Helen Leach: Diary of the Bee: Chamber Works
Divine Art

The sheer delight composer Helen Leach experiences in creating is evident in every moment of this collection, which at eighty-two minutes provides an in-depth account of her music's general character and her stylistic approach. The project exudes an appealing coziness in featuring her husband, pianist Simon Leach, as one of the musicians and in its having been recorded in the oak-paneled Music Room at Marchmont House in Berwickshire, Scotland, where the Hawick-born artist made the most of her tenure as Composer-in-Residence. Adding to the impact of Diary of the Bee is the fact that all of its chamber settings are world premiere recordings.

Leach established herself first as a clarinetist (she was Principal Clarinet with the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland), and the instrument is prominently featured on the release. But its expansive sound world extends to oboe, piano, and string quartet too, the result a luscious chamber presentation. Splendidly rendering Leach's pieces into physical form are the Victoria String Quartet (violinists Benedict Holland and David Greed, violist Catherine Yeats, cellist Jennifer Langridge), clarinetist John Bradbury, oboist Richard Simpson, and Simon at the piano.

The sumptuous music Leach crafts is lyrical, rhapsodic, and richly melodic and more evokes composers like J. S. Bach, Ravel, and Handel than, say, Scriabin and Schoenberg. It is, consistent with that characterization, music of immediate appeal that shows no lack of sophistication for being so accessible. That these oft-pastoral pieces are grounded in storytelling, landscapes, and natural phenomena only makes them all the easier to embrace.

Written to commemorate the seventieth anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne, Prelude for a Royal Swan instantly draws the listener into Leach's harmonious world when Simon's lilting patterns accompany Holland's romantic outpourings in memory of the late Queen. Poignant and dignified, Helen's homage provides a magnificent portal into the recording. The album's longest standalone setting follows, at ten minutes Tenera Caritate an intensely rhapsodic expression scored for clarinet and string quartet and a fantastic showcase for Bradbury. That the Latin title translates as ‘Tender Love' is apt when the tone of the piece, inspired by a visit to the Holy Island of Lindesfarne and dedicated to Helen's husband, is so rapturous and lyrical. The free-flowing design of the music speaks to the authority with which she shapes material into satisfying wholes.

Structured in six parts that individually relate to different aspects of the Lapwing (known in Scottish circles as the ‘peewit'), Where Hope Was Sown partners the string quartet with Simpson, whose oboe is ideally suited to convey the physical agility of the bird and the forlorn quality of its plaintive cry. Sometimes tinged with baroque elegance, Leach's outdoorsy music is riveting throughout, its impact enhanced immensely by the musicians' performances. If Simpson's oboe is perfect as the lead instrument for Where Hope Was Sown, Bradbury's clarinet is the same for the five-part title work in suggesting the insect's movements from one wildflower to another. Leach's focus in the work isn't on the bee, however, but more on different wildflowers. Be it the stirring “Bluebell (Prelude),” tender “Thistle (Air),” or delightful “Forget-me-not (Scherzo),” these miniatures fully capture the innocent joy of being in a garden and experiencing its intoxicating sights and smells.

Simon and Holland reconvene for the fittingly titled A Melrose Rhapsody, which vividly conjures the countryside of the Borderlands and the ruins of Melrose Abbey. Floating serenely in its upper register, the violin evokes the heights the hills reach, and the instruments together capture the spiritual peacefulness of the setting. An affectingly lyrical and lamenting tone is also expressed by the duo in An Edinburgh Farewell, Leach's heartfelt tribute to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Strings alone appear in the four nocturnally set excerpts from the six-part Letters from the Owl House, the instruments, cello and viola in particular, fitting choices to suggest the wisdom associated with the enigmatic creature. Leach affectionately dedicated the work to Hugo Burge, the owner and restorer of Marchmont House who built several owl houses across its grounds, and used historic Baroque dance types (allemande, sarabande, air, gigue) as springboards for her imagination in rendering the antics of owls into musical form. Scored for violin and piano, Song Without Words was also created with Burge in mind as a gentle expression of gratitude for his life and generous spirit.

In its quiet reserve and sincere expression, Leach's music on this release is uplifting in the best way and transporting in its evocativeness. While it certainly wasn't created with it as its primary goal, Diary of the Bee makes one long to visit Marchmont House and walk amongst its grounds with her replenishing music as the soundtrack. This encompassing collection presents a most flattering portrait of her considerable gifts.

August 2024