Symphony No. 7 (Arnold)
Encyclopedia
Malcolm Arnold
Sir Malcolm Henry Arnold, CBE was an English composer and symphonist.Malcolm Arnold began his career playing trumpet professionally, but by age thirty his life was devoted to composition. He was ranked with Benjamin Britten as one of the most sought-after composers in Britain...
was finished in 1973
1973 in music
-January–April:*January 9 – Mick Jagger's request for a Japanese visa is rejected on account of a 1969 drug conviction, putting an abrupt end to The Rolling Stones' plans to perform in Japan during their forthcoming tour.*January 14...
. It is in three movements
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
:
- Allegro energico (Katherine)
- Andante con moto-molto vivace-lento (Robert)
- Allegro - Allegretto - Allegro - Allegretto - Allegro (Edward)
The score was largely written at Sir William Walton's
William Walton
Sir William Turner Walton OM was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera...
home La Mortella on Ischia
Ischia
Ischia is a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It lies at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples, about 30 km from the city of Naples. It is the largest of the Phlegrean Islands. Roughly trapezoidal in shape, it measures around 10 km east to west and 7 km north to south and has...
.
Each movement is a portrait of one of his three children, to whom the work is dedicated.
The work was commissioned by the New Philharmonia Orchestra
Philharmonia
The Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the leading orchestras in Great Britain, based in London. Since 1995, it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke...
.
It was premiered by the composer on 5 May 1974 with the New Philharmonia Orchestra
Philharmonia
The Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the leading orchestras in Great Britain, based in London. Since 1995, it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke...
at the Royal Festival Hall
Royal Festival Hall
The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,900-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge. It is a Grade I listed building - the first post-war building to become so protected...
Commercial recordings
- 1991 Vernon HandleyVernon HandleyVernon George "Tod" Handley CBE was a British conductor, known in particular for his support of British composers. He was born of a Welsh father and an Irish mother into a musical family in Enfield, London. He acquired the nickname "Tod" because his feet were turned in at his birth, which his...
and the Royal Philharmonic OrchestraRoyal Philharmonic OrchestraThe Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
on Conifer Records 74321-15005-2 (re-released on Decca 4765337) (http://www.malcolmarnold.co.uk/biog/arnoldedition.php) - 2001 Andrew PennyAndrew PennyAndrew Penny is a conductor born in Hull. He graduated from the Royal Northern College of Music following clarinet studies with Sydney Fell. As a postgraduate he was the first holder of the Rothschild Scholarship in Conducting, studying with Sir Charles Groves and Timothy Reynish...
and the RTÉ National Symphony OrchestraRTÉ National Symphony OrchestraThe RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra is the concert music orchestra of Raidió Teilifís Éireann...
on Naxos RecordsNaxos RecordsNaxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...
8.552001 (http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.552001) - 2001 Rumon GambaRumon GambaRumon Gamba , is an English conductor. He studied music at Durham University, and then went to the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he studied conducting with Colin Metters, George Hurst and Sir Colin Davis. He became the first conducting student to obtain the DipRAM...
and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra on Chandos RecordsChandos RecordsChandos Records is an independent classical music recording company based in Colchester, Essex, in the United Kingdom, founded in 1979 by Brian Couzens.- Background :...
CHAN 9967 (http://www.theclassicalshop.net/Details06.asp?CNumber=CHAN%209967)