The name Adam Carse is most likely familiar to young students of the piano and violin and indeed much of the material he wrote and arranged for school orchestras, young string players and pianists is still in use today.
However there is a wealth of varied orchestral music, largely forgotten but certainly worthy of a major revival.
Born in Newcastle upon Tyne, Carse was a Macfarren scholar at the Royal Academy of Music, where he studied composition with Frederick Corder. He received the 1902 medal from the Worshipful Company of Musicians, handed to the best student of the academy. He was assistant music master at Winchester College between 1909 and 1922, then returning to the Academy as Professor of Harmony and Counterpoint until 1940.
His son Edward Adam Carse was killed in action at the end of the 2nd World War. Carse dedicated his Fifth Symphony, written in June 1945, to the memory of his son and in 1947 he donated his collection of 350 wind instruments to the Horniman Museum in South London, also in his son's memory: there is a plaque commemorating his gift in the Horniman Music Gallery.
A Romantic Legend (1938)
This is a work of opposing moods; wild and frenzied contrasted with serene and passionate. The opening fanfare-like motif heralds the action.
Fierce tremelandos on the strings follow in harsh dissonance.
The calm follows the storm and leads into some sumptious harmonic writing for strings.
SAMPLE: A Romantic Legend - start
The opening part returns but now more developed and this leads once again into the serenity of the strings to end the piece.
SAMPLE: A Romantic Legend - end
5. Dance of the Top and Ball has a seemingly endless trill on interchanging flutes with pizz strings. The final note is on the doubles basses col legno, as the top hits the floor and stops.
7. Dance of the Toy Soldier is a snippet featuring two muted trumpets, snare drum and piccolo.
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SAMPLE: A Romantic Legend - start
The pace quickens again amidst busy trills and eventually the more romantic, softer passage returns with an extended coda.
The Nursery, Suite for Orchestra (1928)
This is a series of short dances (varying in length from 30 seconds to 2 mins) which quickly demonstrate Carse's mastery of writing for the orchestra.
It begins with The Nursery at Night. All is calm and and the children are going asleep. A solo flute sings a sleepy lullaby over muted strings.
This is abruptly interrupted for Dance of the Teddy Bear in which the tuba is evr present in the bass.
SAMPLE: The Nursery at Night and Dance of the Teddy Bear
3. Dance of the Fairy Doll is a waltz with 2/4 cross rhythms in the flutes.
4. Dance of the Wild Doll features the brass with a repeated rhythmic figure fortissimo.
SAMPLE: Dance of the Fairy Doll and Dance of the Wild Doll
5. Dance of the Top and Ball has a seemingly endless trill on interchanging flutes with pizz strings. The final note is on the doubles basses col legno, as the top hits the floor and stops.
6. Dance of the Sailor Doll possibly draws inspiration from Henry Wood's Fantasia on British Sea Songs. The 1st violins have most of the work to do.
SAMPLE: Dance of the Top and Ball and Dance of the Sailor Doll
7. Dance of the Toy Soldier is a snippet featuring two muted trumpets, snare drum and piccolo.
The music recaps the opening; all goes quiet and sleepy once more.
8. The Finale- Children's Dance is in a lively 6/8 time with a waltz/landler episode.
In the last few bars there is the addition of a 'Breakfast Bell' !
SAMPLE: Dance of the Toy Soldier and Finale - Children's Dance
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A Romantic Legend (1938)
This work doesn't appear to be based on any legend of yore. It is a piece of extremes, from the wild, exhilarating opening to the subsequent section where the music is dreamy and passionate.
A horn fanfare-type motif starts things going.
Immediately followed by savage tremelandos on the strings.
The sotto voce passage on the strings (after the 'battle' subsides) is of great beauty, perfectly phrased and balanced as ever.
The pace quickens again amidst busy trills and eventually the more romantic, softer passage returns with an extended coda.
SAMPLE: A Romantic Legend - end