These performances of the Frank Bridge Variations and the Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra by Steuart Bedford (taken from the old Collins Classics catalog) stand among the very few that compare to the composer’s own classic Decca recordings, and they feature better sonics. In the Variations, Bedford finds the right balance between accuracy and emotion, delivering (for example) an aptly loony Aria Italiana, a gracious Wiener Walzer, and a grim Funeral March while keeping the string playing sharply focused and admirably precise. He also achieves a fine clarity of texture in the final fugue, which can come off sounding merely muddy in less capable hands.
Clarity also is a feature of The Young Person’s Guide, in the sense that Bedford finds plenty of color in this delightful score and makes sure that we hear all of it. Once again the concluding fugue is outstanding, as physically exciting as any on disc, but the individual contributions of the various LSO soloists and sections are also excellent (especially the brass). Both the Occasional Overture and the Prelude and Fugue for 18-part String Orchestra come off equally well and make an excellent bonus. There’s really no more that need be said: this is Britten at his best, in every respect, and a first-rate bargain to boot. [7/16/2005]