Rubbra: Violin Concerto

In the wake of the Dyson concerto I remembered another mid-twentieth century, British violin concerto in my collection that remained unexplored. Rubbra's only excursion in that particular genre (op. 103) dates from 1958 and hence is roughly contemporaneous with his great Seventh Symphony. (In addition there is a Viola Concerto from 1952.)

Compared to Dyson's enjoyable but suave meditation Rubbra's concerto is quite a different kettle of fish. Commentators often refer to this composer's 'serene joyfulness' as a key feature but it doesn't strike me that way. Despite a penchant for rustic folksiness and an interiorised, almost mystical spirituality I find Rubbra's music gritty and confrontational. Also this concerto speaks of high tragedy and even Angst. The first movement is a tightly knit sonata movement that propels itself forward with an uncomfortable urgency. It seems to have been written by a composer haunted by violent memories. Those familiar with Rubbra's mature symphonies will easily connect to the concerto's stylistic ambit: thematic material with clear, forceful outlines (almost like woodcuts), a workmanlike orchestration, an harmonic pallette that is a curious mix of density and luminosity, and a very organic conception of form (despite the sonata template). In the liner notes Malcolm MacDonald points out that the stern opening theme has qua rhythm and interval structure been compared to that of Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony and that correspondence is indeed easy to pick up. It seems to me that the kinship between these two compositions goes further than merely the structure of the leading theme. As in the Shostakovich symphony there is an emotional ambiguity at the heart of the work. The dance-like finale - Allegro giocoso - comes across as another instance of rejoicing under duress. And the slow movement - Poema (Lento ma non troppo) - is a noble but stone-cold threnody.

Despite the fact that this performance is able to communicate the urgency of this rather special music, I can't help thinking that it must be possible to do much, much better. When I first heard it in the headphones I was appalled. It sounded scrawny and lacked delicacy both in the solo part and in the orchestral accompaniment. On the speakers the recording comes through marginally better. However, the Naxos sound is criminally prosaic and the Ulster Orchestra give a rather deadpan performance. I am not impressed either with Krysia Osostowicz as a soloist. As a chamber musician (member of the Domus Quartet) she has recorded quite a bit of Rubbra, but this rendering seems to scratch only the surface. But I must admit that despite these misgivings the music has no trouble persuading the listener of its great qualities. Nevertheless it is a surprise to notice that at present there is no alternative at all in the catalogue. The 1980s recording with Tamsin Little and Vernon Handley conducting the Royal Philharmonic (Conifer) is unavailable. And so is the older recording with Carl Pini and the Melbourne SO (Unicorn). So sadly we'll have to do with the Naxos for the time being.