Classical Music 11th June 1983
Delius Cello Concerto…
DELIUS. Cello Concerto. HOLST. Invocation.
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS. Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes. Julian Lloyd Webber, Philharmonia Orch/Vernon Handley. RCA RS 9010.
JACQUELINE DU PRE’s recording of the Delius is now nearly 20 years, old and there was certainly room for an alternative that would shed a more contemporary light on the piece, temper its lyricism with greater maturity, and be less indulgently and more imaginatively conducted. This is it. No other cellist has championed it so ardently, and this recording has the authority that is born of long experience. Of the companion pieces (both first recordings) the RVW has its moments though is on the whole rather thin, but the lyrical, Planets-influenced Holst is a real find. RCA’s digital sound is beautifully clear and natural.
LJ
