Antheil Symphonies Nos. 4 & 5 & Over the Plains BBC Philharmonic Orchestra & John Storgards

• William Lloyd-Webber (): Over the Plains:
• 1 Antheil: Over the Plains 07:41
• Symphony No. 4, "1942":
• 2 Antheil: Symphony No. 4, "1942": I. Moderato 10:59
• 3 Antheil: Symphony No. 4, "1942": II. Allegro 09:33
• 4 Antheil: Symphony No. 4, "1942": III. Scherzo. Allegro molto 05:24
• 5 Antheil: Symphony No. 4, "1942": IV. Allegro non troppo 08:00
• Symphony No. 5, "Joyous":
• 6 Antheil: Symphony No. 5, "Joyous": I. Allegro 09:09
• 7 Antheil: Symphony No. 5, "Joyous": II. Adagio molto 08:00
• 8 Antheil: Symphony No. 5, "Joyous": III. Finale. Allegretto maestoso 06:52
• Total Runtime 01:05:38

Info for Antheil Symphonies Nos. 4 & 5 & Over the Plains

Alongside its ongoing much-lauded Copland series, the BBC Philharmonic embarks on a new American journey, this time with its chief guest conductor, John Storgårds.

Known as the ‘bad boy of music’, George Antheil began his career with a reputation as an enfant terrible, composing shockingly avant-garde works such as his ever-popular Ballet mécanique, inspired by the dynamism and dissonances of Stravinsky’s early ballets. Although he is well-established on the film music scene, too, it is his symphonic output – sampled here – that today survives in the concert hall.

This new series documents the evolution of his musical style, which moved towards a fundamentally tonal and melody-based idiom, Antheil joining the growing ranks of famous US symphonists. The war-inspired Fourth Symphony and ‘joyous’ Fifth clearly represent this compositional shift, breaking with what the composer called the ‘now passé’ modernism.

Also here is the premiere recording of the Texas-inspired Over the Plains, memorable for its allusions to cowboy music and offering some unexpectedly dramatic and atmospheric twists along the way.

"Rather than placing these symphonies squarely in the mid-century mainstream...John Storgårds revels in their idiosyncrasies, revealing a wealth of expressive detail I’d never heard before...A brilliant recording all around, and an important one. Bring on the next installment." (Gramophone Magazine)

"this Chandos release is so intelligently planned, so well performed, and so superlatively well-recorded that it deserves a recommendation in very enthusiastic terms." (MusicWeb International)

"This Chandos release is so intelligently planned, so well performed, and so superlatively well-recorded that it deserves a recommendation in very enthusiastic terms" (Classical Source)

BBC Philharmonic
John Storgårds, conductor

Simon Standage
is well known as a violinist specialising in 17th and 18th-century music. Leader and soloist with the English Concert from its foundation until 1990, he also fulfilled the same role for many years with the City of London Sinfonia. In addition to the many records he made with the English Concert (including Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, nominated for a Grammy award), he also recorded solo and chamber music, including all of Mozart’s violin concertos with the Academy of Ancient Music, of which he was, with Christopher Hogwood, Associate Director from 1991 to 1995.

Since his foundation, with Richard Hickox, of Collegium Musicum 90, he has made numerous recordings for Chandos Records. As soloist and director of chamber orchestras and chamber musician, he is active both in Britain and abroad. He is leader of the Salomon String Quartet (founded by him in 1981), which specialises in historical performance of the Classical repertoire, performing worldwide and making many recordings and broadcasts. He is a professor of baroque violin at the Royal Academy of Music in London and the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest and teaches at summer courses in Europe.

He received a medal for services to Polish culture in 2008, was awarded Honorary Membership of the Royal Academy of Music in 2009, and in 2010 received the Georg Philipp Telemann Prize from the city of Magdeburg.

This album contains no booklet.