Bright • Gipps

Bright: Piano Concerto No. 1 in A minor; Variations for Piano and Orchestra; Gipps: Piano Concerto in G minor*; Ambravalia

Samantha Ward, *Murray Mclachlan (piano); Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra/

Charles Peebles

Somm SOMMCD 273 75:22 mins

This heartening recording features works for piano and orchestra by two longneglected British composers, Dora Bright (1862-1951) and Ruth Gipps (1921-99).

Bright wrote most of her music relatively early in her life and her piano playing impressed

Liszt, among others. Her A minor Concerto opens with a Lisztishly gestural cello introduction; the first movement’s main theme rather resembles the second movement of Schubert’s Ninth Symphony and the tarantella finale calls Saintsaëns to mind. The piano writing is brilliant and subtle, even if the orchestral ideas are sometimes a little too portentous for their own good; but the gem of the work is the haunting slow movement, its striking harmonies unfolding over a pedal-point fifth. The Variations are impressive and pleasing. The pianist Samantha Ward sparkles and sings, bringing the work a helpful clarity and lightness of touch.

By contrast, Ruth Gipps’s

G minor Concerto (the only work on the disc ever recorded before) seizes one immediately with her distinctive personality and powerful, determined voice – in the manner of Bax to some degree, but with significant added pepper. Here the soloist is Murray Mclachlan, who brings out the work’s rugged character and tackles its challenges, which are uncompromising – especially in the intricate finale – with unfailing intelligence and splendid voicing.

The RLPO under Charles Peebles at times sounds a tad ploddy and dutiful. More poise, verve and sometimes more exact ensemble would improve the impressions of all these works. Recorded sound is also not ideal, the strings sometimes overwhelmed in the acoustic by woodwind and brass. Jessica Duchen PERFORMANCE ★★★★ RECORDING ★★★