Malcolm Arnold never did anything by halves, and when he composed his Fifth Symphony he poured out his soul. Soaring melodies, gleaming colours and raw, heart-on-sleeve emotion: this is British music as you鈥檝e never heard it before. It鈥檚 a gripping counterpart to Doreen Carwithen鈥檚 Concerto, and the radiance and rapture of Vaughan Williams鈥檚 gorgeous Serenade.

For 麻豆约拍 Symphony Orchestra chief conductor Sakari Oramo, British music is a passion 鈥� especially the masterpieces that the British themselves have overlooked. The Serenade to Music is a perennial favourite, but today the 麻豆约拍 Singers revive the composer鈥檚 ravishing original version. And pianist Alexandra Dariescu is just as committed to the music of Doreen Carwithen 鈥� like Arnold, a postwar composer whose music is richly melodic, atmospheric, and evocative.