Albert Ketèlbey - The Clock and the Dresden Figures for Piano and Orchestra (1930)

Albert William Ketèlbey, born Ketelbey; 9 August 1875 – 26 November 1959) was an English composer, conductor and pianist, best known for his short pieces of light orchestral music. Works as In a Persian Market (1920), In a Chinese Temple Garden (1923), and In the Mystic Land of Egypt (1931) became best-sellers in print and on records; by the late 1920s he was Britain’s first millionaire composer. Please support my channels: The Clock and the Dresden Figures for Piano and Orchestra or Military Band (1930) Dedication: Lieut. W. J. Dunn. M.C., .. Prague Festival Orchestra The Clock and the Dresden Figures was premiered on 8 February 1930, using manuscript parts. The first recording was made on 27 February, resulting in a simultaneous issue of the recording and the sheet music, which was published by Bosworth. A version for xylophone replacing the piano was published later. A synopsis by the composer mentions that two Dresden china figures, which stand right and lift of a clock come to life. They dance, with the ticking clock providing the beat. When the Clock goes wrong, its spring breaks, and the figures return to their first positions. In 1930, it was recorded, with the composer as the pianist, who took a fast tempo. It was reissued in 2002 in a collection of his light music