Arnold: Orchestral Bits 'n Bobs

 

Commonwealth Christmas Overture
Divertimento no. 2

When Rumon Gamba took over for Sir Richard Hickox after the latter's untimely demise, Gamba must have really taken to the music of Sir Malcolm Arnold, for many recordings followed under his baton.

The Commonwealth Christmas Overture is a splashy 15-minute affair. Just when you think Arnold has run out of ideas, the composer pulls the music back and further on breaks out into a jazz combo jam session, complete with vibraphone and jazz guitar.

While in form and structure, I would compare Sir Malcolm's Divertimento no. 2 to his Little Suites and Concertos. The music, however, sounds as if an extension of the previous Christmas Overture, with a very large orchestra present and a grandiose, cinematic soundscape. He pulls out a lot of percussion too, and I sense a larger brass section at work as well.

I know the composer wrote a Divertimento for wind trio, however that work seems far removed from this large orchestral score. There are also discrepancies regarding the Opus number, so perhaps that is why we get Divertimento no. 2 without a Number 1.

I can't comment on the rest of Gamba's program, but these little tidbits are a whole lot of fun!

Sinfonietta 1
Sinfonietta 2
Sinfonietta 3

The Sinfonietta's are indeed close in nature to Arnold's Little Suites. The first is light and affable with some folksy traits, while the latter two become more spare and crunchy as the music rolls on. Some of this has to do with the orchestrations, where Sir Malcolm composes for oboes and horns in the first, flutes and horns in the second, and flutes, oboes, bassoons and horns in the third, with string orchestra present in each.

Leave it to Ross Pople and the London Festival Overture to find these little Arnold nuggets, reissued from Hyperion onto Arte Nova in the 90s. Pople and the LFO have brought so much wonderful British music to the fore. I will post the original Hyperion cover art at the very bottom of this blog post for those interested.

Bits 'n Bobs

Sinfonietta 1, op. 48
Sinfonietta 2, op. 65
Sinfonietta 3, op. 81
  London Festival Orchestra
  Arte Nova; 1988, 1996

Commonwealth Christmas Overture, op. 64
Divertimento no. 2, op. 24 / op. 75
  BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
  Rumon Gamba, conductor
  Chandos; 2023

 

 

Find more Arnold recordings HERE!