3CDs
COMPACT DISC 1 (77’21)
1-3 J. S. BACH Keyboard Concerto No 1 in D minor BWV1052 Orchestra conducted by Sir Henry Wood (24.16) (1924)
4-21 J. S. BACH The Well-Tempered Clavier Book I: Preludes & Fugues Nos. 1-9 BWV846 - BWV854(1928)
22 BACH/RUMMEL Sanctify us by thy goodness, from Cantata No 22 (2’41) (1928)
23 BACH/COHEN Beloved Jesus, we are here BWV731 (2.37) (1928)
COMPACT DISC 2 (76’13)
1-3 J. S. BACH Keyboard Concerto No 1 in D minor BWV1052 Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Walter Susskind (24.44)(1946)
4-5 J. S. BACH Prelude & Fugue No 4 BWV849 from WTC Book 1 (7.39)(1947).
6-8 BACH/COHEN Sanctify us by thy goodness (2.39); Beloved Jesus, we are here (2.41); Up! Arouse thee! (4.03)(1935)
9 BACH/PETRI Fantasia (Praeludium) in C minor BWV921 (3.21) (1935)
10-12 MOZART Piano Sonata No 10 in C major K330 (15.32) (1932)
13-16 CHOPIN Nocturne Op 15 No 1 (5.00); .Nouvelles Études Nos. 1 & 3 (4.12) (1943); Étude Op 25 No 7 (5.50) (1928)
COMPACT DISC 3 (78’41)
1-2 BRAHMS Ballade in D minor Op 10 No 1 (4.24); Intermezzo in B flat major Op 76 No 4 (2.30) (1930)
3-4 DEBUSSY Clair de lune (4.26); La cathédrale engloutie, No 10 from Préludes Book I (4.52) (1948)
5-7 DE FALLA Andaluza (4.18);. The Fisherman’s Tale (2.12); The Miller’s Dance (2.19) (1943)
8-10 KABALEVSKY Sonatina in C major Op 13 No 1 (6.52) (1943)
11 SHOSTAKOVICH Prelude in E flat minor Op 34 No 14 (2.33) (1943)
12 GIBBONS Ayre – Alman – Toy – Coranto – Mr Sanders His Delight (4.19) (1947)
13 GIBBONS/VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Hymn Tune Prelude on Song 13 (4.20) (1947)
14-16 BAX Paean (3.47) (1938); A Hill Tune (4.53) (1942); A Mountain Mood (4.42) (1942)
17 BAX Morning Song (Maytime in Sussex) Orchestra cond. Dr Malcolm Sargent (8.25) (1947)
18 BAX The Oliver Theme from the film Oliver Twist Philharmonia Orchestra cond. Muir Mathieson (7.46) (1948)
19 BATH Cornish Rhapsody from the film Love Story London Symphony Orchestra cond. Hubert Bath (6.11) (1944)
The Matthay School Volume 2
Certainly the most glamerous of the Matthay students, Harriet Cohen was also the most extrovert and to the general public was known as a socialite as much as a pianist. Her friends included George Bernard Shaw and Ramsay MacDonald and she became notorious as the lover of the married Arnold Bax. Behind this apparently superficial exterior lay a surprising intellect and her repertoire favoured Bach and earlier music or contemporary music (much of it dedicated to her) rather than the more popular, and frequently played, romantic repertoire.
Few of her recordings have been reissued on CD so this will be an eagerly awaited set. It includes the first ever (acoustic) recording of Bach's D minor concerto, and the later post-war remake, and also several of the works Bax wrote for her.