| Name | Nationality | Lived |
| Maconchy, Elizabeth | Anglo-Irish | 1907-1994 |
The second dedicated Maconchy CD to be released in a year, this consists entirely of music she wrote for voices. Many of these pieces are new to me. Others such as the haunting “Still Falls The Rain” were broadcast on BBC Radio 3 some 20 years ago and the cassette recordings I made at the time have long since vanished. It is great to hear these works properly.Thank you Lontano!!
This cd is only available direct from Lorelt. It can either be purchased as a disc or tracks can be downloaded in mp3 form - isn't modern technology great!!
CDs of the String Quartets have been around for years, but at last a dedicated Maconchy CD featuring other pieces has been released. It's an absolute cracker - buy it!!
Cheapest place in the UK is MDT, a great dealer I only recently discovered.
Hopefully this allowed more people to get to know a small selection of her music. Personally though, I am saddened by the BBC's double standards. According to Composer of the Week, she was
The first Maconchy piece I ever heard was the short, lively harpsichord piece Notebook back in about 1984, and immediately I wanted to hear more. Easier said than done however!
Recordings of her important series of String Quartets have always been widely available. If you want to hear anything else though, be prepared to pay through the nose. All but two other recordings lie on compilations, which means buying a whole album of music by folk you're probably not interested in just to hear one Maconchy piece.
Over the past two or three years I have built up a good collection of Maconchy recordings, and here (in no special order) are details of the cds.
Features Three Bagatelles (1972)
Oboe Classics CC2013
www.oboeclassics.com
Features Oboe Quartet (1972)
Oboe Classics CC2011
www.oboeclassics.com
Features Trittico (1980)
Oboe Classics CC2014
www.oboeclassics.com
Features Have you seen but a Bright Lily grow?, Meditation for his Mistress
Hyperion CDA66709
Features Concertino no.1, Concertino no.2
Helios CDH55060
Features Reflections (1960), Miniature for Oboe (1987), Morning, Noon and Night (1976).
Metier MSV CD92064
www.metierrecords.co.uk
Features Variations on a theme from Vaughan Williams' “Job” (1957)
Resort Classic RC3003-2
Also available without cracked case!
Renate Eggebrecht (violin), friedemann Kupsa (cello)
Features Theme and Variations (1951)
Troubadisc TRO-CD 01426
Features Siren's Song (1977)
Continuum CCD 1055
Features Clarinet Quintet (1963)
Helios CDH55105
Features Ophelia's Song
Label unclear, MC003-CD
Features Romance (1979, Romanza?)
Dutton CDLX 7186
www.duttonvocalion.co.uk
Alison Smart (soprano), Katherine Durran (piano)
Features Sun, Moon and Stars (1976)
Metier MSV CD92025
Features Quintet for Oboe and Strings (1932)
Dutton CDBP 9762
www.duttonvocalion.co.uk
Features Nocturne (1950)
ATMA ACD 2 2199
Features My Dark Heart (1981)
Lontano LNT 101
A decent selection of Maconchy pieces are sometimes available in mp3 format through the internet filesharing community. The program Limewire is probably the best tool for accessing this free facility.
There's a lot of listening in the String Quartets. I am slowly working my way through all 13 of them, often listening to them as I walk to work. Quartet no. 1 is one of my favourite Maconchy pieces, and one of the most immediately accessible. The first movement begins with typical jagged rhythms before moving into a lovely second theme. This is stated twice (around 0:20 - 0:40), the second time so beautifully.
Near the start of the busy second movement we hear an important motif which recurrs in several Maconchy pieces. I call this phrase “The Wran” after first hearing it in the short choral work of that name. It sounds a bit like a child might sing the words “The Wran, the Wran, the King of all Birds”. Imagine 12 beats in the phrase. Using bold type for an accent and a bracket for a rest, it goes something like
1 2 (3) 4 5 (6) 7 8 9 10 11 (12)
with note 8 being the highest note and 8 to 11 descending in pitch.
The third movement is slow and nocturnal, the fourth happy and playful.
String Quartet no.2 is weightier fare. The long first movement feels largely foreboding in mood. It begins with a layered crescendo build-up, abruptly cut off. Jagged rhythms come to the fore about halfway through, the music gently subsiding at the end. The second movement begins with a quiet syncopated rhythm. You may notice a snatch of “Waltzing Matilda” about 2 minutes into the intense third movement! This movement grinds to a halt with a falling four-note scale phrase, and the fourth immediately picks up. There is a very Ravel/Debusssy-like passage about 0:40 into this French-sounding movement which returns about 3 minutes in. The work ends with the rising and falling four-note phrase from the third movement.
The single movement String Quartet no.3 is a piece with immediate appeal. The opening is a simple chord change, I think it's Dm7 to G#m7.
Nicola LeFanu, the composer's daughter, rates My Dark Heart as her favourite Maconchy piece. Scored for soprano and six chamber instruments, this is a lovely work in three movements. Tinged with melancholy, in places the scoring reminds me of Debussy's Pelléas.
My own favourite Maconchy work is the truly fantastic Symphony for Double String Orchestra. This would definitely rank in my Top Twenty classical pieces. There is a vinyl recording of this on the Lyrita label, with Vernon Handley conducting the LSO. It's coupled with Serenata Concertante, but the disc is costly to get hold of because the record appears on “The TAS List”. This is a list of recommended recordings compiled by Harry Pearson, editor of influential American magazine “The Absolute Sound”. A great idea Harry, but it has led to hi-fi buffs buying this record simply to tick it off on a list. I had to fork out £35 ($60) for a copy on eBay. THankfully it is now available on CD.
There is so much I like about the Symphony. The first and third movements are lively, the second and fourth evocative and sombre. There is a nice balance between ensemble and solo passages, and the whole work has a masterly feel about it. The busy first movement begins with a typical brief angular outburst, later on you can pick out a passage reminiscent of the song “What do you want if you don't want money?” Perhaps Buddy Holly was a Maconchy fan!?
The long second movement evokes night-time, solitude. There's a wonderful moment at 3:58 in when a slight change in the bass moves things round, this recurs later. The movement ends with a long solo violin passage over brooding nocturnal accompaniment. About 5:55 in the solo violin plays an absolutely magical double-stop. It's worth paying £35 just to hear this!
The scherzo third movement plays upon the “What do you want if you don't want money?” motif which is broken up about 0:50 by a series of powerful chords. The piece descends into near-chaos as the busy strings appear to be trying to play too many things at once!
The magical fourth movement begins with a dramatic two-note phrase, and resumes reflectively much as the second movement left off. In terms of mood, this movement reminds me a bit of Im Abendrot, the last of Strauss's Four Last Songs. The sad tone is briefly broken about 3:15 in by quirky rhythms as groups of strings do battle for a minute. The relentless progress of the night then resumes until this magnificent work subsides quietly into darkness.
I only acquired this LP recently, and have not yet listened to the coupling Serenata Concertante. The Oboe Quintet was a prize-winning early work. Very listenable and lyrical, with shades of Vaughan Williams (the plaintive opening reminds me of Flos Campi) and folk-song. There's a superb historical recording by the Griller Quartet available on the specialist Dutton label.
The Clarinet Quintet is also very appealing, though a bit different in character. The first movement begins with a simple call to attention, and the “Wran” motif comes in about 0:54 and there's a line which seems to parody some famous piece (I don't know what it's called) about 2:03. The playful second movement contains a memorable little tune. Again the “Wran” motif features in the fourth movement, noticeably about 1:06 in. The work ends with a lively dance.
I am fond of the sound of a solo cello, and enjoy Variations on a theme from Vaughan Williams' “Job”, which sounds like a very challenging piece for the cellist.
All the Maconchy pieces I heard initially were taped from the radio in the 1980s, and the recording quality was often poor. Eventually I had to tape over several fine works such as the orchestral suite The Land, a piece which established the young Maconchy's reputation, and also a distinctive and amusing little song called The Hangman's Song, a setting of Hardy for voice and piano :
“Oh my trade it is the rarest one
Simple shepherds all
My trade is a sight to see
For my customers I tie
And take 'em up on high,
And waft 'em to a far country!”
A terrific piece called Epyllion featuring cellos, and Notebook were also taped over, but I now have the sheet music for Notebook and started making a midi file of it. That'll be another of my projects which will no doubt run into my old age!
I am still collecting Maconchy pieces, and have much to listen to. Recently I got hold of Ariadne for soprano and small orchestra, and the carol Nowell! Nowell! Nowell! but I've barely had time to listen to them!