HOLST and SPRING-RICE: "I vow to thee, my country"
From the Royal British Legion's Festival of Remembrance, Nov. 12, 2011
by Ken
As I indicated in Friday night's preview, in which we saw a technically blah video clip of a pretty decent performance of the "Jupiter" movement of Holst's The Planets, it was slogging through Episode 2 of Series 2 of the new Upstairs Downstairs that set me off on this musical mini-inquiry.
It is, in a word . . . well, the technical term is dreck. It had a reason of sorts for coming into existence when it did, c1921, as Britons tried to rally from the horrors of World War I. But that's an explanation, not excuse. Just by way of reminder, here's where the music came from.
HOLST: The Planets, Op. 32:
iv. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity: central theme
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult, cond. EMI, recorded 1978-79
WHAT'S STARTLING ABOUT THE TRANSFORMATION
OF THIS GLORIOUS MUSIC TO SUCH DRECK . . .
. . . is that the deed was done by the composer himself!
From the Royal British Legion's Festival of Remembrance, Nov. 12, 2011
by Ken
As I indicated in Friday night's preview, in which we saw a technically blah video clip of a pretty decent performance of the "Jupiter" movement of Holst's The Planets, it was slogging through Episode 2 of Series 2 of the new Upstairs Downstairs that set me off on this musical mini-inquiry.
It is, in a word . . . well, the technical term is dreck. It had a reason of sorts for coming into existence when it did, c1921, as Britons tried to rally from the horrors of World War I. But that's an explanation, not excuse. Just by way of reminder, here's where the music came from.
HOLST: The Planets, Op. 32:
iv. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity: central theme
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult, cond. EMI, recorded 1978-79
WHAT'S STARTLING ABOUT THE TRANSFORMATION
OF THIS GLORIOUS MUSIC TO SUCH DRECK . . .
. . . is that the deed was done by the composer himself!
