Recording Review #55: Winsome Williams

Grace Williams: Orchestral Works (Four Illustrations for the Legend of Rhiannon; Castell Caernarfon; Ballads; Sea Sketches for String Orchestra). John Andrews, conductor; BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. Resonus RES10349. 

In late 1939, Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote this to his student, Grace Williams, about her new Four Illustrations for the Legend of Rhiannon: "Dearest Grace, I listened in on Tuesday. All is much clearer & more direct & purposeful than it used to be. I liked the last movement best (I expect I oughtn’t to) & the slow – the others not so much – But the whole thing is certainly a great advance." If I had stopped at one listen through I might've agreed with old RVW. But I'll wager I took a few more passes than he did, and with every one this music grew on me. So much so that I'm now ready to consider it a British classic. 

The Four Illustrations musically portray episodes from the life of Rhiannon, a remarkable figure of Welsh mythology whose exploits are detailed in The Mabinogion. Williams illustrates each scene in highly idiomatic fashion. There is a definite folk inflection, with Lydian and other modal seasonings adding to the overall flavor. Earworm melodies frequently get repeated with slight variation. Harmony is often static, with emphasis on savoring rich sonorities. Lest this all doesn't sound like much, I was riveted. I have a weakness for the mythic; the Iliad and Odyssey, L. Frank Baum's Santa Claus origin story, and the Kalevala are some of my favorite reads. They fire my imagination in a way that I can almost believe (or at least wish I believed) their events actually took place in some far away age when enchantment and epic deeds were still possible. Likewise I get transfixed every time I listen to Sibelius's Kullervo, so powerfully evocative is its legendary mood. Hearing it for the first time was a revelation. I'm not prepared to argue that Grace Williams had Sibelius's overall talent. But I'll say without apology that her knack for eliciting this specific kind of feeling is comparably strong. It's evident that she deeply identified with her native Welsh heritage. Good for her!

Similar things could be said of the Ballads, even though there is no explicit program attached to them. This is a much later work (1968) that shows Williams kept her gift for legend-painting across her career. Initially I thought she must have borrowed actual folk tunes for each. But after reading Leah Broad's informative liner notes, and other materials close at hand, I found no indication of this. The melodies are apparently just that good! In addition, one frequently gets the impression of harp or lute strumming from how Williams treats her rhythms and harmonies, which is of course commensurate with the title. I'll definitely be returning to this music!

Dating from around the same time of the Ballades is Castell Caernarfon, a kind of miniature tone poem commissioned for the investiture of the Prince of Wales. It's in the same general vein as the aforementioned pieces. But here I have to be more critical. The musical materials are pleasant, even inspired. But they're stretched out too much to make this work as thoroughly compelling as the sets of miniatures. I won't say that Williams is strictly a miniaturist (she convincingly demonstrates otherwise in her symphonies and extended chamber works), but with Castell I perceive some tension between content and medium. 

However, we're back to Williams at her best with the Sea Sketches for String Orchestra. Her ability to sonically envision seascapes is nearly as good as her penchant for legendary scenes. These pieces each have their own titles: High Wind; Sailing South; Channel Sirens; Breakers; and Calm Sea in Summer. All are easy on the ear, and some have splendid tunes in them (I'm thinking particularly of the first and last numbers). Here as elsewhere you can hear the influence of her famous teacher, as well as that of other greats. But Williams is also very much her own composer. On the strength of the selections rendered here, it's a creative voice that deserves to be heard in the concert hall with much more regularity. 

John Andrews and the BBC Philharmonic provide splendid performances. It's clear even without knowing other recordings of this music that their sound and sensitivity are a good match for it. Their disc will appear in my "Finds of the Year" list, which I plan to write up in late December. It provides an abundantly rewarding listening experience. 

Verdict: Highly Recommended