Category Archives: Playlists

In appreciation – Elgar Howarth

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by Ben Hogwood

This week we have learned the sad news of the death of Elgar Howarth at the age of 89.

Howarth was a master of many disciplines, as this detailed obituary on the brass website 4barsrest outlines. Not only was he an inspired trumpet player, especially with the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble, but he was a fine composer and arranger for brass band and an outstanding conductor of music old and new. As a regular conductor of the London Sinfonietta he forged close musical relationships begun in Manchester with the likes of Sir Harrison Birtwistle, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Alexander Goehr.

The playlist below attempts to recognise Howarth’s achievements as a player, arranger and conductor, with a wide range of music from Gibbons and Handel to Maxwell Davies and Birtwistle, via Sousa and Copland. Do give it a listen!

Published post no.2,413 – Wednesday 15 January 2025

In appreciation – Colin Tilney

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by Ben Hogwood Image (c) Toronto Star via Getty Images

Over Christmas we heard the sad news that pioneering harpsichordist Colin Tilney had died, at the age of 91. A pupil of the legendary Gustav Leonhardt, Tilney specialized mostly on the harpsichord but could also be heard playing the fortepiano

The playlist below offers a selection of Tilney’s recordings, mostly of early music – but including a snippet of Stravinsky‘s The Rake’s Progress, conducted by the composer himself in 1964, with Tilney on harpsichord duties:

Published post no.2,407 – Friday 10 January 2025

In appreciation – Laura Samuel

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by Ben Hogwood

At the end of November we heard the incredibly sad news that violinist Laura Samuel had died at the age of 48. Laura was a prodigiously talented musician, and was co-founder of the highly regarded Belcea Quartet, a member of the Nash Ensemble and leader of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra from 2012. There is a statement from the orchestra themselves, and an obituary on The Violin Channel website

I was fortunate to meet Laura on a couple of occasions and was struck by how friendly and approachable she was, even at the end of a gruelling three-hour rehearsal. Watching her with the orchestra you could see just how committed and passionate she was in her music making, the mutual respect she experienced with her fellow musicians, and above all the sheer enjoyment of making music.

By way of gratitude I have put this playlist together of recordings on which Laura appears, including her contributions as a session musician on albums by The Divine Comedy and Peter Gabriel:

Published post no.2,389 – Tuesday 10 December 2024

In appreciation – György Pauk

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by Ben Hogwood Photo credit: Otto Kaiser

Earlier today we learned of the sad passing of Hungarian violinist György Pauk, at the age of 88. A fitting tribute can be found on the Daily Telegraph website

As that obituary indicates, Pauk was a specialist in the music of fellow-countryman Béla Bartók, whose violin works he recorded for Naxos. The playlist below includes a couple of those recordings, put in context of works by Schubert, Tippett (the Triple Concerto) and Brahms, whose piano trios he recorded for EMI with his regular collaborators, pianist Peter Frankl and cellist Ralph Kirshbaum. You can listen to these recordings below:

Published post no.2,367 – Tuesday 19 November 2024

In appreciation – Johnnie Walker

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by Ben Hogwood Photo (c) Yui Mok/PA

Sunday 27 October was a pretty momentous day on BBC Radio 2, for it marked the last broadcast in the 58-year career of DJ Johnnie Walker.

Walker was a Sunday afternoon companion to many, myself included, over the last 15 years. His two-hour programme Sounds of the 70s was a national institution, a place where people could forget about the forthcoming week and enjoy some quality music along with their chores, car journeys or dinner preparations.

It was the last in a long line of broadcasting assignments for Walker, who also fronted Radio 2’s Rock Show – a natural move for a figure steeped in rock music ever since he arrived on the scene on one of the pirate ships in the 1960s.

By way of a small ‘thank you’, here is a playlist in tribute to Johnnie, with many thanks for the music he introduced me to, and also recognition of the music he played that I already loved. It’s a small portrait of a broadcasting legend, but – like his programmes – is put together with a great deal of affection for his craft.

Published post no.2,346 – Tuesday 29 October 2024