Sir Malcolm Arnold was one of the most gifted British composers of his generation. His music communicates directly with listeners through its rhythmic vitality and brilliant orchestration, with melodies that are eloquent, memorable and catchy. Spanning his long creative life, Arnold’s output has nine symphonies at its heart, but also ranges from the popular overture Tam O’Shanter and the lyrical English Dances, to film scores, deeply personal chamber music, and concertos composed for distinguished musical colleagues. This comprehensive introduction to Arnold’s legacy celebrates his centenary year with a rich selection of acclaimed recordings.

Sir Malcolm Arnold’s music is known to millions through film scores such as the Oscar-winning The Bridge on the River Kwai, but he has always been a ‘musician’s musician’; beloved amongst connoisseurs but, despite the acclaim bestowed on him in his final years, often seeming to be underappreciated by certain sections of the music world. 2021 marks the composer’s 100th birth anniversary.

The Cello Concerto (8572640) was considered ‘a hands-down winner in the Naxos catalogue’ by MusicWeb International, and Classic FM wrote that ‘Wallfisch encapsulates Arnold’s peculiarly British musical sensibility brilliantly, giving us pithy severity one moment and personal, lyrical expressiveness the next.’

On its release in 2001, Gramophone wrote of the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies (8552000): ‘There is passionate drama here, darkness and light, seriousness and jocularity jostling with one another in a way that creates intriguing, stimulating musical dichotomies and a powerfully productive turbulence.’