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Aspects of Walton's Second Symphony

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 November 2009

Robert Matthew-Walker
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Extract

Any consideration of William Walton's Second Symphony should begin with some mention of its predecessor, first performed complete in November, 1935, twenty-five years before No.2. The First Symphony created an enormous impact, coming soon after the successes of the Viola Concerto of 1929 and the oratorio Belshazzar's Feast of 1931. The Symphony's vast scale, its emotional power and fierce utterance, allied to an impressive consistency of style, conspired to declare a work of originality and almost instantaneous appeal. An early Decca recording of it under Sir Hamilton Harty, who had conducted the first performances, enabled the Symphony to be heard worldwide.

Type
Research Article
Information
Tempo , Issue 221 , July 2002 , pp. 29 - 33
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2002

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References

1 The Symphony was originally dedicated to the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society. It was soon taken up by George Szell, who had taken an interest in the work while it was still being composed and who recorded it with the Cleveland Orchestra from Columbia in 1962. After Szell's death, Walton re-dedicated the work to Szell's memory.

2 Radio Times, 28 October 1932, p. 258.