John Foulds - Le Cabaret, Overture • April - England • Pasquinade Symphonique No.2 • Hellas, A Suite of Ancient Greece • Three Mantras

London Philharmonic Orchestra
Barry Wordsworth, conductor

Label: Lyrita
Copyright: 1993 Lyrita Recorded Edition, England
Catalogue number: SRCD.212
UPC/EAN: 5020926021229
Format: CD
Analogue / Digital recording: DDD
Number of discs: 1
Total playing time: 61.07
Price: £ 14.99 (+ postage & packing)

Track 1: Recorded at Henry Wood Hall, 3 August 1989, Producer: Andrew Cornall, Engineers: John Dunkerley
Tracks 2, 3: Recorded at Watford, 2 February 1989, Producer: Andrew Keener, Engineers: Mark Vigars
Tracks 4 - 9: Recorded at Watford, 8 January 1990, Producer: Morten Winding, Engineers: John Pellowe
Tracks 10 - 12: Recorded at Walthamstow, 8 March 1988, Andrew Cornall, Engineers: John Dunkerley


"... a new disc entirely devoted to some of the composer’s orchestral works, and a splendid addition to the catalogue it is too. Here, we are given the opportunity to explore some of his finest ‘serious’ works, which reveal Foulds as the innovator, mystic and, in the short Overture Le Cabaret, entertainer. The most substantial works on the disc are the Three Mantras … the only surviving remnants from his aborted opera on Indian myths, Avatara. The central Mantra (Bliss), an extended slow movement of some 13 minutes incorporating a wordless female chorus, is a captivating and magical movement of great beauty. Barry Wordsworth and the LPO respond to Fould’s music with verve, commitment and enthusiasm, and the recording is of the highest Lyrita standard" Michael Stewart, Gramophone

"Lyrita’s varied discography includes many refreshing discoveries. High on this list is the music of John Foulds ... A remarkable disc, and an essential introduction to a composer whose music cries out for greater recognition ..." Colin Clarke, www.musicweb-international.com Click here to read the full review

"It never ceases to amaze me that we have what can only be regarded as a vitally important masterpiece which has been hidden away for so many years. And I guess that for every play of the Mantras (or any of the other Foulds’ works) we will hear a hundred, if not a thousand renditions of Mars and Venus!" John France, www.musicweb-international.com Click here to read the full review


1 Le Cabaret, Overture, Opus 72A John Foulds 3.31
2 Pasquinade Symphonique no.2, Opus 98 John Foulds 6.34
3 April - England, Opus 48 no.1 John Foulds 7.09
Hellas, A Suite of Ancient Greece, Opus 45 John Foulds 18.03
4 1. Solemn Temple Dance 2.14
5 2. Processional 5.04
6 3. Dirge for a Hero 3.18
7 4. Song of the Argive Helen 2.35
8 5. Temple Chant 3.17
9 6. Corybantes 1.35
Three Mantras, Opus 61B John Foulds 25.49
10 1. Mantra of Activity 6.04
11 2. Mantra of Bliss 13.01
12 3. Mantra of Will 6.44