TotW 03/18/2024 - 03/24/2024: ANTHONY PHILLIPS & HARRY WILLIAMSON - The Anthem From Tarka

    Your rating for "The Anthem From Tarka" by ANTHONY PHILLIPS & HARRY WILLIAMSON 12

    1. 15 points - outstanding (0) 0%
    2. 14 points - very good (0) 0%
    3. 13 points - very good - (0) 0%
    4. 12 points - good + (1) 8%
    5. 11 points - good (2) 17%
    6. 10 points - good - (2) 17%
    7. 09 points - satisfactory + (1) 8%
    8. 08 points - satisfactory (2) 17%
    9. 07 points - satisfactory - (1) 8%
    10. 06 points - sufficient + (1) 8%
    11. 05 points - sufficient (1) 8%
    12. 04 points - sufficient - (0) 0%
    13. 03 points - poor + (1) 8%
    14. 02 points - poor (0) 0%
    15. 01 points - poor - (0) 0%
    16. 00 points - abysmal (0) 0%

    We invite you to share interesting facts and tidbits about this track. Let's look at the track in the context of the band's / the artist's history, at the music, the songwriting and all other aspects that are relevant for this track. Please do stick to the discussion of the track above. Comparisons to other tracks are okay, but remember that the other track you may be keen to talk about has or will have its own Track Of The Week thread. If you spot a mistake or if you can close a gap in the fact sheet above please feel free to contact martinus or Christian about it; we will gladly add and improve!


    ANTHONY PHILLIPS & HARRY WILLIAMSON - The Anthem From Tarka

    Year: 1988
    Album: Tarka
    Working title: ?
    Credits: Anthony Phillips, Simon Heyworth
    Lyrics: No
    Length: 6:04
    Musicians: Anthony Phillips, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Simon Heyworth (and others)
    Played live: never
    Cover versions: ?

    External Content youtu.be
    Content embedded from external sources will not be displayed without your consent.
    Through the activation of external content, you agree that personal data may be transferred to third party platforms. We have provided more information on this in our privacy policy.


    Notes: An instrumental work that has an otter as its theme can almost only come from the corner of Ant Phillips at TotW. But one thing at a time: The Brit Henry Williamson wrote the novel Tarka the Otter in 1927. The book describes the life of the otter Tarka. Although the book was not originally conceived for children, it quickly became very popular, especially with young readers. Williamson's son Harry was born in 1950 and is a guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, sound engineer and producer. He founded the music label Ottersongs in 1980, whose name was inspired by his father's work. Eight years later, Williamson teamed up with Ant Phillips to create an orchestral work, also inspired by his father's book. The album Tarka comprises the three pieces Movement I, Movement II and Movement III. Ant and Simon Heyworth also wrote the Anthem from Tarka, adapting a theme from another part of the work. The piece forms the conclusion of the album. The whole thing was released 36 years ago this year. A good reason to dedicate some time to this piece as a representative of the album at TotW!.

    cheers

    Christian


    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | BlueSky

    Deutsch? Check our German Website

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Check out our brand new WhatsApp Channel!

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    I'd never heard it before. It's ok but it's very meandery and doesn't have anything to especially to mark it out in terms of musicianship, melody, atmosphere or production. It's like a very extended version of a forgettable snippet from the soundtrack to a weak movie. I doubt I'll ever listen to it again. 3 (the + is for annoying me less than Battle of Epping Forest which I gave 2).

    Similar here. You can tell he understands classical music and how to arrange it, but the track is let down by the writing. It's not far off being one loop repeated with increasing intensity for 6 minutes. Perhaps fine if a snippet is taken to score a montage section of a B-movie (I assume it was used in the Tarka The Otter but wasn't 100% sure from Christian's description) but not strong enough as a standalone piece.


    Definitely less annoying than Battle of Epping Forest! I'll also add points because (a) a short section is OK and (b) I'm sure Ant can do more in the classical arena (and probably has but I just don't know about it) . It's a 5 from me.

    In isolation, I can understand why this track isn't scoring particularly well. But as part of the whole album/project, I think it stands up very well indeed. Beautiful melody and a first class arrangement.


    It's a 12 from me.