1965 Programme of Concerts submitted to the Arts Council following their support of some of the concerts in the series. More on that later. One of the aims of this research was to make accessible information of the kind present here. There are some fascinating concerts, with lots of early music alongside new works. I would love to hear the Busoni (arranging Bach), Bach (arranged Goehr), Mozart, Holloway, Gibbons, Eisler concert. Fascinating.
I haven’t included the programme notes, and no author is given for most of these. A playlist of those works here that are also available on spotify can be found here: WCSS. It’s a collaborative playlist so if you find a work that I haven’t listed you can add it. You can also delete tracks and add new ones (perhaps you don’t like my choice of performers?). The recording of Birtwistle’s Tragoedia is by the Melos Ensemble with Lawrence Foster conducting.
(ACGB/51/265; see 1)
[5]
WARDOUR CASTLE SUMMER CONCERTS
President: MICHAEL TIPPETT
Director: HARRISON BIRTWISTLE
[7]
Sunday, 15 August at 8 p.m.
BETHANY BEARDSLEE, soprano
EMMANUEL HURWITZ, violin
STEPHEN PRUSLIN, pianoforte
I. Five Songs . . Schubert
Ganymed (Goethe)
Auflösung (Mayrhofer)
Nachtviolen (Mayrhofer)
Auf dem Wasser zu singen (Stoliberg)
An Sylvia (Shakespeare)
[…]
[8]
II. Chansons de Bilitis (Pierre Louys) . . Debussy
[…]
III. Sonata No. 13 in B-flat major for piano and violin, K. 454 . . Mozart
[…]
[9]
INTERVAL – 25 MINUTES
(During the interval you are invited to view the exhibition of painting and sculpture, which is in the centre of the castle. The bar is also open.
__________
IV. Two Songs . . Schoenberg
Ich darf nicht dankend (Stefan George)
In diesen Wintertagen (G. Henckel)
Three Songs, opus 25 (Hildegard Jone) . . Webern
Wie bin ich froh
Des Herzens Purpurvogel
Sterne, Ihr silbernen Bienen
[…]
[10]
V. Philomel for soprano, recorded soprano, and synthesized sound . . Milton Babbitt
[…]
[11]
Monday, 16 August at 8 p.m.
BETHANY BEARDSLEE, soprano
Melos Ensemble
EMANUEL HURWITZ, violin
CECIL ARONOWITZ, viola
TERENCE WEIL, cello
COLIN CHAMBERS, flute and piccolo
GERVASE DE PEYER, clarinet
ALAN HACKER, bass clarinet
ERIC ROSEBERRY, piano
EDWARD DOWNES, director
I. Trio No. 1 in B-flat major for pianoforte, violin, and violoncello, opus 99 . . Schubert
[…]
INTERVAL – 25 MINUTES
[…]
[12]
II. Pierrot Lunaire, opus 21 . . Schoenberg
[…]
[16]
Tuesday, 17 August at 5 p.m.
RECITAL
by LEONARD STEIN, piano
BAGATELLES . . Beethoven
THREE PIANO PIECES . . Alexander Goehr
PRELUDE FOR PIANO AND TAPE . . Subotnick
(short pause)
COCKTAIL MUSIC . . Salvatore Martirano
PIANO PIECES OP. 23 . . Schoenberg
[17]
Wednesday, 18 August at 8 p.m.
Melos Ensemble:
EMANUEL HURWITZ, violin
KAY HURWITZ, viola
LEONARD FRIEDMAN, violin
CECIL ARONOWITZ, viola
TERENCE WEIL, cello
WILLIAM BENNETT, flute
ALAN HACKER, bass clarinet
ERIC ROSENBERRY, piano
STEPHEN PRUSLIN, piano
BARBARA ELSY, Soprano
PAULINE STEVENS, contralto
IAN PARTRIDGE, tenor
GEOFFREY SHAW, bass
ALEXANDER GOEHR, director
I. Busoni – Canonic Variations and Fugue for pianoforte on the theme of King Frederick the Great from Bach’s Musical Offering.
followed by
II. Bach – Six Part Ricercar from the Musical Offering.
[…]
The six-part ricercar, which follows the Busoni work, will be performed in an instrumental arrangement by Alexander Goehr.
[18]
III. Mozart: Quartet for flute, violin, viola, and violoncello in D major, K. 285
[…]
IV. Cantata on texts by Edward Benlowes . . Robin Holloway
First performance written for Summer School
[…]
[19]
[…]
V. “Cryes of London” . . Orlando Gibbons
[…]
VI. “Fourteen Ways of Describing Rain” . . Hanns Eisler
[20]
Thursday, 19 August at 5 p.m.
BARBARA ELSY, Soprano
PAULINE STEVENS, contralto
IAN PARTRIDGE, tenor
GEOFFREY SHAW, bass
TRISTRAM FRY, percussion
AQUIL ALTERA . . Jacops [sic] da Bologna
IN TUA MEMONIA [sic] . . Arnold de Nantins [sic Lantins]
WESTRON WYNDE . . Anon
_________
WESTERN WIND MASS . . John Tavener [sic]
[…]
Pause
VENI SANCTE SPIRITAS [sic] . . Robert Sherlan [sic] Johnson
(First performance written for Summer School)
LITTLE CANTATA OF PROVERBS (Blake) . . Alexander Goehr [John Alldis launched the John Alldis Choir with its premiere in 1962 1]
_________
SIBYLLA DELPHIA [sic]
LA NUIET [sic] FROIDE ET SOMBRE
FUYONS TOUS
BONJOUR MON COER
ICH WEISS MICH [sic] EIN MADLEIN [sic] . . Orlando di lassus [sic]
[21]
Friday, 20 August at 8 p.m.
EMANUEL HURWITZ, violin
LEONARD FRIEDMAN, violin
CECIL ARONOWITZ, viola
TERENCE WEIL, cello
WILLIAM BENNETT, flute
PETER GRAEME, oboe
WILLIAM WATERHOUSE, bassoon
NEIL SANDERS, horn
HILLARY WILSON, harp
BARBARA ELSY, soprano
PAULINE STEVENS, contralto
IAN PARTRIDGE, tenor
GEOFFREY SHAW, bass
MEMBERS OF THE SUMMER SCHOOL
LAWRENCE FOSTER, director
PETER MAXWELL DAVIES, director
I. Canon for Syntagma Musicum (1619) . . Michael Praetorius
[…]
_________
II. Dunstable:
voices and instruments: Sanctus and Agnus Dei
organ: Sub tuam protectionem
voices and instruments: Motet, “Veni Sancte Spiritus – Veni Creator”
[…]
[22]
III. (a) Plainsong, Gloria Tibi Trinitas
(b) Benedictus, from “Gloria Tibit Trinitas” Mass . . John Taverner
(c) In Nomine . . John Taverner
(d) In Nomine . . Thomas Tallis
(e) Gloria Tibi Trinitas . . John Blitheman
(f) Two “In Nomines” . . Peter Maxwell Davies
Commissioned by Melos Ensemble for Summer School
(g) Fantasia (In Nomine) . . Henry Purcell
[…]
The two new “In Nomines” use the plainsong, and the instrumental versions of the Tallis and Blitheman are by Maxwell Davies.
TRAGOEDIA . . Harrison Birtwistle
First performance, commissioned by the Melos Ensemble for the Summer School
[…]
[23]
INTERVAL – 25 MINUTES
[…]
V. Motet – Ecce Manus Tradentis . . Peter Maxwell Davies
[…]
[24]
Saturday, 21 August at 5 p.m.
RECITAL
ROGER SMALLEY, piano
BRIAN DENNIS, baritone
WILLIAM YORK, clarinet
JOHN WHITE, tenor horn
TWO PIECES from AMORES for prepared piano . . John Cage
LAST PIECES . . Morton Feldman
FEBRUARY PIECES I, II, III . . Cornelius Cardew
NEUMES RHYTHMIQUES
ILE DE FEU I . . Messiaen
_________
Pause
_________
PIANO PIECES . . Karlheinz Stockhausen
TWO POEMS of D. H. LAWRENCE
for baritone, clarinet, tenor horn, piano (1st performance) . . Roger Smalley
_________
These concerts are given with the support of the Arts Council of Great Britain
A letter from the WCSS treasurer, H. O. Young to the Arts Council clarified the programme with information about a participant’s concert:
The sixth concert was on Saturday and describted as the ‘Participants Concrt [sic]’. It was made up of the following items:-
Bach Double Concerto for 2 violins in D minor. Leonard Freedman and Emmanuel Hurwitz.
Bach Cantata conducted by John Aldis and sung by participants. Solo parts by Barbara Elsy, Pauline Stevens, Geffrey Shaw and Ian Partridge.
March ‘Verdi’ from Macbeth played by Participants and conducted by John Aldis.
The concert was well attended and included in the average attendances as stated. (ACGB/51/1265)
Filed under: What music was performed?, Alldis, Arnold de Lantins, Aronowitz, Babbitt, Bach, Barbara Elsy, Beardslee, Beethoven, Birtwistle, Blitheman, Brian Dennis, Busoni, Cage, Cardew, Chambers, Chansons de Bilitis, de Peyer, Downes, Dunstable, Ecce Manus Tradentis, Edward Downes, Eisler, Feldman, Geoffrey Shaw, Gibbons, Goehr, Goethe, Hacker, Hillary Wilson, Holloway, Hurwitz, Ian Partridge, Jacopo da Bologna, John White, Martirano, Mayrhofer, Melos Ensemble, Messiaen, Mozart K. 454, Orlando di Lasso, Pauline Stevens, Philomel, Pierrot Lunaire, Praetorius, Pruslin, Purcell, Robin Holloway, Roger Smalley, Roseberry, Schoenberg, Schubert, Shakespeare, Sherlaw Johnson, Stockhausen, Stoliberg, Subotnick, Tavener, Taverner, Tippett, Tragoedia, Veni sancte spiritus, Webern, Weil, Westron Wynde, William York
Wardourcastlesummerschool 