NICHOLAS MAW (b.1935): Scenes and Arias for Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, Contralto and Orchestra (Jane Manning [soprano], Anne Howells [mezzo], Norma Proctor [contralto], BBC Symphony Orchestra; Norman Del Mar; 1969 Argo LP release), ANTHONY MILNER (1925-2002): Salutatio Angelica for Contralto, Choir and Chamber Orchestra, Op. 1, Roman Spring for Soprano, Tenor, Chorus and Orchestra (Alfreda Hodgson [contralto], Felicity Palmer [soprano], Robert Tear [tenor], London Sinfonietta and Chorus; David Atherton; 1975 Decca LP release).
Catalogue Number: 09J058
Label: Lyrita
Reference: SRCD.267
Format: CD
Price: $18.98
Description: Scenes and Arias, with its three voices soaring above rich orchestral material in the harmonically sophisticated chromatic vocabulary Maw was later to perfect in his magnum opus, Odyssey, was the first work to bring the composer emphatically to the public's attention, and it stands the test of time completely, as many works of the 1960s do not. Milner's two cantatas, the first early and very tonal, the other mature and inventively pan-tonal, are refined and poetic, somewhat reminiscent of Tippett.
