John Wilson leads Sinfonia of London in world premiere recording of complete original score of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!

NEW YORK, NY – September 14, 2023 – This Friday, September 15, CHANDOS will release the world premiere recording of the complete score to Rodgers & Hammerstein’s seminal musical, Oklahoma! performed with its original orchestration by John Wilson and Sinfonia of London. The leading roles of Curly and Laurey are played by Nathaniel Hackmann and Sierra Boggess, alongside Rodney Earl Clarke (Jud Fry), Jamie Parker (Will Parker), Sandra Marvin (Aunt Eller), and Louise Dearman (Ado Annie). The release coincides with the 80^th anniversary of the musical’s first performance.
 
In his program notes, arts columnist David Benedict cites the revolutionary elements that contributed not only to the success of Oklahoma! itself, but to the genre of musical theater as a whole. “At root, what Oklahoma! did was kiss goodbye to vaudeville and create the ‘musical play,’” he writes. “Out went interchangeable numbers often chosen on the whim of the leading actors… In their place, Hammerstein took Riggs’s play and created the first drama on the musicals stage to be built around a coherent plot that was determined, crucially, by three-dimensional characters. And it was the thoughts, wishes, ideas, and fears of those characters that drove the songs they sang. Rodgers welded musical styles, melodies, rhythms, and accompaniments to the individually tailored, realistic, yet poetic lyrics of Hammerstein, which were themselves embedded in his book.”
 
John Wilson was first introduced to Oklahoma! as a teen in the 1980s, when he was tasked with performing the percussion parts. When his mother took him to the library to borrow the original cast recording, he realized that his score didn’t match up, the recording didn’t incorporate all the music in the score. It wasn’t until later that decade, when John McGlinn released a complete recording of Show Boat, that the idea of recording golden age musicals with the original, full orchestrations was born. Wilson was reminded of this when he was asked to conduct Oklahoma! at the Proms in 2017, and realized that still, no one had recorded this landmark musical in its original orchestration. Having spent months rehearsing the show, Wilson says, “It really got under my skin. I love the connective tissue of the piece, the scene-change music, the ballet, the songs that sometimes get cut, the underscoring. And when so many vastly different new versions are appearing on stage, it’s more important than ever that we have a document of the actual source material.”
 
“Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! is often cited as the seminal work in the history of the musical - the piece which took us from musical comedy to integrated musical theatre where narrative and characters were developed through song and dance,” he says. “It is astonishing that we have had to wait 80 years for a complete, Overture to Exit Music recording - but here it is: Robert Russell Bennett’s original orchestrations beautifully restored and re-engraved by Bruce Pomahac at the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization to make complete performing editions with every last instrumental detail intact. To my ears, this great masterpiece in its original instrumental clothing sounds as fresh as the day it was written.” 
 
OKLAHOMA!
Music by Richard Rodgers
Book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
‘Oklahoma!’ Ensemble
Sinfonia of London - John Mills (leader)
John Wilson, conductor

About John Wilson
Born in Gateshead, and since 2011 a Fellow of the Royal College of Music where he studied composition and conducting, John Wilson is now in demand at the highest level across the globe, regularly guest conducting the world’s finest orchestras. In recent seasons these have included the London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, and Sydney Symphony Orchestra. He has also conducted productions at English National Opera and Glyndebourne Festival Opera. For many years he appeared across the UK and abroad with the John Wilson Orchestra and in 2018 relaunched Sinfonia of London with which he has recorded several award-winning recordings. In March 2019 John Wilson received the prestigious Distinguished Musician Award of the Incorporated Society of Musicians for his services to music and in 2021 was appointed Henry Wood Chair of Conducting at the Royal Academy of Music. 
 
About Sinfonia of London
Sinfonia of London has established a reputation for outstanding live concerts and critically acclaimed recordings. Relaunched in 2018 by British conductor John Wilson, the orchestra first came into prominence in the 1950s, appearing in the musical credits of more than 300 films. Today, the hand-picked group of world-class musicians includes a significant number of principals and leaders from other UK and international orchestras, alongside notable soloists and members of distinguished chamber groups. With its partner Chandos Records, the orchestra’s recordings have been consistently met with critical acclaim, receiving three consecutive BBC Music Magazine Awards (2020, 2021 and 2022) and a 2022 Gramophone Award. In 2023, The Guardian described Sinfonia of London as ‘one of the best ensembles anywhere, with Wilson the catalyst’, while The Telegraph stated that Sinfonia of London is ‘set fair to become Britain’s favourite orchestra.’ Sinfonia of London will be performing live at the BBC Proms on August 6th, followed by an extensive UK tour of Hollywood’s Greatest Hits in November. (Basingstoke, Brighton, London, Cardiff, Birmingham, Gateshead, Liverpool, Glasgow, Nottingham, Manchester). For full details please visit: https://sinfoniaoflondon.com/
 
Nathaniel Hackmann: Curly
Nathaniel Hackmann has emerged as an actor / singer of international renown. He has been seen on stage in some of the most demanding roles and alongside many of the world’s greatest orchestras. He has portrayed Jean Valjean and Javert (Les Misérables) on Broadway, as well as the titular roles in Jekyll and Hyde and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. For the internationally televised BBC Proms, at the Royal Albert Hall, he appeared as Curly (Oklahoma!) in the acclaimed production with the John Wilson Orchestra and portrayed Gabey (On the Town) for the 100th Birthday Celebration of Leonard Bernstein.
 
Sierra Boggess: Laurey
Sierra Boggess has been seen on Broadway in School of Rock, It Shoulda Been You, The Phantom of the Opera, Master Class, and The Little Mermaid. Her London theatre credits include Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera at Royal Albert Hall, and Love Never Dies. Among her other New York theatre credits are the recent off-Broadway production of Barry Manilow’s Harmony, The Secret Garden at Lincoln Center, Guys & Dolls at Carnegie Hall, the final off-Broadway cast of Love, Loss, and What I Wore, and Music in the Air for City Center’s Encores! Series. 
 
Rodney Earl Clarke: - Jud Fry
Hailed by Gramophone and recognized for his versatility in performance, the baritone Rodney Earl Clarke has appeared in shows such as Les Misérables in London’s West End, Carmen Jones at the Royal Festival Hall, London, Jude Kelly’s award-winning production of On the Town, Kenneth Branagh’s film version of The Magic Flute, Sondheim’s Eightieth Birthday Celebration Prom, The Broadway Sound BBC Prom with the John Wilson Orchestra, and Porgy and Bess as Jake under Sir Simon Rattle and as Crown at the Royal Danish Opera. He starred in Raymond Gubbay’s Crazy for Gershwin and has also performed many times on BBC Radio 2’s Friday Night Is Music Night.
 
Jamie Parker: - Will Parker
A prolific actor and singer, Jamie Parker has achieved success on stage not only across London (National Theatre, Donmar Warehouse, Southwark Playhouse, Palace Theatre, The Old Vic, Savoy Theatre, Menier Chocolate Factory, Shakespeare’s Globe, and Jermyn Street Theatre, among others) and throughout the UK (Theatre Royal Bath, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Sheffield Crucible, and Chichester Festival Theatre, to name only a few) but as far afield as Australia and Broadway. He has appeared in acclaimed productions of plays such as Next to Normal, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Doctor, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (for which he earned an Olivier Award for Best Actor, as well as a Tony nomination).
 
Sandra Marvin: - Aunt Eller
Sandra Marvin has established herself on the theatrical stage in London and throughout the UK in roles such as Deloris Van Cartier (Sister Act: the Musical), Brenda (Bagdad Café), Becky (Waitress), Diane Loxley (The Band Plays On), Mrs Fezziwig / Mrs Mops (A Christmas Carol), Mother (Romantics Anonymous), Camila Batmanghelidjh (Committee), Rose (Stepping Out), Queenie (Show Boat), Matron Mama Morton (Chicago), Sarah’s Friend (Ragtime), Mary (Cool Hand Luke), and Miss Motormouth Maybelle (Hairspray), as well as in productions 21of City of Angels, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Porgy and Bess. On the concert stage she has performed with Kate Bush in her soldout Before the Dawn concerts and features on her live album of the same title. She has performed with many other artists, including Liam Gallagher, Tim Burgess, and The Charlatans – also featuring on their album Modern Nature – and joined Michael Ball OBE as a guest vocalist on several of his UK tours.
 
Louise Dearman: - Ado Annie
Having trained at Laine Theatre Arts, Louise Dearman has made a name for herself on stage across the UK in roles such as Ruth Sherwood (Wonderful Town), Sarah Parker (Mimma), Daisy (Side Show), Adelaide as well as Mimi and Sarah Brown (Guys and Dolls), 20Elphaba as well as Glinda (Wicked), Mrs D (world première of The Waterbabies), Soloist (Judy), The Woman (Tell Me on a Sunday), Eva Peron (Evita), Debbie (Debbie Does Dallas), Jan (Grease), and Narrator (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat).

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