Bringing Britain’s musical heritage alive

Founded in 1979, the British Music Society is dedicated to promoting and preserving Britain’s musical heritage with particular emphasis on 20th century composers through recordings, publications and events
Professor Raymond Warren

Obituary: Raymond Warren

Professor Raymond Warren, who has died aged 96, was part of that Interwar generation of British composers that owed a stylistic debt to Tippett and Britten…

Arnold Cooke - Complete String Quartets, Vol. Two

British composers featured in new releases

Toccata Classics will launch two new releases of music by British composers including Arnold Cooke and Charles Harford Lloyd…

Cardiff University Logo

University seeks applications for British music research

Following the reversal of the decision to close the Music Department at Cardiff University, new PhD Studentships in research have been announced....
Dr Jonathan Clinch and Diana McVeagh

Finzi biographer Diana McVeagh dies aged 98

Diana McVeagh, author and long-term BMS member, died on 2 July aged 98…

Curry Rival, Somerset concert

BMS trust to promote Hurd’s music in 2026

Many members will remember the generous grant for the British Music Society left in composer Michael Hurd’s estate…

 Latest features & reviews

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Symphony No 5

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Symphony No 5

This excellent series of VW symphonies continues. Mr Brabbins and his forces have reached number 5 so there are 4 more to go and they are eagerly awaited. He is ‘Mr Reliable’. Like previous issues, his music-making is deeply considered, and paced and shaped with certainty, with the result being a very satisfying experience.

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TAVENER: No Longer Mourn for Me

TAVENER: No Longer Mourn for Me

… taken from Tavener’s set of Three Shakespeare Sonnets, originally composed for the South Iceland Chamber Choir is No Longer Mourn for Me. Although by far the shortest work, it gives its name to the whole CD. It sounds absolutely delicious in this version for eight cellos by Steven Isserlis.

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Glasgow Bells: Organ Music by Alan Gibb & Friends

Glasgow Bells: Organ Music by Alan Gibb & Friends

The first three works are unusual since they use different instruments along with the organ. The first of these gives its title to the CD as a whole. It is Glasgow Bells.

Based on an earlier composition by Gibbs, Glasgow Toccata, it brings together master organist Kevin Bowyer famed for his prowess with ‘very difficult music’, and celebrated percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie.

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Loquacious: Music by Peter Fender

Loquacious: Music by Peter Fender

The very slim booklet note contains just the three song texts and a few minimal words from the composer about the music, so I had to go to his several websites to discover that he is a conductor and composer who works with ensembles in London and Sussex, and abroad such as in Bulgaria and Italy.

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LENNOX BERKELEY: Complete Piano Music

LENNOX BERKELEY: Complete Piano Music

Berkeley wrote piano music from the mid-1920s to a few years before he died in 1989, but these two CDs contain less than two hours’ music.

This is a quite comprehensive survey, but should it be called The Complete Piano Works when there are others for piano four hands?

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