Ian Venables: Rhapsody, op.25. Fagus Music

£8.00

This 9-minute work is inscribed "In memoriam Herbert Howells", and some of the manual figuration and textures are recognisably Howellsian. The harmonic language has a dark, rich, intensity, which may recall the Howells of the 1970s (i.e the Partita), but I must stress that Venables has a voice all of his own and that this Rhapsody is not a pastiche. It's a fairly easy work to perform, but it would sound at its best on a large cathedral-type organ. I was very impressed by this work & I would recommend it to recitalists looking for a good, substantial modern British composition for their programmes.

CN