Considered as part of the great river of music that flowed from Britain in the twentieth century, the piano music of Arnold Bax is a lesser tributary. But that doesn't mean these waters run smoothly. Bax's highly romantic music is filled with tumultuous rapids and precipitous falls. Performed with extraordinary commitment and panache by
Iris Loveridge on this three-disc set from Lyrita, Bax's piano music doesn't quite rise to the level of his better known symphonies and symphonic poems, but that isn't for want of trying. The works range from derivative early efforts such as the Russian Tone-Pictures through evocative character pieces like What the Minstrel Told Us to the monumental Third Sonata in the highly unusual key of G sharp minor. Yet through all the works runs the pure stream of Bax's romantic nature. The cumulative effect could be emotionally overwhelming, but in
Loveridge's agile hands, Bax's music surges inevitably, irresistibly onward, forestalling objections from all but the coldest of hearts. Recorded mostly in monaural, Lyrita's sound is distant, but clean and present. If you already love Bax's symphonies and symphonic poems, you owe it to yourself to at least try these recordings.