Tippett: Symphonies Nos. 3, 4 & B Flat – BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Martyn Brabbins Hyperion

Symphony No 3[57’45]Rachel Nicholls (soprano)
CD1
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Part 1a: Allegro non troppo e pesante (Arrest) – Allegro molto e con grande energia (Movement) –[13’06]2
Part 1b: Lento[15’32]3
Part 2a: Allegro molto –[6’42]4
Part 2b: Slow blues: Andante – As I drew nurture from my mother’s breast[3’28]Mark O’Keeffe (flugelhorn)
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Part 2c: Fast blues: Allegro O, I’ll go walking[2’51]6
Part 2d: Slow blues: Largo – I found the man grown to a dwarf[5’03]7
Part 2e: Pochissimo meno mosso They sang that when she waved her wings[11’03]Symphony No 4[35’39]CD2
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Part 1, Introduction and exposition: Tempo 1: slow crotchet pulse (quaver = c100)[4’02]9
Part 2 Figure 21, First development: Tempo 1[4’41]10
Part 3 Figure 52, Slow movement: Tempo 1[8’42]11
Part 4 Figure 78, Second development: Tempo 2: steady crotchet pulse (crotchet = c60)[3’19]12
Part 5 Figure 100, Scherzo: Tempo 3: fast crotchet pulse (crotchet = c90)[4’19]13
Part 6 Figure 139, Third development: Tempo 1 –[5’02]14
Part 7 Figure 160, Recapitulation and coda: Tempo 1[5’34]Symphony in B flat[27’09]15
Lento – Allegro con fuoco[10’43]16
Adagio – Poco più andante – Adagio[7’09]17
Allegro e cantabile[9’17]The first opportunity to experience Tippett’s unique symphonic voice stretching across nearly half a century, from the early B flat symphony (here receiving its first recording) to the extraordinary ‘birth-to-death’ span encompassed by No 4.