# Gerald Finzi



## Mirror Image

*GERALD FINZI​*







A pacifist who believed that creative artists were the prime representatives of a civilization, Gerald Finzi is perhaps best known as a composer of songs. He believed that all texts of artistic merit can be set by composers who wish to work with their artistic substance; none are either too fine or too familiar. Many of his songs are set in an aria-like style. His accompaniments, designed to complement and support the material of the singer, are often reminiscent of the treatment given his short orchestral works. Finzi was influenced in his melodic and harmonic vocabulary by the music of Elgar and Vaughan Williams. His works also show a strong influence by the music of J.S. Bach.

The son of an English ship broker, Gerald Finzi began to study music with Ernest Farrar in 1914. When Farrar joined the army in 1916, Finzi began to study with Edward Bairstow at York. In 1922, drawn to the English countryside, Finzi moved to Painswick in Gloucestershire to work in isolation. Then, in 1925, on advice from Boult, Finzi began to study counterpoint with R.O. Morris in London. From 1930 to 1933, he taught composition at the Royal Academy of Music.

In 1933, Finzi married artist Joyce Black. In 1935, the couple moved to Aldbourne in Wiltshire. Then, in 1937 they built a house, designed for them to work in, on a 16-acre site on the Hampshire hills at Ashmansworth. From this base of operations, Finzi composed, assembled a music library, and tended an orchard of rare apple trees. He also traveled, taking whatever adjudication, examination, or committee work was offered him.

In the winter of 1939, Finzi founded the Newbury String Players, a group consisting mostly of amateur musicians. Since Finzi was neither a pianist nor a singer, the orchestra became the composer's primary performance vehicle. Through this ensemble, he became an advocate of many young performers and composers, as well as a champion of English works from the eighteenth century. He kept the group together from 1941 to 1945, during which he worked at the Ministry of War Transport in London.

In 1951, Finzi learned that he suffered from a form of leukemia. He was told that he had, at the most, ten more years to live. He kept this news within his family, simply continuing to work between his treatments. In 1955, he gave the Crees lectures at the Royal College of Music; providing a somewhat provocative survey of the history and aesthetics of English song during which he presented his principles of text setting.

However, the leukemia eventually weakened the composer's resistance to infection. He died of shingles in 1956, after a chance encounter with chicken pox at the 1956 Gloucester Festival. After his death, his library of music from 1740 to 1780, at the time considered the finest collection of materials from that period in all of England, was donated to St. Andrews University, in Fife. His library of English literature, from which he had drawn so much of his inspiration, is located in the Finzi Book Room at the Reading University Library.

[Biography taken from AllMusic.com]

What do you guys think of this unappreciated English composer? He wrote some very beautiful, lyrical works.


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## Lisztfreak

Unfortunately, I have heard only two works of his, both of which are mellow, pastoral and relaxed - it's the Pastoral (why on earth is it pastoral, I wonder? ) and Dies Natalis. 

I do like both, although they seem somewhat languid. 

The mystical texts for the Dies Natalis made the piece itself more interesting to me, but I have to say the final aria is beautiful as it is, as pure music, I mean. And the Pastoral is truly calming and fresh.

I'd really love to hear more of his work, but he's extremely hard to get here, I'll have to make orders on Amazon.


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## Mirror Image

Lisztfreak said:


> Unfortunately, I have heard only two works of his, both of which are mellow, pastoral and relaxed - it's the Pastoral (why on earth is it pastoral, I wonder? ) and Dies Natalis.
> 
> I do like both, although they seem somewhat languid.
> 
> The mystical texts for the Dies Natalis made the piece itself more interesting to me, but I have to say the final aria is beautiful as it is, as pure music, I mean. And the Pastoral is truly calming and fresh.
> 
> I'd really love to hear more of his work, but he's extremely hard to get here, I'll have to make orders on Amazon.


Finzi composed beautifully lyrical pieces of music. What they lack in "drama" they make up for in stunning color and texture.

I have only recently become a fan of his music, so I'm still new to him. I do know, however, I like his orchestral works quite a lot. His "Clarinet Concerto," "The Fall of the Leaf," "Cello Concerto," " Eclogue," "Love's Labour's Lost," and "In Terra Pax" are gorgeous works that I wish orchestras played more.


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## PostMinimalist

I consider myself to be Finzi's musical grandson. I was a student of Kenneth Leighton who was one of these young composers advocated by Finzl. You can hear very clearly his influence in my own work. I adore his music and never fail to be moved by it. The recent recording of the Violin concerto by Tasmin Little and the City of London Sinfonietta under the direction of Richard Hickox is one of the best. There are the two string orchestra pieces on this CD too along with a song cycle orchestrated by various leading young british omposers including Judith Wier.
One of my favorite 'chill-outs' is the Eclogue for strings and piano. This is what J.S. Bach would have sounded like had he lived in our time, I'm sure. Nice bit of research by the way MI! The apple business is a nice foil to Delius's venture with oranges in Florida. 

I think Chandos have undertaken a 'Complete Finzi' project recently so there will be no need for Lisztfreak to worry!
FC


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## Mirror Image

post-minimalist said:


> I consider myself to be Finzi's musical grandson. I was a student of Kenneth Leighton who was one of these young composers advocated by Finzl. You can hear very clearly his influence in my own work. I adore his music and never fail to be moved by it. The recent recording of the Violin concerto by Tasmin Little and the City of London Sinfonietta under the direction of Richard Hickox is one of the best. There are the two string orchestra pieces on this CD too along with a song cycle orchestrated by various leading young british omposers including Judith Wier.
> One of my favorite 'chill-outs' is the Eclogue for strings and piano. This is what J.S. Bach would have sounded like had he lived in our time, I'm sure. Nice bit of research by the way MI! The apple business is a nice foil to Delius's venture with oranges in Florida.
> 
> I think Chandos have undertaken a 'Complete Finzi' project recently so there will be no need for Lisztfreak to worry!
> FC


That's really awesome, Post-Minimalist! I have about 4 or 5 Finzi recordings coming and one of them is that recording on Chandos you're talking with the Violin Concerto, which, by the way, is second time it has been performed. I'm really impressed with Finzi's lyricism.

It's funny you mention Delius, because I feel Delius is just as underrated as Finzi is. Hardly no one I talk to even listens to Delius why do you think this is Post-Minimalist?


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## Lisztfreak

Lisztfreak said:


> Unfortunately, I have heard only two works of his, both of which are mellow, pastoral and relaxed - it's the *Pastoral*...


Oh my, what a blatant mistake! It's *Eclogue*, not Pastoral! 
Thanks for mentioning Eclogue, post-minimalist, otherwise I wouldn't have noticed.


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## juliante

Picked up Finzi's Clarinet Concerto the other day with no expectations. Not quite for the "Blown away" thread....but I was very very pleasantly surprised. Lovely piece with some really engaging orchestration. I prefer it to Mozart's.


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## elgar's ghost

The Clarinet Concerto is a work I like but I prefer the more weighty Cello Concerto myself. Although completed towards the end of Finzi's life I don't find anything really elegiac about it, although the anguished first movement perhaps gives us a glimpse of the composer's inner turmoil after learning of his terminal medical condition. After that, the work doesn't convey any feeling of self-pity nor does it contain fist-shaking defiance - I get more of an impression of a 'Keep Calm and Carry On'-style need for normality, and it's certainly none the worse for that.

There are also two notable stand-alone orchestral works from the late 1920s which were intended to become part of a (sadly unrealised) concerto for piano, the _Eclogue_ for piano and strings and the _Grand Fantasia and Toccata_ - I believe Finzi eventually considered them unsuitable in terms of being part of the same work but still sufficiently worthy not to be rejected outright (in fact, the Toccata was added to the Grand Fantasia section much later). This fine Naxos disc brings all three works together:


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## juliante

Glad u rate the cello conc- I picked that up too, in a charity shop, but nearly didn't because I had never heard of it whereas the clarinet conc did ring a bell. Will feedback.. I have a version by the Liverpool phil which will be a new experience. Might get the Naxos for the other peices tho too, cheers.


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## Kivimees

Lyrita has some excellent Finzi CDs, including the cello concerto by a youthful-looking Yo-Yo Ma. Highly recommended!

http://www.wyastone.co.uk/all-labels/lyrita.html?composer_f_g=1552


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## Pugg

*This is my favourite Finzi 
*

Finzi - Earth and Air and Rain
Five song cycles to words by Thomas Hardy

Finzi:Earth and Air and Rain, Op. 15
sung by Stephen Varcoe
Till Earth Outwears, Op. 19
sung by Martyn Hill
I Said to Love, Op. 19b
sung by Stephen Varcoe
A Young Man's Exhortation, Op. 14
sung by Martyn Hill
Before and After Summer, Op. 16
sung by Stephen Varcoe
Clifford Benson (piano)

2 CDs for the price of 1.



> 'There are so many really subtle and distinguished performances in this set, and so much sheerly beautiful singing, that I shall be listening to it often over the years' (Gramophone)
> 
> "The welcome return of what now seem rather special archive recordings of Finzi's great Hardy settings. Direct, unselfconscious and ever-sentient performances." BBC Music Magazine, September 2009 ****


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## Pat Fairlea

This thread persuaded me to listen to Finzi today. His clarinet concerto is no mould-breaking, mind-blowing masterpiece, but it is simply well constructed and rather beautiful.


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## juliante

Pat Fairlea said:


> This thread persuaded me to listen to Finzi today. His clarinet concerto is no mould-breaking, mind-blowing masterpiece, but it is simply well constructed and rather beautiful.


Exactly. It has drawn me back in more than I expected too.


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## Pat Fairlea

juliante said:


> Exactly. It has drawn me back in more than I expected too.


Mentioned the Finzi clarinet concerto to my clarinettiste sister-in-law and she went all misty eyed, saying how beautiful it is to play.


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## LP collector

Although no similarity in their music, Gerald Finzi reminds me of Fauré in some respects. With both composers their charms are not immediately apparent but creep up on you. Much of Finzi's music has a wistfulness and melancholy that is much easier to emotionally feel then describe, and English to it's core. Not for the first time some marvellous music would have been lost without Richard Itter and his Lyrita record label who made some fine Finzi recordings. A youthful Yo Yo Ma recorded the Cello Concerto, Adrian Boult some shorter works and a very fine Concert for Clarinet and Strings which is coupled with a very good example of Finzi's art, the short Eclogue for Piano and Strings. Perhaps Finzi is best known for his vocal works, including many songs and my favourite Finzi piece of all, the moving Dies Natalis which has the rare distinction of an entry on Harry Pearson's TAS list of best recordings on LP with an issue from the WRC (later reissued by EMI) conducted by the composer's son, Christopher Finzi.


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## Pugg

LP collector said:


> Although no similarity in their music, Gerald Finzi reminds me of Fauré in some respects. With both composers their charms are not immediately apparent but creep up on you. Much of Finzi's music has a wistfulness and melancholy that is much easier to emotionally feel then describe, and English to it's core. Not for the first time some marvellous music would have been lost without Richard Itter and his Lyrita record label who made some fine Finzi recordings. A youthful Yo Yo Ma recorded the Cello Concerto, Adrian Boult some shorter works and a very fine Concert for Clarinet and Strings which is coupled with a very good example of Finzi's art, the short Eclogue for Piano and Strings. Perhaps Finzi is best known for his vocal works, including many songs and my favourite Finzi piece of all, the moving Dies Natalis which has the rare distinction of an entry on Harry Pearson's TAS list of best recordings on LP with an issue from the WRC (later reissued by EMI) conducted by the composer's son, Christopher Finzi.


Very nice piece, thanks for sharing.


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## qanik

I would wholeheartedly agree, I adore Finzi his music transcends, from Ecologue to Dies Natalis and for an atheist his In Terra Pax is the most appropriate Christmas music ever written unfortunately there is so little of it if you look at his total oeuvre


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## Pugg

qanik said:


> I would wholeheartedly agree, I adore Finzi his music transcends, from Ecologue to Dies Natalis and for an atheist his In Terra Pax is the most appropriate Christmas music ever written unfortunately there is so little of it if you look at his total oeuvre


Perhaps you can guide towards some more works.


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## MusicSybarite

The 3 concertos by this British gentleman are absolutely marvelous (clarinet, cello and violin). That unmistakable pastoral mood, somehow influenced by Vaughan Williams, can be recognized easily. This feature is especially marked in the 2nd movement from the Cello Concerto, which has a simple, pure, quiet melody that melts my heart. What heartbreakingly beautiful music! Also, the Eclogue for piano and strings bears this singularly gorgeous pastoral nature at its utmost expression. This work makes me think of a bucolic, calm landscape with such an atmosphere of melancholy, but it's an agreeable melancholy.

Curiously, I'm not very fond of Dies Natalis. I suppose I'll have to listen to it furthermore.


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## Judith

Just discovered that this composer lived and went to school not far from home in nearby Harrogate


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## Guest

He is a favorite of mine, his Clarinet Concerto probably being my favorite work. But I just listened to The Fall of the Leaf and it is splendid. Apparently it was meant as a movement of a chamber symphony that was never completed. How I would have loved to hear a Chamber Symphony form Finzi!


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