Rumon Gamba, BBC National Orchestra of Wales - Overtures from the British Isles, Vol. 2 (2016) Hi-Res

The music here is of the sort that makes British listeners roll over and put their paws in the air; rarely heard outside of Britain, it often fills out British orchestral programs, and the Fantasy Overture, Op. 115, of York Bowen (track 3), is the only premiere. For listeners in the wider world, there's a certain sameness to these overtures that takes a bit of concentration to burrow past. Many pieces refer to some kind of scenery, much of it nautical. There's bracing opening material and a noble melody for a second theme. The tone is serious, but never, not even in Parry's Overture to an Unwritten Tragedy, overly so. Each work is beautifully wrought within this framework, and rare is the listener who won't basically enjoy the music and its sprightly realizations by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under Rumon Gamba. Sample the Overture to "The Boatswain's Mate" (track 4) by Dame Ethel Smyth, the only work that is actually an overture to something else (an opera by the composer) and a work by a female composer who was quite successful at a time when few could make that claim. The Merrymakers by Eric Coates, a composer of light music who once was very widely known, is another highlight. You can luxuriate in Chandos' fine sound, and the music itself will deliver the pleasant hour it promises.