David Matthews's five-movement Symphony, composed in 1989-90, has an unselfconscious robustness of rhythm that sets up many associations—Nielsen via Simpson, Stravinsky via Tippett, Janacek, even John Adams. But these associations don't submerge the Matthews voice; rather, they serve its purpose, which is to take a fresh look at familiar genres (like the 'hunting horn' finale) and to offer a present-day perspective on well-established but still vital traditions.
Matthews may not qualify as a post-tonal composer, but there is an inherently tensile quality to his musical thinking that makes it vividly contemporary. There is little of that 'untroubled serenity' that sceptical critics seek to attribute to the kind of English pastoral rhapsodizing that can easily seem both parochial and complacent, and the symphony's early stages memorably transform apparently artless melodic flow into purposeful harmonic argument as if in explicit response to such criticism. Even the slow movement's melody is set about with unease, and Matthews's ''slightly manic'' marking for the fast tango of the short fourth movement acknowledges the stressful angles present here. Above all, the finale achieves a terse yet convincing conclusion by integrating its joyous and more turbulent impulses with truly Stravinskian bravura.
This is a polished, characterful performance by the East of England Orchestra. The recording is very bright, and with less depth to the sound than one might like. Even so, the music on this disc is greatly rewarding and highly recommended.'