(Leader, Reginald Stead )
Conductor, John Hopkins
William Alwyn's Second Symphony is in two movements, each divided into two sections. The first section sets forth three main ideas; the second section brings the first movement to a Climax, finally dying away in a whisper. The second movement opens with an impetuous Scherzo, but in its second section returns to the mood of the first movement.
Adam Carse, who has won a wide reputation as an authority on the orchestra, has himself written a number of orchestral works. His Variations for Strings were written last year; there are seven variations altogether, including a Minuet and a Gavotte. Deryck Cooke