In Flight
Classical guitarist Harold Gretton offers a varied programme spanning some three centuries of solo guitar music, from Sylvius Leopold Weiß in the eighteenth century to his own Australian bird-inspired pieces of the twenty-first.
Johann Kaspar Mertz composer
Nikita Koshkin composer
Sylvius Leopold Weiss composer
Harold Gretton composer
Jorge Morel composer
Antonio Lauro composer
Manuel María Ponce composer
Astor Piazzolla composer
David Russell arranger
Leo Brouwer arranger
From Baroque miniatures by Sylvius Leopold Weiß to Gretton’s own Australian bird suite, the recital draws a long arc of solo guitar writing. His playing rests as much on passion and imagination as on careful research, and John Taylor’s recording catches that approach in the distinctive acoustic of the Gothic church at Weston.
Beside classical and Latin favourites sit world-première recordings of Gretton’s own music. The package is completed by Penny Deacon’s watercolours and by detailed historical and personal notes.
Jet-lagged and unacclimatised to London’s winter chill was how I followed John Taylor into the Gothic Holy Trinity church in Weston on the 2nd of January 2019. It was to nestle into a cocoon of heaters in the middle of a pewless timber floor, perched on a wooden chair, playing music I love into a marvellous acoustic, and there was no place I’d rather be.
This album feels a long time coming. My relationship with some pieces stretching back over 20 years. My teenage lust for new repertoire was insatiable, and had me fumbling through works well beyond my abilities, including Sor’s timeless Magic Flute Variations. Aesthetically, the simple harmony, pure counterpoint and exquisite melodies make this an obvious starting point for the programme – an invitation into the intimate sound of the classical guitar.
Artist
Harold Gretton
Harold Gretton began playing guitar at the age of 7. He has won numerous national and international competitions, and been awarded many prizes, performing widely across Europe, North America, Asia and Australia.
Tracks
- Introduction, Theme and Variations on “O cara armonia” from the Magic Flute, op. 9 Fernando Sor 9:37
- Fantaisie Hongroise, op. 65 Johann Kaspar Mertz 6:49
- i. The mischievous prince 3:04
- ii. The mechanical monkey 2:53
- iii. The doll with the blinking eyes 5:51
- iv. Tin soldiers 3:04
- v. The prince’s coach 2:26
- Fuga 2:50
- Passacaille 4:10
- Caprice 2:18
- i. Currawong 4:46
- ii. Magpie 2:25
- iii. Blue Wren 1:59
- iv. Galah 1:33
- v. Rainbow Lorikeet 4:07
- Danza Brasilera Jorge Morel 2:39
- La Negra Antonio Lauro 2:50
- Estrellita Manuel María Ponce Arr: David Russell 2:39
- La Muerte del Ángel Astor Piazzolla Arr: Leo Brouwer 5:07
- Inarticulate Music Harold Gretton 4:02
The Prince’s Toys Nikita Koshkin
Three works in D Sylvius Leopold Weiss
Flock Harold Gretton
Performers
- Harold Gretton · guitar
Composers
Astor Piazzolla
Astor Piazzolla turned the tango into something sharper, more restless and chamber-like. His nuevo tango draws jazz harmony and classical counterpoint into the dance without blunting its edge.
Leo Brouwer
Leo Brouwer’s guitar music moves between Cuban pulse, modernist experiment and later modal clarity. The Etudes Simples, Hika in memory of Takemitsu, Micro Pieza and Berceuse show how sharply he can shape atmosphere and motif.
Johann Kaspar Mertz
Johann Kaspar Mertz (1806–1856) was an Austrian guitarist and composer whose romantic character pieces and concert fantasias remain central to the nineteenth-century guitar repertoire.
Jorge Morel
Jorge Morel wrote for the classical guitar with a blend of Latin American rhythm and jazz harmony. His Danza Brasiliera and other pieces have become part of the instrument's standard concert and chamber repertoire.
Manuel María Ponce
Manuel Ponce’s music draws Mexican popular song and folklore into the concert hall. His guitar works sit at the centre of the instrument’s repertory, while piano pieces and songs reshape European forms with a distinctly Latin American voice.
David Russell
David Russell’s countertenor cuts cleanly through Mozart’s scatological canons with The Song Company, and he takes the solo line in Martin Wesley-Smith’s Who Killed Cock Robin?, turning the falsely accused caterpillar into a soft-shoe turn of real charm.
Sylvius Leopold Weiss
Sylvius Leopold Weiss left the largest known body of music for the lute: late Baroque sonatas, fantasias and concertos of intricate counterpoint and singing line, still claimed by classical guitar and mandolin as well as the period instrument.
Contributors
watercolours
Penny Deacon
Where to listen
In Flight is available for streaming through Spotify and Apple Music. It can also be purchased through the iTunes Music Store.
In Flight is available as a CD. It can be purchased online through Buywell Music or the Australian Music Centre which both offer online ordering.
Product details
- Catalogue number
- MCD 627
- List price
- $25.00 AUD
- Total playing time
- 75 minutes 9 seconds
- Recording Engineer
- John Taylor
- Editing Engineer
- John Taylor
- Mastering Engineer
- John Taylor
- Venue
- Holy Trinity Church, Weston
- Credit
- Penny Deacon
- Release date
- 1 Dec 2022
- Musical work
copyright - © 2022 Harold Gretton
- Sound recording
copyright - ℗ 2022 Move Records
- Category
- Classical
- Genres
- Contemporary Classical, Baroque
- Barcode
- EAN 9314574062724