This is a most welcome reissue of some of the most attractive British music of the period in fine performances. It is a reminder of the attention given to Lord Berners in 1983, his centenary year, when every major daily had a feature about him, the Wigmore Hall concert was sold out and had to be repeated, and he was the subject of an exhibition at the Royal Festival Hall. Although the Suite from Diaghilev's ballet, The Triumph of Neptune, is far from neglected—the Beecham recording has usually been available (EMI, 6/92) and the work has often been one of the best features in the Last Night of the Proms—the other pieces are less familiar, although the Fugue was recorded on a 78rpm disc.
The original EMI release was a breakthrough since Barry Wordsworth is particularly sympathetic to the dance influences in Berners, ranging from Tchaikovsky and Delibes to Stravinsky, Ravel and Satie. But Berners is not overshadowed and was original in the way he operated in his various capacities of composer, writer, painter and eccentric.
The melodic appeal and attractive textures of this orchestral music are easy to live with. Take the catchy number called ''Sunday Morning'' (track 5) from The Triumph of Neptune for sheer affability, or the delicately scored charm of the Prelude (track 16) to the Fantaisie espagnole. The stronger numbers, such as the finales to the two triptychs (tracks 15 and 18), come off splendidly and the whole release is vividly played and recorded. Above all Berners enjoyed what he did and that comes through in every bar. What good news that more orchestral works, as well as the Ashton ballet to a text by Gertrude Stein, A Wedding Bouquet, have recently been recorded by Marco Polo.'