Will Todd: Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love, Noodles

by Bach Choir, David Hill

Overview

Will Todd's Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles is, as the title might suggest, a work for children. It's a delightful, colorful work that would be ideal for family concerts, and the Finchley Children's Music Group gives a fine, expressive performance. What tells the listener more is that children might also enjoy the rest of the music on the album, and adults, in turn, will be pleased by the noodles. This does not happen often -- children's music is usually its own little chamber within the classical music house -- and it speaks to the appeal of Todd's appealing and entirely tonal programmatic music. Another intriguing feature is that Todd, who is also active as a jazz pianist, flavors most of the works here with jazz, including a percussion group, but the music is not jazz-classical fusion: the jazz is one stylistic feature among many. Jazz-hinted piano is beautifully deployed to express transcendence in the memorial work Kites, Cards and Constellations. One more strong point here is the presence of the venerable Bach Choir under David Hill, not an early music group but a holdover from the golden age of Britain's great oratorio festivals. The group blends beautifully with the children's choir and, in general, has a combination of agility and warmth that one might not expect considering its size. Enjoyable, vivid new music recommended to all except those who recoil at the slightest hint of popular influence. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	05/22/2020
Label:	Signum Classics
UPC:	0635212059128
Rank:	205317

Tracks

1. Songs of Magical Creatures~Fairy Song
2. Songs of Magical Creatures~Full Fathom Five
3. Songs of Magical Creatures~Shadows
4. Songs of Magical Creatures~Fairy Song (Reprise)
5. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Prologue: City Rhythm
6. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Lights
7. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Noise
8. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Stories
9. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Dreams
10. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Love
11. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Noodles
12. Lights, Stories, Noise, Dreams, Love and Noodles~Epilogue: City Rhythm (Reprise)
13. I Will Light a Candle
14. Kites, Cards and Constellations~Kites
15. Kites, Cards and Constellations~Cards
16. Kites, Cards and Constellations~Memories
17. Kites, Cards and Constellations~Constellations

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Bach Choir   Primary Artist,Choir/Chorus
David Hill   Primary Artist,Conductor
The Will Todd Ensemble   Ensemble
Philip Scriven   Piano
Finchley Children's Music Group   Ensemble

Technical Credits

Grace Banks   Assistant Engineer
Fearghal Corbett   Cover Design
Adrian Peacock   Editing,Producer
William Shakespeare   Text
Michael Rosen   Text
Andrew Mellor   Editing,Engineer
George Collins   Assistant Engineer
Will Todd   Text,Composer,Liner Notes