Thomas Pitfield: Orchestral Music
Emma McGrath (violin), Liepāja Symphony Orchestra, Paul Mann
This is an important release...The performances by the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra are astonishingly idiomatic – anyone listening might suppose these performances were recorded by a British orchestra....
Thomas Pitfield: Orchestral Music
Emma McGrath (violin), Liepāja Symphony Orchestra, Paul Mann
Purchase product
This is an important release...The performances by the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra are astonishingly idiomatic – anyone listening might suppose these performances were recorded by a British orchestra....
About
Thomas Pitfield (1903–99) was a polymath: artist, bookbinder, cabinet-maker, calligrapher, cartoonist, composer, designer, poet, printmaker and more. He brought to his compositions the same skill and craftsmanship as to his other activities, but during his long lifetime his personal modesty impeded a general awareness of his achievements. Pitfield’s fondness for folk-music sites his music within the broad tradition of English pastoralism established by Vaughan Williams, Finzi, Howells and others – though a touch of steel can occasionally be heard behind the lyricism.
Contents and tracklist
Awards and reviews
July 2025
This is an important release...The performances by the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra are astonishingly idiomatic – anyone listening might suppose these performances were recorded by a British orchestra. I hope that Paul Mann conducts more orchestral pieces by Thomas Pitfield, as he clearly has an innate understanding of his music.
Pizzicato August 2025
They give Thomas Pitfield’s pieces a formative contour. But they shape the structures without overtaxing the content of the compositions. As a result, they succeed in creating positively connoted performances that are appealing due to their accessibility in terms of work and interpretation.
