Three Worlds

David Thornton
Black Dyke Band and Fennella Haworth – Smith
Conductor: Dr. Nicholas Childs
Doyen Recordings: DOYCD 169
Playing Tine: 64.02

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It is hard to disagree with the assessment made by Howard Snell when asked to comment on David Thornton. "He is," he said, "…that rare kind of musician – a true artist whose qualities transcend the instrument itself." "Three Worlds" – his first solo CD confirms that in spades.

David Thornton is some player; a prodigious talent as a child (he was the first euphonium player to be accepted into the prestigious Chetham's School of Music), he now occupies the seat as Principal Euphonium of Black Dyke with an ease borne of dedication and appreciation of his chosen craft. He was destined for the Queensbury Band.

His talents have been appreciated all over the World – he has never been afraid of putting his hard earned reputation on the line, and he has won solo awards on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean as well as picking up the International Euphonium Player of the Year Award in 2001. His performance repertoire is large and varied with appearances with ensembles as diverse as the Portuguese Remix – Ensemble, the BBC Philharmonic and Birmingham's Royal Ballet (playing not dancing we must add!).

It is however the brass band that is his natural home, the musical environment that suits best both his talent and his personality; he is a gregarious, sociable young man, generous with his time and his talent. With Black Dyke he has further enhanced his already considerable reputation as a player with numerous concert and contest performances of the highest class. This finely constructed CD enhances that reputation even further.

The "Three Worlds" of the title refers to the premier recording of Peter Meechan's admirable composition "Three Stories – Three Worlds" which forms the cynosure of the release and which is a marvellous addition to the euphonium solo repertoire. The young man from Nuneaton is Black Dyke's "Composer in Association" – an association that is paying off it seems with this cracker of a Concerto. A pupil of Philip Wilby at Leeds University, the three-movement work has subtle echoes of his tutor throughout as well as a slightly modern European feel of the type of musical vein that is so successfully explored by the likes of Carl Ruetti.

The composer takes for his musical template characters from Greek Mythology to portray the virtues and vices of life – Hubris, Discardation and finally New Order – the story is simple, yet the musical structure of each movement is complex with a foundation of cool (and very well played) modern rhythmic percussion. It is different, brilliantly played and very, very enjoyable.

The other six works on the CD are also substantial and include a finely structured performance of Jacques Casterede's "Sonatine" – a recital piece with superb piano accompaniment from Fennella Haworth – Smith. It is very French in style – full of mock pomposity, bluff and Gallic flair, but it also has a middle movement of rare beauty. It is wonderfully played.

The soloist ensures that the euphonium brass band repertoire is not ignored either. The opening work is the showpiece "Bravura" by Peter Graham – written for the quartet of stella talents of Messer's Stephen Mead, David Childs, Derek Kane and David himself, although the way he plays it here you wonder why they needed the other three on the day. The technical fences are jumped with the assuredness of Best Mate at Cheltenham - awesome stuff indeed, whilst the musical line of Folk Melodies never loses its wit or invention.

The same goes for both Carl Hohne's "Slavische Fantasie" and Sarasate's "Zigeunerweisen". The Hohne is given a blistering run through (and surprisingly suits the euphonium sound rather well), whilst the "Gypsy Airs" has just the right feel of waspish Romany flamboyancy – all twirls, twists, smouldering looks and a red rose clenched between the teeth sort of stuff.

The only disappointment for us is the Philip Wilby "Flight" – not because of the standard of the performance (that is quite something), but because it is a solo that simply doesn't suit the euphonium. It is a tour de force for the flugel horn – an exploration of the extremities of the instrument, a technical as well as musical challenge that pushes the boundaries of the instrument further than ever before and it conveys the various aspects of flight vividly. The euphonium, even in the hands of such an accomplished performer just cannot do this, and as we have said before when Tormod Flaten performed the solo, it is the equivalent of a top notch Boeing 747 taking to the air rather than a 1918 Sopwith Camel. It just doesn't have that edge of your pants factor that makes it so thrilling vehicle for the flugel horn.

The jaw dropper though is the soloist's performance of the Rossini "Theme and Variations" – originally written for clarinet, but unlike the Wilby, a musical showpiece that suits the euphonium to a tee. This is playing of the very highest order, wonderfully controlled with an amazing clarity in the ever more demanding technical obstacles that present themselves in each variation. The presentation of the arpeggios in the final variation is mind bogglingly brilliant – you can hear every note, and you wonder how on earth a clarinet player could have made this sound any better. This is a real pearler of a performance and will ensure that you press the rewind switch more than a few times for sure. It must be said though that this is the same performance as can be heard on the recent Essential Dyke Volume IV release – although sometimes in life you can't get enough of a good thing – and this is exceedingly good.

Throughout the release, the accompaniment from Black Dyke is first rate – the approach to the "Three Worlds" is every bit as good as the soloist and the piano playing of Miss Haworth- Smith is a delight. The sleeve notes are neat and lucid whilst there is a slighltly spooky cover – "Look into my Eyes" sort of thing. The images of the soloist make it all a little surreal.

David Thornton is a wonderfully complete euphonium virtuoso – his technical prowess never exceeds his innate ability to make music. This is a fine CD with choices of repertoire that displays one of the movement's finest talents to the full. It is highly recommended.

Iwan Fox

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