Scott Of The Antarctic

[John M Brear]

Approx 40 minutes into this film, we hear a 78 record of 'Abide with me'.



Can anyone tell me the singer (a counter-tenor) or even the recording?

It certainly sounds to be much earlier than the date of the film, but I'm not sure if it is early enough to be contemporary with the events.

[JOHN.G.GREENGRASS]

HELLO JOHN...I CAN TELL YOU THAT THIS RECORDING WAS MADE IN FEB. 1910 (HMV) BY THE CONTRALTO DAME CLARA BUTT (1872-1936) AND IS THERFORE CONTEMPORARY WITH THE EVENTS.

[Marky B]

I recently bought a new CD at the HMV shop. It was of music by Ralph Vaughn Williams,and as those might remember a while back one of my favourite pieces is Fantasia On A Theme By Thomas Tallis. This was included,but I mainly bought it for The Lark Ascending,a beautiful piece of violin work. However,one of the pieces also on the CD was Sinfonia Antartica - Landscape (III Lento),which I presumed is from Scott of the Antarctic. This was another new find to add to my favourites (I hadn't heard of The Lark Ascending until buying the CD). It was an elegiac tone,sombre in mood,describing the bitterness of the snowscape,building up to an organ finale with impending menace.

Other pieces included

Fantasia on Greensleeves

English Folk Suite:

I March (Seventeen Come Sunday)

II Intermezzo (My Bonny Boy)

III March (Folk Songs From Somerset)

The Wasps - Aristophanic Suite (Ballet and Final Tableau)

Job - A MAsque For Dancing (Satan's Dance of Triumph)

Serenade to Music (Shakespeare)

A bargain at £4.99 for who anyone loves one of England's greatest composers.

Ta Ta

Marky B

[Wetherby Pond]

The 1952 Sinfonia antartica was indeed a five-movement symphonic reworking of the music that Vaughan Williams wrote for Scott of the Antarctic - the third movement is probably the most abstract of the lot, and pretty much lives up to your description.



There are quite a few differences between the film score and the symphony, though in this case I think that's a good thing: film music often sounds dreadfully bitty when performed separately. For a good example, listen to Yuri Temirkanov's rendition of the original film score of Alexander Nevsky and compare it with Prokofiev's concert rewrite: the latter is a much more satisfying listening experience. Has anyone ever even tried to record the original 1948 Scott score?

[Marky B]

Thanks for that interesting reply ,Weatherby. I just assumed it was the original score for the film. As mentioned before,his "Thomas Tallis" music was used to great effect in Master & Commander - Far Side of the World.

Ta Ta

Marky B

[Freddy]

Vaughan Williams Film music



BBC film music



regards



Freddy

[Marky B]

Originally posted by Freddy@Aug 17 2005, 07:51 PM

Vaughan Williams Film music



BBC film music



regards



Freddy

Thanks for that,Freddy

Ta Ta

Marky B

[Marky B]

Reading September's Film Review,there is a small feature about a new album called The Film Music of Ralph Vaughn Williams Volume 3 (I didn't think he had scored that many movies to qualify for three albums). It includes the wartime propaganda story The Flemish Farm,The Loves of Joanna Godden and the UK/Australian "western" Bitter Springs. I had to look up what Bitter Springs was about as the album cover has three cowboys with a rifle - a quintessential English composer writing for a John Wayne western,or whatever:eek: .

Ta Ta

Marky B

[Steve Crook]

Reading September's Film Review,there is a small feature about a new album called The Film Music of Ralph Vaughn Williams Volume 3 (I didn't think he had scored that many movies to qualify for three albums). It includes the wartime propaganda story The Flemish Farm,The Loves of Joanna Godden and the UK/Australian "western" Bitter Springs. I had to look up what Bitter Springs was about as the album cover has three cowboys with a rifle - a quintessential English composer writing for a John Wayne western,or whatever:eek: .

Ta Ta

Marky B

Bitter Springs is an Ealing film made & set in Australia. Starring Tommy Trinder & Chips Rafferty.



The Loves of Joanna Godden was the one where RVW had to compose some music to depict an outbreak of anthrax!



Steve

[Midwich cuckoo]

'O Thou Transcendent', a recent film by Tony Palmer about VW is superb. I saw a showing of it recently at Little Missenden festival. Tony Palmer was there and signed everyones copies. The irony of the Stealth bomber footage set to the sixth symphony is so powerful. Palmer described 'The 49th Parallel' as the worst movie ever with the best score!... And of course, it has Nichola Benedetti playing 'The Lark Ascending'

[Steve Crook]

Palmer described 'The 49th Parallel' as the worst movie ever with the best score!

I bet he doesn't like Olivier's accent either



Steve