This record was complete before Schuman died last February. He heard some of it on a cassette and wrote: ''The performance has so many superlative elements that I would do the overall excellence of the rendition an injustice by citing the special places that appeal particularly to this composer's soul...'' This may seem to disarm criticism but one can see what Schuman meant. He must have been particularly pleased to have a modern performance of his ballet Judith, which won the New York Critics Circle Award in 1951. This was his second score for Martha Graham—the first, Night Journey, I welcomed as the novelty in a Koch International two-CD survey of ballets written for Martha Graham (4/92). Judith is better known thanks to the old Louisville recording long deleted. Its bloodthirsty subject from the Apocrypha brings out many facets of Schuman's resourceful and dynamic personality at its most serious. There are dramatic moments but also areas of melodic power (after 18'20'') which are particularly characteristic of Schuman and sound like nobody else.
His Fifth Symphony (1943) must be one of the most successful American works for string orchestra this century. Schwarz's performance is effective enough, but lacks the intense excitement that Bernstein brought to it in the old CBS recording (never widely available in the UK): I remember the work having more panache than this. But the new recording fills a gap in the catalogue for Schuman on both sides of the Atlantic.
The Americana side of Schuman comes in the popular New England Triptych based on three choral pieces by the eccentric pioneer William Billings (1746–1800), whose output has now reached CD in its own right (reviewed last Oct-ober). When Schuman wrote New England Triptych in 1956, Billings was less recognized, and Schuman was linking up with part of his own New England heritage. But in 1963, when he orchestrated Ives's Variations on America (the tune is the same as God save the Queen) Ives was beginning to reach his special position in American music. This is a brilliantly witty transformation of the organ work Ives wrote in his teens and performed himself. Perhaps as a result the Ives is more often played by organists now. Its zest matches the exuberance of Schuman throughout his busy career and it makes a fun start to this recorded tribute.'