Familiar as lead viola in the London Symphony Orchestra and London Sinfonietta, Paul Silverthorne here dem- onstrates his credentials in contemporary recital fare, all of which he commissioned. Bennett’s extended scena continues the vein of nostalgia-tinged lyricism evident in his recent music, though the scherzando sections recall the rhythmic agility long central to his expression, and most likely indicate the Monteverdi madrigal that provided inspiration. Musgrave’s contemplation features modal-sounding harmonies, while Lutyens’ typically pungent miniature runs the gamut of viola technique in its pursuit of the instrument’s soul. Two of her proteges are represented: Saxton draws on ancient Jewish prayer, the piece given an evocative context through its tonal centering on E; while Hawkins offers a more discursive though hardly less potent depiction of Blakeian fall from grace.
Pieces drawn from a 1988 anthology demonstrate three strikingly divergent approaches to the viola. Payne’s is an agitated study in tremolandos and fragmentation; Matthews revisits his contribution in a muted, though expressive study in sombre shading; while Woolrich absorbs models in an inward-looking trilogy, concluding in a Monteverdian allusion of plaintive expectation. Whether or not MacRae’s study in accumulating, maintaining and dispersing rhythmic velocity is an actual representation of his booklet-note description, it denotes a forceful musical persona.
Two ‘last-minute’ pieces round off the recital: Kampela’s a hard-hitting interaction of pitched material with virtual white noise; Tiensuu employing tape delay in a riot of rhythmic superimposition and eventual diffusion of harmonics.
John Constable is his dependable self in five of the pieces, while the recording brings out the character of Silverthorne’s Amati impressively. Booklet-notes, interspersing notes from the composers with background from the performer, are a model of presentation. CD-Rom- compatible players can access four additional tracks, including an arrangement of Cole Porter’s Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye; its wistful melancholy ideally suited to the viola’s timbre