Posted by richard on October 15, 2003 at 21:55:28:
In Reply to: Roy Harris Symphonies posted by david on October 15, 2003 at 11:41:14:
It's impossible to know whether all of Harris's symphonies have good tuba parts because aside from the 3rd, most of them are rarely played. But his tuba writing is usually characterized by melodic line style, moving slurred half notes in the staff, exposed colorful background rather than outright solo. The 3rd calls for two bass tubas, but most of his orchestral pieces call for one tuba, and a particular favorite of his, the "baritone horn" for which he wrote somewhat soloistically in the orchestra.
Aside from the Bernstein recording of the Third, actually, there are two, a 60's one with Joe Novotny on Sony, and an 80's one on DG with Warren. I don't know who the seconds were in either case.
The most gratifying Harris tuba part I know of, and a fascinating symphony, is the 7th. Albany has a reissue of the original 1955 Ormandy/Philadelphia recording with some beautiful playing by Abe Torchinsky, and I'm guessing Henry C. Smith on baritone horn.
There's a more up-to-date sounding stereo recording on Naxos, VERY well played by the Ukrainian State Orchestra, coupled with the 9th. There is an even better 9th by the Albany Symphony on Albany coupled with the 8th. There is a recording of the 5th Symphony be the Louisville Orchestra, but it is no competition for a truly awesome broadcast performance from 1982 by the Chicago SO under Rafael Kubelik. This is contained in a 2 CD Kubelik set obtainable only from the CSO Store, IF they still have any.
Harris was a somewhat uneven composer, and at times a naive and awkward orchestrator, but his best stuff has a diamond in the rough appeal that used to be considered quintessential American at a time when American composers were eager to assert their Americanism.