The Best of British Film Scores – Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, Richard Balcombe (conductor)

Film music is often disparaged for being trivial, light, cheap. Oh no! This was a programme of beautiful, well-crafted musical vignettes that expressed the heart of some great films and gave soul, comic or heroic, to many of our best stars. Individually, they all work well as concert overtures or popular encores. Robert Farnon’s suite ‘Captain Horatio Hornblower RN’ is a mini-symphony, rich in characterisation and drama. The score for ‘Costal Command: Dawn Patrol’ is Vaughan Williams at his very best. I was astonished by the extraordinary variety of Ron Goodwin’s work. This was a really imaginative and delightful concert.

Dome Concert Hall, 4 December 2016
Rating:
Andrew Connal