Edward Gregson (b. 1945)
Tuba Concerto (1976-78)
A Song for Bram (2022-24)
Viola Concerto ‘Three Goddesses’ (2023)
A Song for Sue (1966/2024)
Oboe Concerto ‘A Vision in a Dream’ (2024)
Jennifer Galloway (oboe), Ross Knight (tuba), Rachel Roberts (viola), Edward Gregson (piano)
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra/Ben Gernon
rec. 2025, MediaCityUK, Salford, Manchester
Chandos CHAN20356 [72]
I have always thought Edward Gregson very brave. From his earliest works he has written in a tonal melodic idiom while most of his peers, as Felix Aprahamian said to me, “jumped on the bandwagon of serialism with indecent haste”. His tonal idiom was warmly welcomed in the world of brass bands where he had early and well-deserved success. This success carried through into orchestral works particularly from the 1990s onwards. It is all the more impressive that his compositional activities went along with heavy teaching and administrative duties, from 1976-96 at Goldsmiths College, University of London, and from 1996-2008 when he was Principal of the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.
The disc opens with one of Gregson’s most performed works, the Tuba Concerto written in 1976 for tuba legend John Fletcher, who gave the first performance in 1977. That was the original version with brass band while the performance here is in the version for orchestra made in 1978 but not performed until 1983. As a teenage tuba player, I remember the excitement at news of this new concerto and rushed out to buy the music as soon as it was published. The only other well-known tuba concerto was the 1954 masterpiece by Vaughan Williams, though Gunther Schuller had written his Capriccio for Tuba and Orchestra in 1960 (that he considered this a concerto is seen in the naming of his Concerto No 2 from 2008) and Vagn Holmboe wrote a concerto in 1976. But Gregson’s is up there with the Vaughan Williams as a true masterpiece of writing for the instrument. Cast in three highly melodic movements it is a joy to play and to listen to.
The first movement is in sonata form with two really memorable themes. The first is fanfare like and the second immensely hummable, the sort of tune Percy Grainger may have called a “humlet”. There is an ear catching reference made in the development section to the opening theme of Vaughan Williams’ concerto, and it makes me smile every time. A timpani flourish, here at 3’59”, which so often gets blurred, is, in this recording, clearly articulated.
I have often wondered if the opening of the slow movement is a homage to Gordon Jacob’s Trombone Concerto where lush chords also herald the entry of the soloist. It is a tricky movement to bring off with long, singing Iines, and a wide range demanded of the tuba. These hold no dread for Mr Knight who leads the orchestra into the brilliant climax fearlessly.
The finale is a rondo, alternating the main march like tune in 6/8 with two episodes. The first is Waltonesque and majestic, the second, in complete contrast, is bluesy and jazz-like. Originally the highest note required of the soloist was an Eb above middle C but here Ross Knight flawlessly plays the extended version of the cadenza which seems to go up to Ab above middle C. I am not sure when this was added but I am glad I never had to play it.
This is such a life enhancing work and it is easy to see, with such a joyous performance as here, why it is a cornerstone of the repertoire. Ross Knight has a beautifully rounded tone in all registers and phrases the varied and demanding musical material perfectly.
Gregson’s Concerto for Viola and String Orchestra, ‘Three Goddesses’, is in three movements played without a break. It depicts three different goddesses: the Morrigan, a goddess in Irish myth associated war and fate, alongside other darker traits, Aphrodite the Greek goddess of love and beauty, and Diana the Roman goddess of the hunt and moon. These different starting points are very carefully united by musical material stated at the beginning and then ingeniously transformed throughout.
If one considers the generally dark aspect of the Morrigan in myth, the depiction here is of a more benevolent goddess, perhaps more mother than warrior. A magical opening with the motto theme and some, once again, beautifully spaced chords, leads us on a turbulent though not scary journey. There is not an extraneous note, and Rachel Roberts negotiates the often-chordal writing for her instrument fearlessly.
Aphrodite is more skittishly portrayed here than I was expecting. Reference to Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde and “When I am Laid in earth” from Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas hints at a darker side to this movement. There is certainly ardour, but it does not sound like a love freely given.
In the finale, Diana the goddess of the hunt and the moon, is depicted in a more straight-forward setting. A fast dancelike theme, undoubtedly hunt like, is contrasted with a lyrical theme – maybe that of the moon. A beautifully cinematic movement, it builds to a tremendous climax and an outrageous high G from the soloist.
I must be honest and say that the viola and tenor saxophone are my least favourite instruments. However, having listened to this work a number of times and the truly superb playing of Rachel Roberts I think my prejudice towards the viola has waned.
The Oboe Concerto subtitled ‘A Vision in a Dream’ was inspired by Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem Kubla Khan which has the same subtitle. The five ‘visions’ into which the work is divided are inspired by different lines from the poem with the sub-titles of Prologue, Duologue, Pastorale, Round Dances and Epilogue. The relevant lines are included in the notes, but I do not think anyone will lose out by not reading them as the work is dramatically satisfying on its own without any extraneous baggage. In live performance, the soloist moves about the stage – something which is obviously missing here.
Having said that, the dissonant opening with multiphonics from the soloist and violent percussion interjections can be explained by the line “A savage place! as holy and enchanted/As e’er beneath a waning moon was haunted/By woman wailing for her demon-lover!” I am not generally a fan of multiphonics but here they work extremely well, drawing us into the world inspired by an opium-induced dream. Throughout, the musical material is expertly developed and Gregson’s orchestration using a small ensemble is a tour de force of invention. Under the redoubtable Ben Gernon’s direction, the players of the BBC PO draw from their instruments an extraordinary range of colours in tightly controlled cohesion. From the lyrical Pastorale to the final energetic Round Dances, we are constantly diverted by the composer’s ingenuity. It is a tremendous addition to the oboe repertoire, and I hope it will enjoy the numerous live performances it so clearly deserves.
The rest of the disc is made up of two short, deeply personal, works for piano and orchestra with the composer as pianist. A Song for Bram is a short work, originally written for piano and brass band, dedicated to the memory of the conductor, composer, and pianist Bramwell Tovey who died, too young, in the summer of 2022. Tovey was an adept improvisor and the composer says, “In this short piece I’ve tried to imagine what kind of tune Bram would have improvised at the piano”. It is slightly bluesy and incorporates two hymn tunes “Immortal Invisible” and “The day thou gavest, Lord is ended”. There is a lot of power in its less than seven minutes duration. The orchestration is superb, with imaginative use of bells and flugel horn. It is a heartfelt tribute that never gets maudlin.
The second work, A Song for Sue, is an arrangement of the slow movement of his 1966 Concertante for Piano and Brass Band, dedicated to Sue Smith who became Mrs Gregson in 1967. It is based on an attractive, romantic tune, which I am surprised it has never been snapped up for a TV programme. It is a real earworm, tenderly played.
Chandos have previously devoted a number of discs to Gregson’s music and this one which celebrates his 80th birthday is a marvellous addition to the series. It is an excellent introduction to his concertante works which now number sixteen, and I look forward to the next disc.
Paul RW Jackson
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