Florence Hooton (cello)
BBC Northern Orchestra
(Leader, Reginald Stead )
Conductor, John Hopkins
Bax always looked upon his Cello Concerto as one of his best works, and hoped that one day it would be firmly established in the repertoire. It is one of the very few cello concertos in which every note of the soloist can be heard against the orchestral background. Bax's scoring is a marvel of subtlety as well as crystal clear; perhaps his most astounding feat is to use double-basses only to accompany a leading theme on the solo cello, and to do so with complete success. Robin Hull