CD REVIEW -
MUSIC FOR WOODWIND ORCHESTRA
Czech Philharmonic Wind Ensemble
conducted by Shea Lolin
divine art DDX
21146 [1:04:59]
A tuneful start to
the new year comes from the 19
woodwind players of Gramophone
magazine's Orchestra of the Year
in 2024.
The opening and
longest work is Octet
-Partita in F Major, Op.57
by the Czech composer and
violinist Franz Krommer
(1759-1831), who was a
contemporary of Beethoven and for
a time in the 19th century his
works for wind were more popular
than those of the great man. It
is followed by Richard Strauss'
(1864-1949) Serenade Op.7,
written at the age of seventeen,
eleven years after his first
composition!
Nearly quite
forgotten nowadays, Cécile
Chaminade (1857-1944) composed
more than 400 pieces and had a
definite gift for melody. She is
represented here by her best
remembered Concertino, Op.107
beautifully played by Fiona
Sweeney, a highly accomplished
Glasgow-born flautist.
Someone possibly
better known to readers is
Constant Lambert (1905-1951) who
wrote the symphonic jazz choral
work The Rio Grande and
was instrumental in the birth of
British ballet. We have here the
14'46" of five tracks: the
first tableaux for the ballet of Romeo
and Juliet (originally
called Adam and Eve),
which only lasted for around
half-an-hour but came to the
attention – the first
English composer to do so –
of the legendary impresario
Sergei Diaghilev.
The final work is More
Gordian Knots by Guy
Woolfenden OBE (1937-2016), a
distinguished British composer
and conductor who was Head of
Music to the Royal Shakespeare
Company for 37 years. Originally
written for clarinet choir, with
the inspiration coming from the
composer Henry Purcell, it is the
retitled woodwind orchestra
version heard here.
This is the only
work not arranged by the
Ensemble's British conductor,
Shea Lolin, who is widely
regarded as a woodwind orchestra
visionary. He is also responsible
for the album cover artwork,
design and booklet notes with
several colour photos – the
best package I have seen for some
time. Interestingly for me, Lolin
is a graduate of the Colchester
Institute in the town (now city)
where I was born.
A rewarding
recording, especially the
Krommer, and well done to the
label for setting such a high
standard both of performance and
presentation.
©
Peter Burt, January 2026
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