Lincoln - Now in Symphony Form!

As my first addition to this blog from Naxos' American Classics series, with many more to come, perhaps I will expend a few words in that direction.

There appear to be around 650 entries into American Classics on Naxos. I remember it starting up in the 90's and exploding in the early 2000s. The music was hit and miss in a pre-YouTube world; any recording could be a mix of neo-Romantic or harsh modernism. It was a roll of the dice, whereas now you can sample large portions online.

The performances came from distant Slavic and Caucasus regions. Scrappy playing and not always the best recording qualities, it was the energy and excitement of hearing something new or undiscovered which was palpable.

It is no different for Robert Russell Bennett here. The Moscow Symphony Orchestra was created to record for Naxos, and no one would call this the tightest group in terms of playing nor depth. Yet the music is right up William T. Stromberg's alley, and it seems these players are having much more fun than any main European orchestra could hope to muster.

This is the legacy of the Naxos American Classics series, which has since broadened its orchestra and conductor stable considerably. The older recordings are still fun to discover, and the newer ones have built towards quality, as well as a continued advocacy of unsung composers.

Catalogue of the American Classics Series

 

A review from 2024 

I recently listened to Robert Russell Bennett’s wind band music on Chandos, and found his concert music to be delightfully entertaining, with a strong sense of Americana. Here on Naxos, we have two large orchestral works, and I dare say this is a completely different musical experience compared to Bennett’s band works.

The Abraham Lincoln Symphony is my favorite. It is a serious work, but there are flavours of wit throughout, and I daresay some of Bennett’s experience with stage music peeks through once in a while. The Sight and Sounds Suite is a little craggier sounding; not as approachable musically. However, Bennett makes up for it with some fun city-based hustle and bustle and swanky club atmospheres.

I like Stromberg leading the Moscow SO here. If they aren’t the smoothest, most tight-knit ensemble, they are having a blast playing this rare music. Let’s hope for some more!

Listen on YouTube

Works
Abraham Lincoln: A Likeness in Symphony Form (29.12)
Sights and Sounds: An Orchestral Entertainment (23.55)

Ensemble
Moscow Symphony Orchestra
William T. Stromberg, conductor

Label: Naxos
Year: 1999
Total Timing: 53.27

 

The Abraham Lincoln Symphony is good stuff!

I couldn't really get into Sights & Sounds, but it displays the hidden talents of Bennett reaching beyond the theatre.

Find more Bennett recordings HERE!