The works on this recording embrace a varied miscellany of Peter Maxwell Davies’ orchestral output from the early 1990s. The ‘choreographic poem’ The Beltane Fire pits the sternness of the Reformation clergy against the pagan traditions of the Orkney Islands. Concerned with environmental pollution, The Turn of the Tide ultimately reaches “a triumphant dance of all creation”, while the Threnody and Pavan are poignant memorial tributes for significant figures in the composer’s life.
Tracklist
Artist details
Maxwell Davies, Peter
The Beltane Fire
1 Scene 1: In the Barn of the Bu 06:42
2 Interlude I 02:10
3 Scene 2: A Field 09:12
4 Interlude II 02:11
5 Scene 3: The Kirk 04:10
6 Scene 4: The Field 04:37
7 Scene 5: The Beltane Fire 08:54
Maxwell Davies, Peter
Maxwell Davies, Peter - Lyricist
The Turn of the Tide
8 Section I: I. The creation of underwater plants - 02:38
9 Section I: II. The creation of plants on land - 00:55
10 Section I: III. The creation of the first sea creatures - 01:20
11 Section I: IV. The creation of birds - 01:08
12 Section I: V. Mammals, and first people 02:51
13 Section II: I. The underwater plants flourish - 00:36
14 Section II: II. The trees flourish - 00:50
15 Section II: III. The prosperity of fish - 01:11
16 Section II: IV. Bird migration - 00:38
17 Section II: V. Instinct and intellect in mammals and mankind 00:40
18 Section V: I. The sea plants are poisoned - 00:54
19 Section V: II. The trees are suffocated - 00:17
20 Section V: III. The fish are deformed and cannot function - 00:16
21 Section V: IV. The birds fall from the sky - 00:34
22 Section V: V. Hubris triumphant - 00:24
23 Section VI: The warning is heeded - Nature reborn - The decline is reversed 09:23
Maxwell Davies, Peter
Sunday Morning
24 Sunday Morning 02:07
Threnody on a Plainsong for Michael Vyner
25 Threnody on a Plainsong for Michael Vyner 03:29
Sir Charles his Pavan
26 Sir Charles his Pavan 04:43
Total Playing Time: 01:12:50
