Forgotten Music of Former St Andrews Professor Released on CD

A new CD entitled Cedric Thorpe Davie: Orchestral Music, Volume One has preserved five previously unrecorded pieces of his music in the hopes of securing both his and St Andrews’ musical legacy for the future.

Cedric Thorpe Davie taught at the University of St Andrews between 1945 and 1978, arriving with a letter of recommendation from composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, who he studied under in London. During his working life, he was frequently employed to write music for major occasions across Scotland. 

When the Forth Road Bridge was opened in 1964, at a ceremony attended by Queen Elizabeth II, it was Davie’s music accompanying the event. A decade earlier, he wrote music for the Queen’s coronation. His Scottish-inflected style made him an ideal musical ambassador for Scotland and the UK, and he was made Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1955.

Despite this, he is remembered today for his film scores, as little else of his work was recorded or broadcast. His concert pieces, once performed in prestigious venues like the Royal Albert Hall in London, ceased to be broadcast by post-war BBC programming.

This CD aims to reverse that fate by securing Davie’s legacy not just through the music itself, but also through asserting St Andrews’ and Fife’s musical identity, much of which Davie helped to shape. The music on the CD was selected by his former student Alan Munro and is performed under the direction of Bede Williams by the University Chamber Orchestra, which Davie founded in 1945.

The CD was recorded by members of Fife College inside the Laidlaw Music Centre’s flagship McPherson Recital Room. It was then released by Toccata Records, a record company founded by St Andrews alumnus Martin Anderson, with a digital release to follow in early October. 

Early reviews have been positive, including two from Australia. Geoff Pierce, writing for Classical Music Daily, called it “an absolute delight,” whilst Limelight awarded the CD Editor’s Choice, with reviewer Clive Paget stating that “from start to finish it’s a winner.” Both reviewers also highlighted that they had never heard of Davie or his music before. In that regard, the CD may be seeing some early success in its mission to reintroduce Cedric Thorpe Davie’s music to the world.

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons