon in Fly­ing Colours, the same orchestra under Sidney Torch in Out of the Blue, The White Scarf by none other than Edgar Bainton played by The Masqueraders, and Arthur Benjamin's Red River Jig played by Jack Leon and the New Con­cert Orchestra.

Cornflakes is the title tune on Guild GLCD 5130 and is played by Les Baxter and His Orchestra. Ray Martin and His Orchestra play Limehouse Blues, Quiz by WaIter Stott is played by Robert Farnon and the Danish State Ra­dio orchestra (one of many such recordings made for Chappell), and then there is half a CD of Polygon recordings. There are 14 such recordings from this rare label which merged ultimately with Pye and then with Nixa to become Pye-Nixa. Benjamin Frankel's Lily Watkins Theme from "AKid For Two Farthings: arranged by Laurie Johnson and played by His Orchestra is among the rarities here.

Those collecting the series will have to have these. Those new to it, jump right in.

Memory Lane Summewr 2007

Those of our readers who enjoy light orchestral music will surely have purchased one or more of the Guild CD’s that we have reviewed over the  last copule of years. The latest releases are covered here and first off is GLCD 5128 Light Music While you Work. I should make clear that this selection is not the kind of light popular music that many small ensembles played on the popular BBC programme Music While You work but legitimate orchestral music, waltz and marches taken mostly from special Decca 78s that appeared between 1942 and 1947. Mantovani and Harry Davidson are featured playing the kind of music for which they became famous, and also highlighted aare several tracks each from Richard Crean and Harry Fryer. The latter died failry young in 1946otherwise I am sure he would be better known today and the former is perhaps best remembered for his association with the London Palladium Orchestra.

5129 GLCD, Beyond The Blue Horizon, Guild, Memory Lane, Sommer 2007

takes colour as the Inspiration for an interesting selection of compositions. The excellent liner notes tell us that "Blue" was by far the most popular colour amongst composers and this is reflected in a selection of 14 tracks with blue in the title. A poor runner up is red with four tracks and the rest manage just one item apiece. Blue Blues might have counted as two, but doesn't, and is admirably handled by Helmut Zacharias. Royal Blue Waltz gets the Mantovani treatment and Mood Indigo is excellently interpreted by Andre Kostelantetz. The very fine George Melachrino Orchestra round off the compilation with a very interesting piece, the Little Brown Jug - Fantasy Ballet.

Klassikom Monday March 05 2007

           
Wann geht David Ades eigentlich ins Bett? Ach, Sie fragen, wer denn David Ades sei? Das muss auf jeden Fall einer der Rührigsten der Plattenindustrie sein, einer der seit ein paar Jahren für die ‚Golden Age of Light Music’-Reihe kompiliert und kompiliert und kompiliert und mit Chef-Restaurator und Remasterer Alan Bunting schon etliche CDs mit Schwergewichten der leichten Muse herausgegeben hat. Ja, wird er denn nie müde? Nein. Fallen ihm denn immer noch neue Themenbereiche ein, die einer neuen Kompilation wert wären? Ja.

Die Farbpalette scheint bei diesem neuen Wurf recht beschränkt. Was fällt einem schon zur Farbe Blau ein? Ganz ohrenfällig ist den ‚Easy Listening’-Haudegen der 40er und 50er Jahre einiges eingefallen. Lauscht man nur dem Klang der einzelnen Titel, weiß man oft bereits, was einen musikalisch erwartet: ‚Beyond the Blue Horizon’, ‚Blue Star’, ‚Blue Blues’, ‚Out of the Blue’, ‚Royal Blue Waltz’, ‚Blue Velvet’, ‚Blue Sapphire Tango’. Die Farbskala des Regenbogens scheinen die Musiker nur selten bedient zu haben. Die Affinität zur Farbe Blau blieb. Immerhin: ein wenig Schimmer von Pink, Weiß, Schwarz, Rot und Braun wurde dieser neuen Kompilation beigegeben mit Titeln wie ‚The White Scarf’, ‚Black Narcissus’, ‚Red Pagoda’, ‚Red Lips’ oder ‚Little Brown Jug’.

Die für die leichte Muse unabdingbaren Orchesterchefs George Melachrino, Victor Young, Robert Farnon, Sidney Torch, Mantovani, Andre Kostelanetz, Gordon Jenkins, Bernard Monshin, Wally Stott, Dolf van der Linden oder Loius Voss sind auch hier wieder dabei. Außerdem gibt es ein Wiederhören mit Dauergrinser Helmut Zacharias und seinen ‚magischen Violinen’. Und wieder hört sich der Hörer durch ein Programm mit Musik aus einer Zeit, in der man sich Zeit ließ. Zeit für ausgefeilte Arrangements und ohrwurmträchtige Melodien. Und man ist immer wieder erstaunt, mit welcher Leichtigkeit, mit welchem Schwung diese Musik erklingt, wie es nur möglich ist, wenn die Interpreten ihr Handwerk mit höchster Meisterschaft beherrschen. Es ist wie mit der Komik: hinter ihrer Leichtigkeit verbirgt sich die eigentliche Genialität dessen, der die Komik schafft. Nicht anders ist es mit dieser Art der leichten Musik. Hier waren Meister ihres Fachs am Werk. Die Klangqualität mag variieren, der Unterhaltungsfaktor ist für jene, die diese Art von Musik mögen, ohnehin Prioritäten setzend.                                                                                                 Erik Daumann

Page revised Thursday November 29 2007