Complete Symphonies

Stanford Symphonies. CHAN 9279
The symphonies of Charles Stanford are amongst the most impressive in the English symphonic repertoire of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Their rich late-romantic style is imbued with a distinctive, discernibly Irish flavour which has won them many admirers. With its almost Brahmsian scope and manner, the Third Symphony is perhaps the most famous. Like many of the composer's other compositions, it incorporates the idiom of Irish folk music, even authentic folk-tunes. The Fifth Symphony is brimming with easy melody, and the Sixth and Seventh, too, are full of interesting and memorable ideas. The Chandos series is the only complete cycle available and has received superlative reviews over the years. The numerous Chandos recordings of the Ulster Orchestra and Vernon Handley, one of the most famous conductors of British music, are regarded as classics of the digital era.