Bowen and Walton Viola Concertos (CD Review)

by Ryan Ross

York Bowen: Concerto for Viola and Orchestra, Op. 25; William Walton: Concerto for Viola and Orchestra in A Minor. Diyang Mei, violist; Brett Dean, conductor; Deutsche Radio Philharmonie. SWR Music SWR19158CD

 

As far as I can tell, this is the first time that the York Bowen and William Walton Viola Concertos have appeared together on the same recording. Given how small the viola concerto repertoire is, this may be somewhat surprising at first glance. But most who are familiar with both works would probably say that it’s a decidedly uneven pairing. It’s not so surprising that the Bowen has been committed to disc only about four times previously. Despite making a good impression in its early days, it is just not in the same league as the Walton Concerto. Bowen is one of those composers I want to love, one who wrote loads of meat-and-potatoes instrumental repertoire that I was once eager to jump into. But while he had remarkable craft and facility, he didn’t possess much of a vision. His music is nice in the moment and difficult to recall afterward.

In some ways this pairing is unfortunate for its musicians. Had they offered up the Cecil Forsyth Viola Concerto (for example) with the Bowen instead of the Walton, as Lawrence Power did with Martyn Brabbins and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (Hyperion CDA67546), they might have produced a consistently fine effort. Instead, what we have is Diyang Mei and company playing with skill and polish in the Bowen and struggling with the higher expressive stakes of the Walton. In the former, these musicians deliver each pleasant but inconsequential theme with sparkle and convey a strong sense of the whole…such as it is.

Walton toiled over his creations with little of the ease Bowen exercised. If we’re honest, that toil produced a smallish and uneven output. But when his inspiration was hot, the results could be distinguished beyond anything of which Bowen was capable. Sometimes Walton’s inconsistency persisted in these distinguished efforts, as in a First Symphony that joins a world-beating torso with a decidedly weaker conclusion. In the Viola Concerto we have high inspiration with matching realization, a balance he never quite equaled again. Its musical depths test performers in ways that Bowen’s concerto does not. One is a masterpiece, the other isn’t.

I find Diyang Mei and company at times unequal to these depths. The Walton is essentially an introspective work with flashes of drama. More than this, it’s an integrated whole with subtle momentum that should not be allowed to flag. Mei and company often bounce along too insouciantly, especially in the middle and final movements. The latter just gets too bogged down at times, with atomized phrases and visible seams. I also find that the orchestra occasionally smudges lines and timbres. Thematic statements occasionally need to come off more sharply. In the first movement the intense, rhythmic entries of the brass and percussion behind the virtuosity of the soloist are under-delivered, obscuring the character of this important material. Mei’s playing is generally good, and there are plenty of fine moments across his performance. But the interpretation needs an overall firmer grip of the work’s spirit. 

In sum, we have something less than a qualified success and something more than a qualified failure. I’d guess that for most listeners the prospect of a so-so Walton rendition pairing is not a compelling reason to consider this very good Bowen. Things would be different if we were instead given a solid account of either the Rubbra or Arnold Viola Concertos (for example) to accompany Sir William’s own. But we weren’t, and so I’ll simply recommend this to Bowen fans (however many there are to be found) and collectors of Walton Viola Concerto performances. Everyone else’s precious time and money are better directed elsewhere.