This recording of Holst's The Planets was taken from a live concert given at Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall in London.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Holst's concern in The Planets was not with astronomy but with the planets' supposed astrological associations, and he gave each movement an explanatory title reflecting these.
Performer Biography
The London Philharmonic Choir, founded in 1947 as the chorus for the London Philharmonic Orchestra, has participated in over seventy recordings, including a Gramophone-Awardwinning performance of Mahler's Eighth Symphony.
Composition History
Holst began composing The Planets, a suite of seven tone poems for a very large orchestra, without certainty of ever hearing such an extravagant composition performed.
Notable Performances
The Planets received a semi-private premiere in September 1918, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult, before Holst left on a wartime mission to Greece.
Performer Biography
Vladimir Jurowski, the conductor on this album, was born in Moscow and completed his musical studies in Germany after moving there with his family in 1990.
Compositional Technique
For The Planets, Holst called for an exceptionally large orchestra, including two piccolos, four flutes, alto flute, three oboes, cor anglais, bass oboe, three clarinets, bass clarinet, three bassoons, contra-bassoon, six horns, four trumpets, three trombones, tenor and bass tubas, two harps, celesta, organ, a large array of percussion, strings, and an off-stage six-part female choir.
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