RICHARD ARNELL
Symphony no.3 op.40 (1944-45)
The New Age Overture op.2 (1939)

ROYAL SCOTTISH NATIONAL ORCHESTRA
Martin Yates (conductor)
Edwin Paling (leader)

Recorded at Henry Wood Hall, Glasgow
4-5 September 2005

Every so often one discovers a forgotten score, which on re-examination has the force of a revelation. Just such a one is Richard Arnell's epic Third Symphony. Written in New York between 1944 and 1945, this glorious and expansive musical canvas is surely one of the great scores of the time by a British composer. The Royal Scottish National Orchestra and conductor Martin Yates give it their all a find not to be missed. Also include is Arnell's glorious New Age Overture, composed in 1939.

"... Richard Arnell's Symphony no.3, dedicated to the political courage of the British people", takes a cue or two from the symphonies of Carl Nielsen. There are echoes of war in the opening section's fanfares but, come the second movement, the sense of bravely venturing forth generates the sort of bracing tingle that Nielsen often achieves. Not that Arnell lacks a more anguished side plenty of that in the slow movement but the overriding effect is of exuberance. Hats off to Dutton for enterprise, and to the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Martin Yates for such a convincing interpretation."
Rob Cowan, The Independent, 21 March 2006

"All I can do is to urge you to experience this magnificent work for yourselves - with which I am confident you will never regret coming into contact.
Implicit in my enthusiasm for this CD is that both works receive here truly excellent performances by the Royal Scottish National under the young conductor Martin Yates (a composition pupil and admirer of the composer), who has the full measure of this music. The recording quality is stunningly first-rate. Lewis Foreman provides valuable booklet notes."
Robert Matthew Walker, International Record Review, May 2006

"This superbly-played-and-recorded Dutton issue of Arnell's 1945 Third Symphony and New Age Overture offers the first opportunity for most listeners to hear his orchestral music in good sound. The 10-minute overture is sonorous and celebratory, while the symphony is a big-boned, imposing, and ambitious creation in six movements lasting over an hour."
"The mood is martial and epic, and like Shostakovich's Seventh and the symphonies of Bernard Hermann and Arthur Benjamin, this is openly and proudly a war-time drama of dark forebodings, brooding lament, and epic conflict that culminates after much travail in heroic triumph."
Dr Mark L Lehman, American Record Guide, September/October 2006

"A magnificent addition to the mid-20th century discography, and an experience you'll never be able to dismiss or forget."
Paul A. Snook, Fanfare, November/December 2006

"This is my first exposure to the music of British composer Richard Arnell, and the pleasure I have derived from this disc were totally unexpected."
"Martin Yates and his Scottish Orchestra sound like they invested a lot of time in the symphony, and the symphony itself certainly sounds like it demands it. This is some wonderful music that will grow with your affections over time. ... the Dutton sound is clean and rich, with good depth and spread."
Steven Ritter, Audiophile Audition, 16 December 2006

"An exemplary rescue act for this rousing wartime British symphony."
"Inquisitive collectors can rest assured that Martin Yates and a geared-up RSNO give of their best. The disc also contains a red-blooded account of Arnell's similarly irrepressible and communicative 1939 overture 'The New Age'."
Andrew Achenbach, Gramophone, September 2006

CDLX 7161