‘I’ve always loved the violin, to be honest with you,’ says Lawrence Power. ‘I’ve just never played it before.’

The viola player has chosen the Welsh town of Monmouth as the setting for his latest collaboration with Hyperion – unique in its inclusion of his first ever recorded performance on the violin. The album of Arthur Benjamin works also features Power’s frequent musical partner and pianist Simon Crawford-Phillips, who joins the session in what appears, to the untrained eye, to be taking place in a military bunker!

The venue is in fact the Concert Hall at Wyastone Estate, former headquarters for Nimbus Studios, but now a studio for hire. It’s an interesting building, set at the bottom of a steeply winding path, box-shaped and khaki-coloured on the outside, and wooden-panelled within. Power and Crawford-Phillips test for balance on stage in the main concert room, performing to empty rows of chairs, as engineer Ben Connellan and producer Rachel Smith adjust levels and volumes behind the glass of a small recording booth.

Power’s sound is rich and lyrical, everything that one has come to expect from this consummate British viola player. It is evident that the music of Benjamin – an Australian by birth but whose analogous sensibilities were adopted with enthusiasm by the British – is well suited to Power’s playing style. Power is ably supported by Crawford-Phillips, who brings his own sparkling technique to the performance.

After an initial run of Le tombeau de Ravel, however, it becomes evident that the Steinway is not everything Crawford-Phillips had wished – it demands a firmer action to cope with unresponsive keys and pedals. There is some talk of bringing in a replacement instrument, but ultimately the pianist decides to adjust his technique to accommodate for the piano’s shortcomings and the session continues with some speed.

So why Power’s sudden shift to the violin? Unlike the majority of viola players, who begin their musical careers on the instrument’s better-known cousin, Power has always been a viola player. However, in exploring the works of Benjamin he quickly discovered that his survey would be far from complete by limiting himself to his native instrument. ‘Things go in twists and turns, and recently we were presented with the opportunity to perform programmes incorporating the violin,’ he says. ‘Ultimately, musically, it opens up so many possibilities.’

But hasn’t the smaller instrument with its fine, upper register presented any issues of adjustment? ‘Not really. I’m not a militant viola player,’ Power protests. ‘If you have an interesting idea of musical sound, it doesn’t make much difference if you are a viola player or a violinist. The transition has been really exciting, especially because the music of Arthur Benjamin is part of my heritage as a British viola player. He was such an important figure in England, so to be able to record an album which couples his works for violin and viola, and allows an interaction between the two, is a fantastic opportunity.’

For the uninitiated, Benjamin will largely be known for his Jamaican Rumba, a work which has been arranged for multiple different instruments; the viola version by William Primrose features on the album. Benjamin and Primrose had a close working relationship and it was to the famous British viola player that the composer dedicated his Viola Sonata, the largest and most complicated work on the new recording.

‘The Viola Sonata was written during the Second World War, so it has a darker, more brooding quality to it,’ Power explains. ‘But all of Benjamin’s works are essentially miniatures. None are long or heavy pieces, yet they are so cleverly crafted that they do not feel fragmented. For me there is an incredibly beautiful lyricism bubbling away in everything that he writes, and such an individual personality. There is a lot of humour in his music. You feel that he can’t commit himself to a work of utter gravity so there is always a bit of light relief.’

Perhaps it is this mixture of seriousness and fun that has drawn Power and Crawford-Phillips to the project. The two have worked together for a number of years and built a natural and organic partnership. ‘I have other projects and so does Simon, so when we come to work together, it’s always fun and there’s no pressure,’ says Power.

But more importantly the two are united in their quest to ‘find new repertoire that’s really worth playing and championing’. Power is adamant that he won’t record little-known viola works simply ‘to further the conquest of the viola’, but rather that the music has to be first rate. ‘When the music is as wonderful as Benjamin or York Bowen, who we also recorded recently, you aren’t playing viola repertoire simply for the sake of it.’

It is undoubtedly for this reason that Power has carved out a name for himself, not just as a fine viola player, but as an expert musician. As I leave the session, the two musicians continue to discuss matters of tone, balance and articulation with a quiet focus. The Benjamin recording is clearly a project close to their hearts – truly the best type of collaboration.

The new album of Arthur Benjamin's chamber works performed by Lawrence Power and Simon Crawford-Phillips is out now. You can read the Gramophone review in the August issue of Gramophone (on general sale from July 22) and in the Gramophone Reviews Database.

Lawrence Power – recommended recordings

Bowen The complete works for viola and piano

Lawrence Power va Simon Crawford-Phillips pf

(Hyperion CDA67651/2)

Power and Crawford-Phillips perform works of the composer known as the ‘English Rachmaninov’. York Bowen wrote works for legendary British violist Lionel Tertis periodically throughout his life, all of which feature on the album. Read the Gramophone review

Hindemith The Complete Viola Music Vols 1 & 2

Lawrence Power va Simon Crawford-Phillips pf

(Hyperion CDA67721 & CDA67769)

‘Not since the days of William Primrose have I heard Hindemith's viola music played with such warmth and conviction,’ wrote Gramophone’s Rob Cowan of Power’s complete Hindemith survey. The first album features the sonatas for viola and piano, while the second showcases the solo sonatas. Read the Gramophone reviews of Vol 1 and Vol 2

Shostakovich Music for viola and piano

Lawrence Power va Simon Crawford-Phillips pf

(Hyperion CDA67865)

The centrepiece of this collaboration is the great Viola Sonata, Shostakovich’s final completed work. The album also features a compelling viola arrangement of The Gadfly by Vadim Borisovsky and seven of the 24 Piano Preludes transcribed by Yevgeny Strakhov. Read the Gramophone review

Brahms Viola Sonatas

Lawrence Power va Simon Crawford-Phillips pf Tim Hugh vc

(Hyperion CDA67584)

The album features the Viola Sonatas Op 120 in F minor and in E flat major, originally conceived for clarinet, coupled with the Trio for piano, viola and cello Op 114 featuring cellist Tim Hugh. Read the Gramophone review

Bowen. Forsyth Viola Concertos

Lawrence Power va BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra / Martyn Brabbins

(Hyperion CDA67546)

Power’s first album to feature York Bowen also includes the little-known Viola Concerto of fellow Londoner Cecil Forsyth, a work first performed at the Proms in 1903.Gramophone’s Andrew Achenbach described Power’s Bowen as ‘beyond criticism’ in July 2005. Read the Gramophone review