'a compelling work and an irresistibly positive musical statement' The Artsdesk (Graham Rickson)
The English Symphony Orchestra and Kenneth Woods have released a disc of David Matthews’s music on Nimbus. His Symphony No.9 features alongside the Variations for Strings and the Double Concerto for violin, viola and strings (where Sara Trickey and Sarah-Jane Bradley are the soloists).
‘The Variations deserve a place in the canon of celebrated English string literature from Purcell through to Elgar, Bridge and Tippett.’
Gramophone (Peter Quantrill), July 2019
‘This is easy music to love… we’re beguiled at Matthews’ ability to write defiantly tonal music which nonetheless sounds contemporary. [The Symphony] is a compelling work and an irresistibly positive musical statement… The euphonious Double Concerto is another find.’
The Artsdesk (Graham Rickson), 29 June 2019
‘Matthews is a genuine symphonist and squeezes every drop of interest out of his theme.’
Limelight (Phillip Scott), 13 August 2019
‘A work unafraid to be in dialogue with tradition.’
BBC Music Magazine (Rebecca Franks), September 2019
This latest addition to the extensive Matthews discography will soon be joined by a release on Signum featuring the Eighth Symphony, Sinfonia, Towards Sunrise and A Vision of the Sea with the BBC Philharmonic and Jac van Steen.