RECOLLECTIONS
“A revealing portrait of a composer whose name should be better known; lovers of English music will not be disappointed”
“Malcolm Lipkin was a fine composer and this generously filled disc presents a rich selection from his chamber and instrumental output....This satisfying carefully planned composer portrait is warmly recommended”
Recollections is a wide-ranging album of chamber music from Divine Art, celebrating 50 years of the composing career of Malcolm Lipkin. It features two sets of performances from outstanding musicians.
Prelude and Dance, Naboth’s Vineyard and Interplay are new recordings from recorderist John Turner, Janet Simpson (harpsichord/piano), Nicholas Trygstad (cello), and David Corkhill (percussion).
Clifford’s Tower, Pastorale and String Trio are remastered from a Nash Ensemble disc originally released by Hyperion in 1986 under the auspices of the Finzi Trust.
The album also includes Lipkin’s last piece, The Journey, written for John Turner in tribute to John McCabe and released in 2018.
Reviews
Paul Conway, Musical Opinion, October-December 2020
Colin Clarke, Fanfare Magazine, November-December 2020
Nathan Faro, American Record Guide, November 2020
Grego Applegate, Classical Modern Music Review, October 2020
Tiina Kiik, TheWholeNote, October 2020
John France, MusicWeb International, August 2020
Nigel Bonham-Carter, British Music Society, August 2020
Gary Higginson, British Music Society, August 2020
Prelude and Dance, Naboth’s Vineyard, Interplay
In October 2019, the three works were recorded by John Turner (recorder), Janet Simpson (harpsichord/piano), Nicholas Trygstad (cello) and David Corkhill (percussion) at St Paul’s Church, Heaton Moor, Stockport. The session was produced by Paul Hindmarsh and engineered by Phil Hardman of Northern Audio Productions.
All session images provided by Richard Simpson
Clifford's Tower, Pastorale, String Trio
The remastered Nash Ensemble recordings include several major compositions from the 1960s and 1970s, notably Clifford’s Tower, an iconic work focusing on the massacre of the Jewish population of York in the twelfth century. The 2020 release coincides with a major project by English Heritage to provide a new perspective on Clifford’s Tower.
Pastorale and the String Trio were both written at Ashmansworth, home of the Finzi family, with whom Malcolm Lipkin had a long friendship. In their reviews of Recollections, John France described the Trio as “a splendid example of a string trio” and Colin Clarke wrote of the third movement as shining with inspiration.
The Nash Ensemble disc was originally produced by Andrew Keener and engineered by Antony Howell. It was remastered for the new album by Paul Baily of Re:Sound UK.
“ Clifford’s Tower reveals Lipkin as a compassionate humanist who was acutely aware of the frailty of existence and the uneasy contradictory times in which he lived”