English Northern Philharmonia, David Lloyd-Jones - Bliss: A Colour Symphony (1996)

David Lloyd-Jones's exciting and idiomatic account of A Colour Symphony proves more than a match for all current competition, including the composer's own 1955 recording so spectacularly transferred by Dutton Laboratories.
Speeds are judged to perfection – nicely flowing for the first and third movements, not too hectic for the flashing Scherzo – and countless details in Bliss's stunning orchestral canvas are deftly attended to. Phrasing is sensitive and affectionate, solo work is consistently excellent (the slow movement's delicate woodwind arabesques are exquisitely voiced), and tuttis open out superbly in a technically fine recording from Naxos (magnificently keen-voiced horns throughout).
Whereas A Colour Symphony was inspired by the heraldic associations of four different colours (one for each movement), the theme of Adam Zero is the inexorable life-cycle of humankind. In its entirety, this 1946 ballet score does admittedly have its occasional longueurs, but for the most part Bliss's invention is of high quality. Certainly, the vivid exuberance and theatrical swagger of numbers like 'Dance of Spring' and 'Dance of Summer' have strong appeal. Equally, the limpid beauty of both the 'Love Dance' and the hieratic 'Bridal Ceremony' which immediately ensues isn't easily banished, while the darkly insistent 'Dance with Death' distils a gentle poignancy which is most haunting.