Whether one loves the orchestral music of
Hamilton Harty for its romance, for its color, for its lyricism, or simply for its unbridled Irish enthusiasm or whether one loathes
Harty's music for its spectacle, for its display, for its sentimentality, or simply for its unbridled Irish enthusiasm, one is able to affirm that this collection of
Harty's orchestral music performed by
Bryden Thomson conducting the
Ulster Orchestra on Chandos is precisely the sort of thing that record companies do best, that is, providing the opportunity for anyone who loves or loathes the music of
Hamilton Harty to find out and decide for themselves.
Thomson is a conscientious advocate of
Harty's music. He knows how to control
Harty's excitement in fast movements and his excesses in slow movements. He knows how to tame
Harty's extravagant colors and to cool his ardor at climaxes. He knows how to keep a tight grip on
Harty's forms and structures and not give in to the charms of a passing folk song. But best of all,
Thomson makes the best case for
Harty's ability as a composer.
Thomson finds the charm and humor in A Comedy Overture, the sensuality and the melancholy in Ode to a Nightingale, the cheer and coherence in An Irish Symphony, and the wit and the wisdom in Variations on a Dublin Air. With the virtuosity of soprano
Heather Harper, violinist
Ralph Holmes, and pianist
Malcolm Binns and the dedication of the
Ulster Orchestra,
Thomson says everything that can be said and does everything that can be done with the orchestral music of
Hamilton Harty. Chandos' remastered early digital sound is an improvement over the hard and glassy originals, but the recordings still lack depth and immediacy.