Concerto in E major, Op. 10, No. 1
1. Vivace
2. Allegro
Concerto in D major, Op, 10, No. 2
3. Allegro Spiritoso
4. Presto
Concerto in B flat major, Op, 10, No. 3
5. Adagio – Allegro
6. Gavot (Allegro)
Concerto in C minor, Op. 10, No. 4
7. Vivace
8. Andante Affectuoso
9. Presto
Concerto in A major, Op. 10, No. 5
10. Allego – Adagio – Minuetto
Concerto in C major, Op. 10, No. 6
11. Allegro
12. Rondeau (Vivace)
John Stanley: Organ Concertos
John Stanley was blinded in an accident at the age of two, but still managed to pursue a successful musical career and actually succeeded William Boyce as Master of the King’s Band of Music in 1779. Although these concertos were published late in Stanley’s life, Gifford speculates that they may have been written considerably earlier and cites the wide disparity of styles as evidence for this. The first two concertos, in two movements only (there may possibly have been an improvisation intended between them, in the manner of Bach’s Third Brandenburg Concerto) fall under the influence of baroque models and are positively Handelian in effect. The later concertos in three movements are more classically orientated and look forward to the music of Haydn which so delighted English audiences when the latter visited London towards the end of the century. The Fourth Concerto, over ten minutes long, is a very impressive piece of writing indeed; and one can imagine it being played on a fortepiano to exciting effect, especially the virtuoso Presto finale. This is also the only concerto of the set in the minor key.
| Artist | Gerald Gifford, organ & director Northern Sinfonia Orchestra |
|---|---|
| Reviews | “A Most attractive release, nicely recorded in a church with very agreeable acoustics and attractively presented.” Richard D. C. Noble, Records and Recording. "Quite apart from the fact that Gifford has presented us with such unfamiliar music which is otherwise unavailable, the performances themselves are excellent both in manner and recording. Ensemble cannot have been easy with the strings being directed from the organ console, but it is clean and crisp enough to provide much pleasure." Paul Corfield Godfrey, musicweb-international.com |
