Concertante for Piano  / In Memoriam
Presently Chandos of England is the only label giving Sir Arnold Bax any currency. It has recorded nearly all of Bax's music, nearly all of it well done. Credit goes to conductors such as the late Bryden Thomson as well as Vernon Handley, who helms the present collection. This disc contains the premiere recordings of a tone poem, a work for piano and orchestra, and a work for mezzo-soprano and orchestra--Bax in three wonderful dimensions. Handley brings a tad more warmth to Bax's music than Thomson (who deftly captured Bax's darker aspects, especially in the symphonies); but the greatest credit must go to Chandos and its state-of-the-art recording technology. Bax enthusiasts will want this disc; newcomers won't find a better introduction.--Paul Cook