Oliver Davis - Guitar Concerto

 Oliver Davis - Guitar Concerto

The three movement work is brilliantly scored for guitar, harp, and orchestra.

English composer Oliver Davis set about on an ambitious lockdown project with his most recent album, Solace, released by Signum Records. The three movement work is brilliantly scored for guitar, harp, and orchestra. Davis finds a way to interweave the strings and harp in and out of the solo guitar, never distracting from the beautiful solo part. The second movement is the pure definition of a gorgeous slow movement. Davis retains the audience's interest though development of material and engaging scoring, including the addition of sweeping piano lines, aspects often overlooked in middle movements of contemporary concertos. The final movement is Davis' take on an invigorating Latin dance, with phrases bouncing between the soloist and ensemble. This final movement finally frees the soloist, and lets the guitar naturally do what it does well.

Written for Argentinian soloist Sergio Puccini, Davis' Concerto combines the lush British sound with Latin American grooves. The recording on Solace features Puccini, harpist Oliver Wass, and the Budapest Scoring Orchestra. The entirety of the album was recorded in separate places, with the orchestra recorded first and then Puccini's part overdubbed in Argentina. While on the album the scoring and blend comes across perfectly, I do wonder if Davis' writing will hold up just as well when the piece is performed live in person.

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© 2022 Brutal New Music Reviews
originally written and published 29 December 2022

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