Some of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ most imposing and important music for solo instruments can be heard in his cycle of ten Strathclyde Concertos, composed for, and premièred by the soloists of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. The ingeniously structured Seventh Concerto, for double bass, is both tense and haunting. The more conventionally laid out Eighth Concerto, for bassoon, is by turns playful and lyrical, and features an important rôle for timpani. A Spell for Green Corn was written to celebrate the 21st anniversary of the SCO and Maxwell Davies’ 60th birthday.