Foulds, John

Foulds, John – Hellas. A Suite of Ancient Greece Op. 45 for double string orchestra & percussion (new print / engraved after the original manuscript by Lucian Beschiu)

Engraved by Lucian Beschiu (2020)

I Solemn Temple Dance.
Remoto e senza passione (in the Lydian mode) p. 1
II Processional. Senza deviazione
(in the Ionian mode) p. 10
III Dirge for a Hero
(in the Phrygian mode) p. 33
IV Song of Argive Helen
(in the Æolian mode) p. 46
V Temple Chant
(in the Dorian mode) p. 55
VI Corybantes
(in the Mixolydian mode) p. 64

John Foulds is, to my mind, perhaps the greatest twentieth-century composer of genius to be entirely ignored, not only in England, but altogether. His wholly original music exudes freedom, lightness, immediacy, and a joy of discovery capable of touching and thrilling the listener in a unique way. Foulds was at once a pioneer, a true adventurer, a comprehensive master of form, a vivacious practicing musician as a conductor, cellist, and pianist, an insatiable explorer, a prime example of unlimited stylistic versatility, a tireless innovator, and the possessor of a critical and free-thinking mind. Above all he was a man who always strove for the utmost while remaining ever cognizant of his human inadequacy. This lent him a natural modesty and enabled him to come closer and closer to his actual goal of reaching absolute freedom, of being an “enlightened one.” He found the crucial elements for his quest in Eastern culture, as handed down by the “masters of wisdom” in Central Asia and India, and sought to combine them with constructive elements of Western culture to fashion a higher unity. None of the personal setbacks and the tragic sides of his life are imposed on the listeners of his music, which invariably speaks a warm-hearted, unsentimental, and authentic language. …

Read full preface > HERE