Chamber Ensemble of London & Peter Fisher - Eclogue (2022) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. 3 Pieces for Oboe & Strings: No. 1, Pastorale. Andante
02. 3 Pieces for Oboe & Strings: No. 2, Air. Adagio
03. 3 Pieces for Oboe & Strings: No. 3, Scherzo. Giocoso
04. Eclogue, Op.10
05. Venice in the Rain
06. Concertino for Flute & Strings: I. —
07. Concertino for Flute & Strings: II. —
08. Concertino for Flute & Strings: III. —
09. Frensham Pond (Arr. P. Cigleris for Clarinet & Strings)
10. The Watermill
11. Concertino in E Minor for Harp & Orchestra, Op. 34: II. Romanza
12. Y deryn pur (Arr. for Clarinet & Strings)
13. Seventeen Going on Eighteen
14. Concertante for Clarinet & Strings
15. Mr John Peel Passes By
16. Piano Concertino: I. Allegro
17. Piano Concertino: II. Moderato
18. Piano Concertino: III. Allegro

SOMM Recordings is delighted to announce the release of Eclogue. British Chamber Music, a collection of British chamber music from the 19th to the 21st centuries including nine first recordings featuring the label debut of the Chamber Ensemble of London in their 25th anniversary year with director Peter Fisher.

Illustrious guest artists – Margaret Fingerhut (piano), Gabriella Dall’Olio (harp), Peter Cigleris (clarinet), Judith Hall (flute) and Michael Stowe (oboe) – join the ensemble for a wide-ranging survey that includes Gerald Finzi’s masterpiece, Eclogue.

Receiving first recordings are two works by Clive Jenkins – his Piano Concertino of 2018, performed by its dedicatee, Margaret Fingerhut; and Three Pieces for Oboe especially arranged by the composer for this recital – and the recently deceased Joseph Horovitz’s Concertante for Clarinet and Strings. Also new to disc are Alan Ridout’s three-part Concertino for Flute and Strings, Cecilia McDowall’s Y deryn pur (‘the gentle dove’), two extracts from Don Shearman’s Eine Kleine Leichtmusik (‘A Little Lightmusic’) and a new arrangement by Peter Cigleris of ‘Frensham Pond’ from William Lloyd Webber’s Country Impressions.

Among the rarities featured are the Romance from Elias Parish Alvars’ Concertino for Harp and Orchestra, and Robin Milford’s Mr John Peel Passes By, alongside Ronald Binge’s ever-popular The Watermill, familiar to television viewers as the theme for a BBC adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden.

Formed by violinist and director Peter Fisher in 1997, the Chamber Ensemble of London consists of handpicked players from leading London- based orchestras and chamber music ensembles and performs widely throughout the capital.

Fisher and longtime ensemble associate, pianist Margaret Fingerhut, recently released Malcolm Arnold: A Centenary Celebration on SOMM (SOMMCD 0640) to widespread acclaim. A Gramophone Recommended Recording and Norman Lebrecht’s Album of the Week, it received five-star reviews from Musical Opinion and The Mail on Sunday, which declared it “a real joy”.

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