David Matthews (b 1943)
Anna: Symphonic Diptych, Op 171 (2024)
Symphony No 11, Op 168 (2024)
Flute Concerto, Op 166
Emma Halnan (flute)
Ulster Orchestra / Jac van Steen
rec. 2024, Townsend Street Presbyterian Church, Belfast, Northern Ireland
SOMM Recordings SOMMCD 0710 [76]

David Matthews’ music is fairly well represented on disc. Quite a lot of his chamber music has been recorded, including a series devoted to his string quartets on the Toccata Classics label. His symphonies, too, have been well served on CD and I have collected recordings of all of those that have been recorded to date. Martyn Brabbins set down symphonies 1, 3 and 5 for Dutton Epoch (CDLX 7222); Jac van Steen recorded the Second and Sixth symphonies for the same label (CDLX 7234); and Dutton also recorded his Seventh, along with his major choral work, Vespers, Op 66 (CDLX 7305).  All of these are fine recordings. In addition, there’s a 1993 recording of the Fourth symphony and other works from NMC (review). Kenneth Woods recorded the Ninth for Nimbus (review) and I also reviewed  a Signum disc on which Jac van Steen conducted the Eighth, along with some other orchestral works. So, it appears that only the Symphony No.10, ‘Regeneration’, Op.157 (2020–2021) is yet to receive a recording.

I was excited, therefore, to learn of this new recording of Matthews’ latest symphony, coupled with two other recent scores. All three works are here recorded for the first time; indeed, I think I may be right in thinking that these works are yet to receive a public performance.

The programme opens with Anna: Symphonic Diptych. This utilises music from Matthews’ two-Act opera, Anna (2019-22). I learned from the composer’s booklet notes that this was compiled at the suggestion of Jac van Steen after he had conducted the premiere of the opera in a concert performance in 2023. (I’m not sure the opera has yet been staged.) Van Steen’s suggestion was that Matthews should distil the essence of the opera into a purely orchestral work, along the lines that Strauss did with Die Frau ohne Schatten. The full opera has a playing time of 100 minutes; this Symphonic Diptych plays for 32:51. Matthews tells us that he has slightly expanded the orchestration for this version and all the vocal lines which have found their way into the Diptych have been allotted to one instrument or another. Interestingly, I see that the two movements can either be performed together or individually.

The plot of the opera, as summarised by the composer, is a tragic one; I will take the liberty of greatly truncating his summary. The eponymous heroine and her brother Peter live in a country that has recently undergone a Revolution; both of their parents were imprisoned for assisting dissidents and they died in prison. A young man, Miro, returns from exile in America to their home town; he and Anna fall in love. It later transpires that in order to gain his freedom to live abroad Miro betrayed dissidents, including Peter and Anna’s father, to the authorities. Peter confronts Miro and attempts to shoot him. In the ensuing struggle, when Anna attempts to intervene, she is shot. Her tragic death results in a reconciliation between Peter and Miro, enabling the opera to end on a note of hope.

As you might expect from that extremely brief synopsis, there’s a lot of high emotion in the opera, which is carried over into the two parts of the Diptych; these are entitled ‘Anna in Love’ and ‘Lament for Anna’. In the first movement, there is some dark, powerful music but the predominant impression I gained from the music was tender lyricism. That’s epitomised by a lovely episode (4:12 – 6:50) in which we hear an orchestral version of an aria that Anna sings, recollecting her childhood. Later comes the appearance of Miro and the impact he makes on Anna – and she on him. Initially, they seem tender yet hesitant (from 11:38) but as their feelings intensify there’s increasing ardour in the music; the movement ends passionately. ‘Lament for Anna’ inevitably strikes a different tone. There’s deep melancholy, for example, at the start. A little later comes an aria for Anna, voiced here by the oboe, in which her innermost feelings are eloquently expressed. The confrontation which leads to Anna’s death is powerfully and dramatically depicted (from around 5:55). The conclusion of the piece expresses reconciliation and, perhaps, hope for a better life. I think this Symphonic Diptych is a most interesting and rewarding work. The music is very well imagined for the orchestra, with plenty of most effective colouring. There are copious solo lines which are most melodious and attractive. In the current economic climate for the performing arts the chance of a staging of the full opera may not be all that great so this is an excellent way of ensuring that such fine music has an alternative life in the concert hall. Though the composer has said that either panel of the diptych can be played separately, based on what I’ve heard, the two movements fit together and complement each other so well that they form a very coherent whole.

The Symphony No 11 is in a single movement, which here plays for 19:50; the composer is clearly attracted to the single-movement form since he tells us that this is his “sixth attempt” to write such a work. It was valuable to read David Matthews’ comments before listening for the first time since he explains that the key thematic material, which is heard right at the start, consists of a prefatory theme for violas then violins, followed by a trumpet tune which seems to have been the genesis for the whole work. I understand that those two themes “form the basis for a set of free variations”. So far, I’m insufficiently versed in the music to be able to pick out all the variations but I can identify – I think – the two scherzo sections, the slow episode and the chaconne which Matthews mentions. What I think is the first scherzo (from 2:27) contains some dazzling writing. There’s a particularly impressive moment at 6:38 where soft, slow-moving string chords usher in what must be the slow section of the work. Much of the second half of the work (in terms of time duration) is quite calm in nature – though some climactic passages occur along the way – and the symphony ends in tranquillity. Mathews tells us that the Sibelius Seventh symphony was an influence; that comes as little surprise. I think the best compliment I can pay to Matthews is to say that, as with the Finnish masterpiece, his own symphony flows seamlessly. I need to get much more familiar with it in order to appreciate the subtleties of the score but already I can say with confidence that it’s a very impressive composition.

Finally, we hear Matthews’ Flute Concerto. Once again, there’s an unsurprising Scandinavian influence in the shape of Nielsen’s Flute Concerto, a work which Matthews rates very highly. I don’t know if the concerto was written specifically for Emma Halnan but it might as well have been, given that in this performance her playing gives every sign that she owns the work. Matthews has scored the concerto for pleasingly light forces, consisting of pairs of oboes, bassoons, horns and strings. To these Haydnesque forces Matthews has added a harp and an optional tambourine; the latter is only involved in the middle section of the second movement. The work is cast in three movements, playing here for 23:07.

The first movement has a slowish start but soon moves into an Allegretto which is sometimes graceful and almost always playful. The solo part dances most attractively and to my ears the music is beguiling and transparent. As the movement progresses the solo part increasingly calls for virtuosity, yet the flute is always a partner of the orchestra. The movement achieves a slow ending, with the flute left alone; this tees up the slow movement in an ideal way. The Lento second movement exploits the flute’s cantabile capabilities to the full. As in the other two works on the disc, David Matthews’ pedigree as a melodist is very much in evidence. I like the way the music is so lightly scored. Partway through (4:14 – 5:16) comes a quicker episode in compound time; Matthews describes this as “a dance to celebrate Pan with panpipes”. This is where the tambourine makes a brief but effective contribution. The part may be optional but I think something would be lost if the instrument was not included in a performance. I love the pensive conclusion to the movement. The finale opens with a tune which Matthews wrote for his wife at Christmas 2019 – a nice present! This begins in one key but almost at once the soloist wrests control – in a nice way – and moves the music into a different key. This finale is charming and good-spirited; the music consistently dances along. What a delight this movement is!  Matthews has written a most refreshing and appealing concerto. It’s in the best possible hands here; Emma Halnan plays it delightfully and she’s deftly accompanied by van Steen and the orchestra.

This is a very rewarding disc. It brings together three different kinds of score by David Matthews, though one way in which the works do not differ is their quality. All three are fine compositions which will repay careful listening. It’s very welcome that all three have been given the opportunity to reach a wider audience through these recordings. Though I’d never heard any of the works before and therefore have no yardstick against which to judge the performances, the Ulster Orchestra’s accounts of all three sound completely assured and highly accomplished to me. And, as I’ve already indicated, the performances are directed by a conductor who has significant experience of directing this composer’s music. As such I’d venture to suggest that the performances are definitive, though I hope other artists will take up these works – in particular, I can imagine the Flute Concerto becoming popular with both flautists and audiences. SOMM are to be congratulated on their enterprise in issuing these recordings.

Producer Siva Okle and engineer Richard Campbell have recorded the performances expertly; the sound is very satisfactory indeed. The booklet is excellent; the composer’s own notes introduce the pieces in an ideal fashion. If this were not enough, if I interpret the copyright information correctly, I think the painting reproduced on the cover, entitled From the Summit of Beinn Damh, is by Matthews himself.

This is a distinguished and important addition to the discography of David Matthews.

John Quinn

Other review: Gary Higginson (January 2026)

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