大象传媒

Daniel Grimley for Building a Library recommends a recording of Delius's Sea Drift, a setting for baritone, chorus and orchestra of words by Walt Whitman.

In the poem, the speaker describes how, as a boy, he watched a pair of mocking-birds nesting, until one day the she-bird flew away and never returned. In this atmospheric work Delius marvellously conjures up the motion of the waves in the sound of the orchestra.

Top recommendation:

Delius: American Masterworks
DELIUS: Appalachia (Variations on an old slave song); Sea Drift; Koanga: four excerpts
Henriette Bonde-Hansen (soprano), Johan Reuter (baritone), Simon Duus (baritone), Aarhus Symphony Orchestra Choir, Aarhus Cathedral Choir, AarhusSymphony Orchestra, Bo Holten (conductor)
DANACORD DACOCD732 (CD)

Historical recommendation (currently unavailable)

The Beecham Delius Magic
DELIUS: Sea Drift; 'Hassan' Incidental Music; An Arabesk
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Bruce Boyce, 大象传媒 Chorus, Thomas Beecham (conductor)
SONY SBK62752 (CD)

Other recordings:

Below is a shortlist of other recordings which Nicholas Kenyon also liked, although we can鈥檛 guarantee the availability of these discs.

DELIUS: Sea Drift; Florida Suite
Orchestra and Chorus of Welsh National Opera, Thomas Hampson, Charles Mackerras (conductor)
ARGO 430 206-2 (CD)

Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius
DELIUS: Sea Drift
ELGAR: The Dream of Gerontius Op. 38
HOLST: The Hymn of Jesus, H140
John Shirley-Quirk, London Symphony Chorus, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Richard Hickox (conductor), Peter Pears, Yvonne Minton, The Choir of King's College, Cambridge, London Symphony Orchestra, Benjamin Britten (conductor), 大象传媒 Chorus, 大象传媒 Symphony Orchestra, Adrian Boult (conductor)
DECCA 4481702 (2CD budget)

Delius: Sea Drift, Songs of Farewell & Songs of Sunset
DELIUS: Sea Drift; Songs of Farewell; Songs of Sunset
Sally Burgess (mezzo-soprano), Bryn Terfel (baritone), Waynflete Singers, Southern Voices, Bournemouth Symphony Chorus and Orchestra, Richard Hickox (conductor)
CHANDOS CHAN10868X (CD budget)

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