Victoria String Quartet
John Bradbury clarinet
Richard Simpson oboe
Simon Leach piano
divine art ddx 21104
Helen Leach lives with her family, she tells us in the colourful booklet, ‘in the beautiful Scottish borders’. Thus, it is not surprising that it is Scotland and Scottish connections which have informed and powered her own compositions.
The CD consists of 10 works. I cannot go into all of them so I will point you in the direction of four which I feel represent what this CD is all about. Two of these pieces represent Royal events and are connected with Canongate church on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, where her husband Simon, featured here as a pianist, is organist.
Prelude for a Royal Occasion opens the disc, and was played in the presence of HRH Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh in August 2023, and it is dignified and immediate in appeal. Similar in scope is Edinburgh Farewell, composed in 2021 for a memorial service in homage to HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. The original version was for Simon to play on the organ, but it is here heard on violin and piano.
The beautifully mournful The Black Rood of Scotland is scored for string quartet and oboe. It was written at the start of Covid. Leach writes that she ‘wanted to connect with the Christian roots of the country, and with a stream of melody and rich harmony’.
With similar Christian and strongly historical connections is Tenera Caritate for clarinet and string quartet, inspired by a place of ‘personal pilgrimage’, Lindisfarne. It is gentle and, like much of the music on this disc, will not ‘scare the horses’ but lure the listener into a world outside the hustle and bustle of everyday existence.
The title of the disc is the longest work recorded here. The Diary of the Bee is a five-movement composition lasting 20 minutes, scored again for clarinet and string quartet. Five wildflowers are portrayed with their ‘beautiful hues and intriguing fragrances’. A poem about each, by the composer, with illustrations, is provided in the booklet. These are Bluebell, Thistle with a touch of modality and a ‘scotch snap’ or two, the elegant Forget-me-not, the Wild Rose, and finally the jocular Buttercup. In every work the language is diatonic and tuneful.
And, for a work first heard in a school by ‘wide-eyed’ Scottish children, I can think of no better description of this piece than the comment made a young girl who I teach, who concluded ‘you know that’s really nice’.
Review by Gary Higginson