Australian music publisher, Crescendo Music Publications has produced three new first editions of the music of Harold Darke (1888-1976), famous for his setting of In The Bleak Midwinter. These pieces were all written when he was a student at the Royal College of Music.
The publications consist of three sets of piano works:
Three Concert Studies Op. 7
Six Characteristic Pieces, Op. 11
[5] Fancies, Op. 18
Composed in 1907, the forms of the Concert Studies are firmly rooted in the European late romantic style, though they often utilise a more modern harmonic language representative of the period in which they were written. They are technically advanced, and showcase a young composer well on the way to enjoying a long and fruitful career both in the classroom and at his writing desk.
The Six Characteristic Pieces and Fancies are shorter-form works, more stylistically redolent of the piano works of Dyson, Debussy and Ravel.
Each volume contains a foreword as well as a complete list of editorial changes made and sources consulted. Sample PDFs are available on the Crescendo Music Publications website: https://www.crescendomusicpubs.com.au/