Ives: Holidays Symphony (II - IV): Decoration Day / Fourth of July / etc

"Love him or hate him, Charles Ives is now accepted as the major figure he is. This marvellous collection is very well played, expertly recorded and has a good note in the inlay sheet. If you're new to Ives then this is a really good introduction to the man and his music. If you're already a fan then this is essential for your CD shelf. Either way, this is a must-have." (MusicWeb Feb 2010)

"James Sinclair is always an excellent guide to this music, even through Ives' most complex textural thickets. The Fourth of July has real celebratory fervor and a sense of fun, while the climax of Thanksgiving, so often a muddle, here achieves real transcendence, with the choir perfectly integrated into the ensemble. I have to confess that I love this piece particularly, even though it's often considered the weakest part of what would later become the "Holidays" Symphony. The Malmö orchestra plays all of this music with complete confidence, and the sonics are unaffectedly crisp and clean. An essential release for Ives fans."
(10/10 ClassicsToday April 2010)

When asked to define a masterpiece in music Stravinsky chose Ives's Decoration Day, a tone poem that Ives later made the second movement of his Holidays Symphony (its first movement, Washington's Birthday, is available on Naxos 8.559087). The remaining movements also celebrate key American holidays with characteristic verve. The General Slocum movingly commemorates a 1904 boating disaster in which more than a thousand people lost their lives. The Overture and Postlude are early works that nonetheless display Ives's originality, while Yale-Princeton Football Game exuberantly depicts a legendary 1897 match.