Consummate craftsmanship informs the three works here. Concerto for Orchestra, with its symphonic aspirations, is arresting, consistently inventive, and potent – with deft writing between the exhilarating and the expressive this is music that journeys and arrives, a standout opus in RRB’s catalogue. Close cousins to it in terms of quality are Sonnets to Orpheus (first recording), a cello concerto, in which Jonathan Aasgaard’s plangent tone and generous phrasing are ideal for music of poeticism and ardour, whereas the orchestral Diversions, based on a Scottish folksong, is colourful and enjoyable, not least in some delightful Waltonian moments. Performances throughout are unerringly well-judged, Brian Pidgeon sets the highest production values, and Ralph Couzens ensures tangible and vivid sound. Chandos CHSA 5266 [SACD].
https://www.chandos.net/products/catalogue/CHSA%205266
Also Pidgeon/Couzens…