Rhapsodie: Fantasie: Poème

01/06/2009
Michael Southern
Australian Hi Fi (Australia)

Ben Jacks is a fine horn player as this collection of French and Australian compositions for the instrument shows, while Barry Tuckwell has made the transition from being the finest horn player of his time to being a superior conductor, as his recording of the four Mozart concertos last year for the ABC showed. The centrepiece is a Rhapsodie, which gives the disc its title, by contemporary French composer Jean-Michel Damase, a piece commissioned by Barry Humphries for Barry Tuckwell and first performed by Tuckwell in 1987. Other works include compositions from Paul Dukas and Camille Saint-Saëns and a bright Fantasie for horn and orchestra by Australian GWL Marshall-Hall (a world premiere recording).