Obituary

Malcolm Arnold died yesterday. We cant let that pass without paying tribute to this most under-rated of British composers one who wrote a vast amount of music, so much of which is immediately accessible and extremely popular. Arnold was an immense personality and a highly intelligent man, as well as being an extraordinarily gifted and talented musician and composer. His sense of humour was enormous and, even though he could sometimes be crude (and often outrageous) he was almost always hilariously funny. His razor-sharp wit could be devastating and sometimes cruel but he could also be very subtle. There are many sad stories about his mental illness, his depressions and, most of all, about his legendary alcohol consumption. He was a man of extremes but I will always remember him as a gentle, genial giant of a man who was a tremendous inspiration to all those who were fortunate enough to know him and to work with him. His music reflects all of this. I can think of two particular 20th Century composers with whom he bears direct comparison. He had the intellect, skill and practical understanding of Paul Hindemith, not only being able to write effectively for every instrument but actually taking the trouble to do so! More strikingly, Arnold had his own very distinctive and instantly recognisable sound. The only other composer who had this quality to such a degree was Dmitri Shostakovich. Of course, I wouldnt suggest that Arnold ever reached the same levels of sublime profundity as did Shostakovich but, in almost every other way, one can find remarkable similarities. They both had the common touch, they were both iconoclasts, they both delighted in vulgarity (for its own sake and as a means of deriding pomposity) and they had a similar, irrepressible sense of humour which comes out in their music. Both wrote a great deal of film music and both were capable of creating striking atmospheres and mood changes. Both of them set out to write music that would affect and move their audiences and both succeeded. Most of all, neither of them ever wrote anything boring! Their music is always exciting, always provocative and, whilst Shostakovich was undoubtedly the greater composer, Arnolds music is always great fun! So, this great man has left us a wealth of fine music to enjoy. I think he would not want us to mourn his passing, he would prefer us to remember him (given the sadness of much of his life) as a man who wanted everyone to share his happiness. Its all there in his music lets have fun with it and I for one will be raising a glass or two to him tonight to say thank you! Xenophon Kelsey (25/09/06)