2PD12 Boult's Planets
Sir Adrian Boult conducts the wartime BBC Symphony Orchestra in Holst's Planet Suite. Released with earlier recordings of Crown Imperial (Walton) and Variations on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (Vaughan Williams)

"The performance has an indefinable rightness about it, a supreme authority that makes it difficult to imagine the score being interpreted any other way. Has Mars ever resounded with more terrifying ferocity since? I very much doubt it. In Venus the playing of the BBC SO has a translucent beauty, while the impish Mercury really sparkles. Jupiter has marvelous exuberance and sparkle, its big tune lent enormous dignity and humanity. Saturn, too, is paced to perfection, and Uranus goes about his mischievous antics with terrific swagger. In Neptune one notes again the exquisite poise of the orchestral response ." Gramophone Dec. 1996.

John Quinn writes of the Planets forClassical Music on the Web:

Beulah's transfer is a good one. There is some surface hiss from the 78s but it never distracts. To a large degree this is due to the quality of the performance. Though wartime call-ups had deprived the BBCSO of many of the players who had graced its ranks in the 1930s this performance shows that it remained a fine orchestra. The playing is very fine throughout. As for Boult, his interpretation simply seems 'right'. Under his baton the music is allowed to breathe and speak for itself (the "big tune" in 'Jupiter' is given with simple eloquence and is all the better for it.)

What does come through very clearly is the quality of the BBCSO's strings. The tone is full and rich and the players respond eloquently to Boult's unfussy direction. The contrasts between the three groups of players are well observed by performers and engineers alike. It is fascinating to compare this performance with Boult's last recording of the piece which he made in 1975 with the LPO, also for HMV. In the earlier recording accents are more sharply observed and there seems a greater degree of urgency (the 1975 account is the longer by over two minutes). Both, however, are supremely authoritative.

A splendid and important issue. Top-drawer performances captured in sound which is really quite excellent for the period. The well-researched notes are ideal for an 'historic' issue for they place the performances in their historical context. This is an essential purchase for admirers of Sir Adrian and for lovers of English music. The recordings capture him in his prime performing music for which he had an especial affinity. They also give us a vivid illustration of the magnificent orchestra which he created from scratch.
Enthusiastically recommended.

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