Holst: Sāvitri, The Planets, The Perfect Fool Suite & Other Works

Featuring

Arda Mandikian
Sir Peter Pears
Thomas Hemsley
Sir Charles Mackerras
Imogen Holst
Michael Jefferies

Honor Sheppard
Nona Liddell
Pauline Stevens
Ian Partridge
Norman del Mar
Malcolm Sargent
Sir Adrian Boult
English Opera Group
English Opera Group Chorus
Purcell Singers
BBC Symphony Orchestra
NBC Symphony Orchestra
Boston Symphony Orchestra
Boston Symphony Women's Chorus
Gustav Holst

Did you know?

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Holst had a fascination for Indian culture and set several Sanskrit texts to music, including his opera Sita, Sāvitri, and four sets of Hymns from the Rig Veda.

Composition History

The root of Holst's most renowned work, The Planets, written between 1914 and 1917, was a late-flowering interest in astrology.

Composer Biography

Gustav Holst's great-grandfather, Matthias Holst, was a German composer and harp teacher to the Tsar's court at St Petersburg.

Composer Biography

Holst suffered from neuritis, which made playing the piano difficult, and also had breathing problems associated with asthma.

Recording & Production

Many of the recordings on this album, including the Choral Hymns, 4 Songs, and The Evening-Watch, were sourced from BBC Third Programme airchecks.

Critical Reception

The Planets, despite early critical attacks on its radical nature, has become one of the most famous, recorded, and performed works in the classical canon.