Album

With three world-premiere recordings of works from three different points in his career, this disc provides an overview of the music of English composer Kenneth Leighton. It opens with his Vaughan Williams-esque Symphony for Strings, written when its composer was not quite 20. It closes with his Bartókian Concerto for String Orchestra, written when he was a bit past 30. And in the middle is his sui generis Concerto for Organ, String Orchestra, and Timpani written when he was a bit past 40. Always tonal, usually lyrical, and often dramatic, Leighton's music fits comfortably into the more conservative side of the postwar English modernist world, and will likely appeal to listeners who enjoy Arnold, Berkeley and Rawsthorne.

These performances will likewise likely stand as definitive for the foreseeable future. Conductor Richard Hickox has demonstrated both his understanding of and his sympathy for postwar English modernism in his dozens of recordings of composers ranging from Alwyn to Vaughan Williams, and he proves no less perceptive and appreciative here. His ability to shape Leighton's symphony and concertos into cogent and appealing aesthetic wholes is as impressive as his ability to elicit polished playing from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in works with which they could hardly have been familiar. Organist John Scott covers himself with glory in the knotty keyboard writing of the Organ Concerto, particularly in the truly awe-inspiring final moments of the work's closing Choral and Variations. Chandos' digital sound is cool, clear, colorful, and close.

© James Leonard, All Music Guide

CD 1
Kenneth Leighton Composer Symphony for strings, Op.3 Work 24:52 BBC National Orchestra of Wales Orchestra, Richard Hickox Conductor
1	1.Adagio - Allegro molto - Un poco sostenuto - Tempo 1 - Appassionato - Allegro molto - Un poco so	9:49			$1.49
2	2.Lento - Poco più mosso e appassionato - Sostenuto - Tempo 1	8:41			$1.49
3	3.Allegro molto e vigoroso - Scherzando - Meno mosso	6:22			$0.99
Kenneth Leighton Composer Concerto for organ, string orchestra & timpani, Op.58 Work 27:22 BBC National Orchestra of Wales Orchestra, Richard Hickox Conductor, John Scott Organ
4	1.Lament. Adagio sostenuto. Tempo giusto ma molto espressivo - Tempo giusto sempre	7:45			$1.49
5	2.Toccata. Allegro molto. Ritmico	4:40			$0.99
6	3.Chorale and Variations. Lento sostenuto - (Sempre sostenuto) - Più mosso, agitato - Meno mosso -	14:57			$2.49
Kenneth Leighton Composer Concerto for string orchestra, Op.39 Work 22:08 BBC National Orchestra of Wales Orchestra, Richard Hickox Conductor
7	1.Lento sostenuto - Tempo giusto, sempre sostenuto - Movendosi un poco ma non troppo, sempre soste	10:55			$1.99
8	2.Molto ritmico - Scherzoso - Più animato - Sempre tempo giusto alla fine	2:40			$0.99
9	3.Adagio maestoso, alla marcia e largamente - Allegro precipitoso - Ancora più animato - Sempre pi	8:33			$1.49