SOMM Recordings is proud to extend its celebration of the 150th anniversary of Gustav Holst (1874–1934). The label was one of the few to mark the anniversary with its double-CD of Holst: Sāvitri, Choral Hymns from Rig Veda, 4 Songs, The Evening Watch, Hammersmith, The Perfect Fool Suite & The Planets, ARIADNE50302. These never-before-released live recordings from the 40s, 50s, and 60s were issued in meticulous restorations by long-time SOMM collaborators Lani Spahr and Paul Baily.

Now, SOMM continues its outstanding mission of issuing lesser-known music of interest with a pair of gems to enrich the catalogue of historic performances: a stereo recording of Holst’s three-movement suite Beni Mora (the fictional name for Biskra, Algeria) and a live performance of the Choral Symphony. Both are played by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent, who brought a personal acquaintance and a deep understanding of the composer’s inspiration to the works. Once again, the superb audio restoration is by Lani Spahr.

Holst’s The Planets is a justifiably well-known suite, but the great originality and skill in his writing is still largely under-appreciated. He lived a retiring life playing trombone in theatre orchestras as a younger man and teaching for much of his career at the St Paul's Girls' School in London. Yet, his abiding interest in cultures of North Africa, the Levant, and India were reflected in his rare musical expression.

While spending time in Algiers in 1908, Holst heard an indigenous musician playing the same phrase repeatedly for two hours on a bamboo flute. This melody became the basis for the final movement of Beni Mora, where Holst repeats the eight-note tune 163 times in a manner foreshadowing minimalism. The first two movements of the suite evoke the mysticism, lively rhythms, and exoticism of the Arab world, juxtaposed with more reflective moments.

Following the success of The Planets, Holst received a commission from the 1925 Leeds Triennial Festival, and he used the opportunity to revise the draft of his Choral Symphony. The work consists of a Prelude and four movements, in keeping with an idea of conventional symphonic structure. Holst’s inspiration came from a widely diverse collection of poetry by John Keats – ranging from the famous Ode to a Grecian Urn to lines scribbled on the flyleaf of a book of plays.

The response to the Choral Symphony was not initially favourable. Even Holst’s lifelong friend, Ralph Vaughan Williams, admitted that he felt only a “cold admiration” for it. But within months of the first performance Holst wrote, “I think the work as a whole is the best thing I have ever written.” This recording is evidence of that belief.