The surrounding nature always formed an integral source of inspiration for Finland’s ‘national composer’ Jean Sibelius. In his youth the composer imagined birds as various instruments of the orchestra, but also in his mature compositions the element of nature is very much present. When Sibelius moved to his home, Ainola, in 1904 – a place where he was to live and compose until his death in 1957 – his only request was a view to the lake nearby. As Sibelius’ biographer wrote: “When Sibelius first left Helsinki, Järvenpää [where Ainola is located] was to a large extent untouched countryside. Foals and sheep almost nosed their way into the house, and from time to time an elk majestically bestrode the grounds.” This peaceful environment inspired Sibelius to write the main part of his catalogue of works.

This disc by Polish label CD Accord takes the listener on a non-chronological journey along the highways and byways of fugal history. 'The Art of Fugue' once again proves irresistible as a title, but as a musical form at least the fugue offers plenty of diversity and much scope for a composer's imagination. Many of the items in the programme are, to be sure, movements from larger works or arrangements, but the NFM Wroclaw Chamber Orchestra, a subset of the Witold Lutoslawski Philharmonic, has a dark-roasted expressive sound that brings out both the variety and detail in all these pieces.