Presteigne Premieres: New Music for String Orchestra Presteigne Festival Orchestra & George Vass

• Thomas Hyde (1636 - 1703):
• 1Hyde: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': I. Prelude – Tema – Tema elaborata02:26
• David Matthews (b. 1967):
• 2Matthews: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': II. Variation I01:57
• Adrian Williams (b. 1956):
• 3Williams: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': III. Variation II02:59
• Michael Berkeley (b. 1948):
• 4Berkeley: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': IV. Variation III03:47
• Christopher Gunning (b. 1944):
• 5Gunning: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': V. Variation IV04:27
• Huw Watkins (b. 1976):
• 6Watkins: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': VI. Variation V01:15
• Sally Beamish (b. 1956):
• 7Beamish: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': VII. Variation VI02:23
• Matthew Taylor (b. 1964):
• 8Taylor: Variations on 'Lovely Joan': VIII. Variation VII03:56
• Martin Butler (b. 1960): Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Strings:
• 9Butler: Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Strings: I. Lively, but heavy and grounded07:12
• 10Butler: Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Strings: II. Cantilena08:07
• 11Butler: Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Strings: III. Presto05:04
• Hugh Wood (b. 1932): Beginnings (Three Early Songs). Op. 54:
• 12Wood: Beginnings (Three Early Songs). Op. 54: I. Tom O'Bedlam's Song03:33
• Hugh Wood, Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953):
• 13Wood: Beginnings (Three Early Songs), Op. 54: II. Why East Wind Chills05:38
• Hugh Wood, W.H. Auden (1907 - 1973):
• 14Wood: Beginnings (Three Early Songs), Op. 54: III. O Unicorn Among The Cedars05:35
• Joe Duddell (b. 1972):
• 15Duddell: Mnemonic12:25
• Hugh Wood: Divertimento, Op. 51:
• 16Wood: Divertimento, Op. 51: I. Maestoso – Andante, calmo ma con moto03:45
• 17Wood: Divertimento, Op. 51: II. Adagietto03:11
• 18Wood: Divertimento, Op. 51: III. Allegro molto, feroce02:47
• Total Runtime01:20:27

Info for Presteigne Premieres: New Music for String Orchestra

The generous recording, with over 80 minutes of music, also features four superb soloists who have appeared at the Festival several times; fabulous Australian saxophonist Amy Dickson, richly-voiced Welsh mezzo Rebecca Afonwy-Jones and the brilliant flute and harp duo of Katherine Baker and Suzy Willison-Kawalec. Founded in 1982 in the former county town of Radnorshire, the Presteigne Festival has become a significant part of the Welsh cultural calendar and is internationally renowned for its commissioning of new work, support of living composers and with a long tradition for the encouragement of young artists.

The festival’s orchestra, conducted by Artistic Director George Vass, explores a selection of the many new works premiered by the festival in this volume of recent music for string orchestra, including: the collaborative Variations on 'Lovely Joan' for strings (composers Thomas Hyde, Adrian Williams, David Matthews, Michael Berkeley, Christopher Gunning, Huw Watkins, Sally Beamish and Matthew Taylor); Martin Butler's Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Strings performed by Amy Dickson; Joe Duddell's Mnemonic for flute, harp and strings; and Beginnings (Three Early Songs), Op. 54, and Divertimento, Op. 51, by Hugh Wood.

Amy Dickson, saxophone
Rebecca Afonwy-Jones, mezzo-soprano
Katherine Baker, flute
Suzy Willison-Kawalec, harp
Presteigne Festival Orchestra
George Vass, conductor

George Vass
Described by BBC Radio 3 as ‘the saviour of contemporary classical music’, respected English conductor George Vass studied at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and the Royal Academy of Music, London. He was appointed Artistic Director of the internationally renowned Presteigne Festival in 1992, having served the Hampstead and Highgate Festival in a similar capacity from 2004 until 2009. Vass made his professional conducting debut at St John’s Smith Square in 1979 and, as Artistic Director of the Regent Sinfonia of London and later Orchestra Nova, has appeared at many of the UK’s major concert halls and festivals. As a guest conductor he has worked with ensembles including the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the Bournemouth Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National and Ulster orchestras, Amsterdams Promenade Orkest, Konzertensemble Salzburg, London Mozart Players, Malmö Opera Orchestra, the choirs of Royal Holloway, Merton College Oxford and Schola Cantorum Oxford. He has broadcast for BBC Radio 3 and Channel 4 television.

Vass has made over thirty commercial recordings for Dutton, Champs Hill, Guild, Lyrita, Naxos, Resonus Classics, SOMM and Toccata Classics. His discography encompasses the music of Alwyn, Rodney Bennett, James Francis Brown, Elgar, Delius, Dodgson, Handel, Holbrooke, Holst, Hurd, Thomas Hyde, John Joubert, Leighton, Maconchy, Mathias, David Matthews, McCabe, Cecilia McDowall, Stephen McNeff, Paul Patterson, Purcell, Tovey, Vaughan Williams and Warlock.

Founder Artistic Director of Nova Music Opera, he premiered Thomas Hyde’s That Man Stephen Ward (Hampstead and Highgate Festival, 2008; revival for Nova Music Opera, 2015) and, for Nova Music Opera, Sally Beamish’s Hagar in the Wilderness (2013), Stephen McNeff’s Prometheus Drown’d (2014), Cecilia McDowall’s Airborne (2014), Charlotte Bray’s Entanglement (2015) and Joseph Phibbs’ Juliana (2018). He has also conducted Britten’s Curlew River (Hampstead and Highgate Springfest, 2009; Nova Music, 2013) and Holst’s Savitri (Nova Music, English Music Festival, 2010).

Over the last quarter century he has commissioned and premiered new work from such eminent composers as Sally Beamish, Martin Butler, Gabriel Jackson, Paweł Łukaszewski, David Matthews, John McCabe, Cecilia McDowall, Paul Patterson, Joseph Phibbs, Robert Saxton, Peter Sculthorpe, Huw Watkins and Hugh Wood.

A great advocate of community music-making, Vass is currently music director of Bushey Symphony Orchestra, St Albans Choral Society, and enjoys associations with the Blaze Ensemble and the Royal Tunbridge Wells Symphony Orchestra, having also conducted performances at the 2016 and 2017 Dartington International Summer School.

Recent highlights include a critically acclaimed recording of James Francis Brown’s choral and orchestral music for Resonus Classics, Sweeney Todd at Dartington and the much-lauded premiere of Joseph Phibbs’ chamber opera Juliana at the Cheltenham Festival.

George Vass is an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, was chair of the British Arts Festivals Association from 2014-18, being presented with the 2018 BAFA Exceptional Service Award for his outstanding contribution to the festival sector. From 2016-2019, he served the Royal Society of Musicians of Great Britain as a governor and treasurer, and in 2017 was given a BASCA Gold Badge Award marking his support for the UK songwriting and composing community. .

This album contains no booklet.