The Art-Music, Literature and Linguistics Forum

There are twenty-three concertos on my list. That is a substantial number and many listed do deserve to be recorded commercially. Very fortunately more than half are available in off-air broadcast recordings for download. Sound quality is variable.

Sir Eugene Goossens (1893-1962): Phantasy Concerto (1948) *
Grace Williams (1906-1977): Violin Concerto (1950)  *
Arnold Cooke (1906-2005): Violin Concerto (1958)  *
William Wordsworth (1908-1988): Violin Concerto (1955)  *
Robert Still (1910-1971): Violin Concerto (1969)  *
Stanley Bate (1911-1959): Violin Concerto No.1 (1936-37)
                                                  Violin Concerto No.2 (1943)
                                                  Violin Concerto No.3 (1947-50)
Franz Reizenstein (1911-1968): Violin Concerto (1952)  *
Daniel Jones (1912-1993): Violin Concerto (1966)  *
Peter Racine Fricker (1920-1990): Violin Concerto No.2 "Rhapsodia Concertante) (1953-54)  *
Ruth Gipps (1921-1999): Violin Concerto (1943)
Robert Simpson (1921-1997): Violin Concerto (1959) (withdrawn)  *
Iain Hamilton (1922-2000): Violin Concerto No.2 "Amphion" (1972)  *
Arthur Butterworth (1923-2014): Violin Concerto (1978)  *
Wilfred Josephs (1927-1997): Violin Concerto (1992)
Alun Hoddinott (1929-2008): Violin Concerto No.1 (1961)
                                                      Violin Concerto No.2 "Mistral" (1995)  *
Hugh Wood (1932-): Violin Concerto No.2 (2003-04)  *
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (1934-2016): Violin Concerto No.2 "Fiddler on the Shore" (2009)  *
William Mathias (1934-1992): Violin Concerto (1992)  *
John McCabe (1939-2015): Violin Concerto No.1 "Sinfonia Concertante" (1959)
                                                  Violin Concerto No. 2 (1980)  *

The violin concertos which are "missing" are the three of Stanley Bate, the very early concertos by Ruth Gipps and John McCabe and the Hoddinott No.1 and the Wilfred Josephs
There was a time when one might have hoped for at least one of the Bate concertos from Dutton but their enthusiasm for the composer's music has waned.
It is perhaps a little surprising that the premiere of the Hoddinott played by Manoug Parikian in Birmingham in 1961 has never appeared. The concert may not have been broadcast by the BBC but I find it hard to credit that the work was not performed again in Wales. The Josephs, on the other hand, has never been performed.

Hello Colin,

there is a serious omission from your list, of which I haven't been able to trace any off-air recording:

    Ronald Stevenson (1928-2015): Violin Concerto "The Gypsy" (1977-79)

As a matter of fact the Stevenson was on my original list. That list was split into two groups and the second of these had a few concertos by more obscure figures like Richard Hall, Malcolm Lipkin and David Ellis. I decided to drop the Stevenson into the second group and then not to include any of these because the main list was already too long.

Ultimately a selection will reflect the perceptions of the compiler of such a list. I am sure that there will be other concertos written perhaps more recently that some people would see as more deserving of a commercial recording.

A more serious omission:

   Kenneth Leighton

It would be if it was........but it isn't ;D

Leighton's Violin Concerto was recorded by Naxos, coupled with the Gordon Jacob and Paul Patterson's 2nd and issued in December of last year.

https://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/classical/works/305671--leighton-concerto-for-violin-and-small-orchestra-op-12/browse (https://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/classical/works/305671--leighton-concerto-for-violin-and-small-orchestra-op-12/browse)

Oh.  I had no idea, and can't recall any mention of it here at the time.

Having to choose only 3 from your list for commercial issue I might well go with the trio of Welsh composed VC's by Jones, Matthias, & Grace Williams, - all very strong works in my judgment.

Oh I think that I posted about that cd at the time ;D

I quite agree about the three Welsh concertos you mention. At 17, 34 and 24 minutes (in the order you gave) they could (just) fit onto one disc. No doubt an enterprising violinist would be happy to record them. Only problem....try selling the idea to a record company ::)