“… Performances, conducting, and recorded sound are all first-class…”

“…One could not wish for a better recording of the English romantic repertoire, with playing of outstanding quality from one of Britain’s great, innovative broadcasting orchestras.”

***** Coup de cœur

“… Gamba often … has a taste for quick transitions and a zesty approach to this repertoire that makes his readings stand out. He also has a yen for discovering previously unrecorded pieces…”

Performance ****      Recording ****

“… numerous works share a ruminative nature with drifting melodies succulently orchestrated – none more so then the memorably melancholy landscapes of Fogg’s Merok … After further ruminations by Vaughan Williams and the aqueous ripples of Goossens’s By the Tarn, we’re more than ready to meet a snake woman with alluring eyes – the exotic subject of Howell’s Lamia, much promoted by the conductor Sir Henry Wood in the 1920’s.  The longest piece here (14 minutes), it’s confident, quick-changing, full of blood and muscle, and clearly relished by Rumon Gamba’s orchestra as an opportunity to let rip. Other chances are eagerly grabbed in Fould’s radiant ramble April-England and Bliss’s swirling, decidedly metropolitan Mêlée fantastique…”

Classical Album of the Week

“… As the BBC Philharmonic’s fine performances demonstrate, all are expertly written, unfailingly melodic scores …” ****