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Engegard Quartet - Edvard Grieg, Jean Sibelius, Olav Anton Thommessen: String Quartets (2015)

Posted By: Designol
Engegard Quartet - Edvard Grieg, Jean Sibelius, Olav Anton Thommessen: String Quartets (2015)

Engegård Quartet - Edvard Grieg, Jean Sibelius, Olav Anton Thommessen (2015)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 327 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 172 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: BIS | # BIS-SACD-2101 | Time: 01:12:23

A string quartet was among the very first works that Edvard Grieg presented after completing his studies in 1861, but the Quartet in G minor, Op. 27, was the only such work to be published in his lifetime. In 1878, while composing it, Grieg wrote that ‘it aims at breadth, to soar, and, above all, at vigorous sound’, and the amplitude of the sound is indeed striking: the generous use of double-stops creates an almost orchestral effect, unusual for the genre. This caused some reviewers to criticize the quartet as being unidiomatic, while others, including Liszt, greeted it with enthusiasm. Some thirty years later, when Jean Sibelius composed his D minor quartet Op. 56, he too had previous experience of writing for the medium, but Op. 56 is the only quartet among his mature works. The often used 'nickname' Voces intimae is often taken to refer to the intimate interchange between the four voices in a quartet, but is probably a more specific allusion to a brief passage in the third movement: Sibelius wrote the remark into a score some time after the work had been published.

Sir Thomas Beecham & Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Ascona, 1957: Beethoven, Handel, Delius, Sibelius (2000)

Posted By: Designol
Sir Thomas Beecham & Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Ascona, 1957: Beethoven, Handel, Delius, Sibelius (2000)

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No.7; George Frideric Handel: Love in Bath, Ballet Suite
Frederick Delius: A Village Romeo and Juliet; Jean Sibelius: Alla marcia da, Karelia Suite
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 308 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 177 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: AURA | # AUR 142-2 ADD | Time: 01:11:54

Beethoven reputedly wasn't Beecham's favorite composer, but you wouldn't know it from this performance; it's exceedingly well conceived, highly energetic, and has that unique Beecham sparkle to it. The fillers also are delightful. All recorded in Ascona, Switzerland in 1957.

David Geringas & Ian Fountain - Malincolia: Works for Cello and Piano by Edvard Grieg and Jean Sibelius (2015)

Posted By: Designol
David Geringas & Ian Fountain - Malincolia: Works for Cello and Piano by Edvard Grieg and Jean Sibelius (2015)

Malincolia: Works for Cello and Piano by Edvard Grieg and Jean Sibelius (2015)
David Geringas (cello) & Ian Fountain (piano)

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 262 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 160 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Profil | # PH15005 | Time: 01:08:13

The Italian word malinconia was very commonly used in the nineteenth century as a title for melancholy pieces. Yet the idea of malinconia covered a myriad of romantic notions, so that simply translating it as "melancholy" does not do it justice. It subsumes many other emotional states as well - all kinds of dejection, gloom, unknown sadness, desperation, depression and even frustration. Each language has evolved its own terms, and interpretations of the word itself also differ from region to region. Malinconia in sunny Italy or Spain is quite different from melancholy in Norway and in Finland, where the winters are harsh and long. The Nordic variant is expressed here in various musical examples; words alone are anyway inadequate.

Cho-Liang Lin, Esa-Pekka Salonen - Jean Sibelius, Carl Nielsen: Violin Concertos (1988)

Posted By: Designol
Cho-Liang Lin, Esa-Pekka Salonen - Jean Sibelius, Carl Nielsen: Violin Concertos (1988)

Jean Sibelius, Carl Nielsen - Violin Concertos (1988)
Cho-Liang Lin, violin; Philharmonia Orchestra; Swedish RSO; Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor

EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 280 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 170 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: CBS | # MK 44548 | Time: 01:09:17

This sensational disc has served as a reference edition for both concertos since it was first issued back in the late 1980s. The Sibelius concerto is distinguished by the tension between Lin’s passionate and virtuosic account of the solo part and Salonen’s remarkable precision at the head of the orchestra. Listen, for example, to the remarkable rhythmic clarity at the opening of the finale, and to the way this serves to “float” Lin’s daredevil pyrotechnics up above. It’s just marvellous. The same holds true of the Nielsen–there is no finer account of this neglected concerto. It’s a rarity because in the finale Nielsen subordinates flash and dazzle to the work’s overall emotional arc, progressing from anger to contentment. That doesn’t mean the music isn’t excellent, or that Lin and Salonen’s performances aren’t gripping from first note to last. They tear into the opening movement with apt ferocity and find the necessary emotional resolution in the work’s amiable conclusion. The detailed, well-balanced sound ideally suits the interpretations. Essential.

Baiba Skride, Santtu-Matias Rouvali - Jean Sibelius: Violin Concerto, 2 Serenades; Carl Nielsen: Violin Concerto (2015)

Posted By: Designol
Baiba Skride, Santtu-Matias Rouvali - Jean Sibelius: Violin Concerto, 2 Serenades; Carl Nielsen: Violin Concerto (2015)

Jean Sibelius: Violin Concerto, 2 Serenades; Carl Nielsen: Violin Concerto (2015) 2CDs
Baiba Skride, violin; Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Santtu-Matias Rouvali

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 330 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Orfeo | # C 896 152 A | Time: 01:26:32

Born into a musical Latvian family violinist Baiba Skride won First Prize at the 2010 Queen Elisabeth Competition, held annually in Belgium. Ms. Skride’s natural approach to her music making has endeared her to some of today’s most important conductors and orchestras. Following her debut at the BBC Proms with the Oslo Philharmonic and Vasily Petrenko playing the Szymanowski Concerto No. 1, The Times noted, ‘Latvian violinist Baiba Skride sailed over the orchestra with long lines of melody, silver and sweet.’ She was immediately re-invited, and at the 2014 Proms played the Stravinsky Concerto with the BBC Symphony and Ed Gardner. Baiba Skride debut recording with Orfeo of the Szymanowski Concertos and Myths was nominated for the 2015 BBC Music Magazine Awards in the Concerto section. For her Orfeo CD follow up she has recorded two Scandinavian violin concertos truly exciting, fresh and innovative – Jean Sibelius’s well-loved concerto and Carl Nielsen’s unjustly neglected companion work – with the Tampere Philharmonic and conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali.

Hans-Ola Ericsson - Symphonic Organ Music, Vol.1: Sibelius, Dvořák, Glazunov (2001)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Hans-Ola Ericsson - Symphonic Organ Music, Vol.1: Sibelius, Dvořák, Glazunov (2001)

Hans-Ola Ericsson - Symphonic Organ Music, Vol.1: Sibelius, Dvořák, Glazunov (2001)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 303 Mb | Total time: 74:10 | Scans included
Classical | Label: BIS | # BIS-CD-1101 | Recorded: 1998

It may be news to many readers that these composers wrote organ music at all, and in the case of Dvorak he virtually didn't, for these are composition exercises from his student days which remained in the archives of Prague Conservatoire until they were found and edited by Jarmil Burghauser in 1980. Some of the world's most boring music has been written as before-service preludes and Dvorak's student exercises are more engaging than many a more professional job, but it would be unwise to read more into them than that. Occasionally Mr. Ericsson seems to be trying too hard, but generally he leaves their homely charm to speak for itself.

Christian Tetzlaff, Danish National SO, Thomas Dausgaard - Jean Sibelius: The Complete Works For Violin and Orchestra (2002)

Posted By: Designol
Christian Tetzlaff, Danish National SO, Thomas Dausgaard - Jean Sibelius: The Complete Works For Violin and Orchestra (2002)

Jean Sibelius: The Complete Works For Violin and Orchestra (2002)
Christian Tetzlaff, violin; Danish National Symphony Orchestra; Thomas Dausgaard, conductor

EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 363 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 217 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Virgin | # 7243 5 45534 2 4 | Time: 01:18:45

Christian Tetzlaff’s effortless virtuosity, purity of intonation, and slight emotional reticence perfectly suits Sibelius, making this the finest available collection of the Finnish composer’s music for violin and orchestra. In the concerto, Tetzlaff’s relative coolness makes the music sound more like Sibelius and less like a violin concerto, which is all to the good. That doesn’t mean he lacks anything in sheer technique: indeed, his first-movement cadenza impresses as one of the most impressively concentrated and musically satisfying on disc. Tetzlaff’s slow movement sings but avoids panting and heaving, while the finale realizes the music’s gentle melancholy as well as its more thrusting elements. He’s nicely accompanied by Thomas Dausgaard, whose gentle support perfectly suits the overall interpretation.

Kyung-Wha Chung - P.I. Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D major, Op.35; Jean Sibelius: Voilin Concerto in D minor, Op.47 (1970)

Posted By: Designol
Kyung-Wha Chung - P.I. Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D major, Op.35; Jean Sibelius: Voilin Concerto in D minor, Op.47 (1970)

P.I. Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D major, Op.35;
Jean Sibelius: Voilin Concerto in D minor, Op.47 (1970) Reissue 2001
Kyung-Wha Chung, violin; London Symphony Orchestra; Andre Previn, conductor

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 320 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 190 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Decca | # UCCD-7007, 468 707-2 | Time: 01:06:25

This was Kyung-Wha Chung's first recording, made when she was 22, just after her sensational London debut in the Tchaikovsky Concerto with the same orchestra and conductor. It is splendid. Only a young, radiantly talented player could make these two tired warhorses sound so fresh and vital; only a consummately masterful one could sail through their daunting technical difficulties with such easy virtuosity and perfection. Her tone is flawlessly beautiful, varied in color and inflection; she puts her technical resources entirely at the service of the music, giving every note meaning and honestly felt expression without exaggeration or sentimentality. The Tchaikovsky has charm, humor, sparkle; the slow movement is dreamy, wistful, and unmuted but subdued and inward. The Sibelius is dark and bleak but full-blooded, passionate, and intense. The orchestra sounds and plays better in the Sibelius.

Yevgeny Mravinsky, LPO - Jean Sibelius: Symphony No.3 & No.7, 'The Swan of Tuonela'; Claude Debussy: Nocturnes (2016)

Posted By: Designol
Yevgeny Mravinsky, LPO - Jean Sibelius: Symphony No.3 & No.7, 'The Swan of Tuonela'; Claude Debussy: Nocturnes (2016)

Jean Sibelius: Symphony No.3 & No.7, 'The Swan of Tuonela'; Claude Debussy: Nocturnes (2016)
Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra; conducted by Yevgeny Mravinsky

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 354 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 180 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Praga Digitals | # 350 106 | Time: 01:10:53

Sibelius's Symphony No.3 was composed in 1907. It is the link between the romantic intensity of his first two symphonies and the more cold complexity of his later symphonies. Symphony No.7 was completed in 1924 and is notable for having only one movement. The Swan of Tuonela is a tone poem based on the Kalevala epic of Finnish mythology. The Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra and Yevgeny Mravinsky pair these with Debussy's Nocturnes Nos.1 & 2.

Paavo Berglund, Chamber Orchestra of Europe - Jean Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 6 (2007)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Paavo Berglund, Chamber Orchestra of Europe - Jean Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 6 (2007)

Paavo Berglund, Chamber Orchestra of Europe - Jean Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 6 (2007)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue) ~ 424 Mb | Total time: 61:26 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Finlandia | # 0630-14951-2 | Recorded: 1995

It would be difficult to speak about the life and work of Finnish conductor Paavo Berglund without mentioning the name of his illustrious compatriot, composer Jean Sibelius—but the reverse is also true, as Berglund spent a lifetime exploring the profound depths of Sibelius's music and bringing it to an ever wider public. After three recordings of the complete Sibelius symphonies on CD, Berglund returned to these titanic works in 1998, aged nearly 70, with a level of insight—shaped over the course of decades—that perhaps no other conductor has ever achieved.

Mr McFall's Chamber - Solitudes: Baltic Reflections (2015)

Posted By: Designol
Mr McFall's Chamber - Solitudes: Baltic Reflections (2015)

Mr McFall's Chamber - Solitudes: Baltic Reflections (2015)
Olli Mustonen, Zita Bruzaite, Aulis Sallinen, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Kalevi Aho
Arvo Pärt, Toivo Kärki, Jean Sibelius, Unto Mononen, Pēteris Vasks

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 267 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 154 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical, Contemporary | Label: Delphian | # DCD34156 | Time: 01:05:28

No one knows quite when tango was established in Finland, but the style has a long history there – still little known to outsiders – and combines rhythmic interest and yearning melody with a distinctively Nordic melancholy. In this ingeniously curated programme, two Finnish tangos from the 1950s and a tango-based work by Finnish classical composer Aulis Sallinen are woven into a bold tapestry of music from the Eastern Baltic seaboard. Longing, sadness, and a heightened sense of nature infuse all of these works, which also reveal intriguing stylistic connections: the rocking accompaniment of Sibelius’ 'Einsames Lied' seems to prefigure the ‘Baltic minimalism’ of Vasks, Pärt and Zita Bružaité, while Olli Mustonen’s 'Toccata' alternates rhythmic verve with a rich vein of reflective memory. These original compositions are complemented by Robert McFall’s own sensitive arrangements, for a core McFall’s lineup of five strings and piano, and the programme culminates in a truly unique version of Sibelius’s famous 'Finlandia' Hymn.

Leif Segerstam, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra - Jean Sibelius: Jedermann; Two Serious Melodies; In memoriam (2015)

Posted By: Designol
Leif Segerstam, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra - Jean Sibelius: Jedermann; Two Serious Melodies; In memoriam (2015)

Jean Sibelius: Jedermann; Two Serious Melodies; In memoriam (2015)
Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Leif Segerstam

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 249 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 171 Mb | Artwork included
Classical | Label: Naxos | # 8.573340 | Time: 01:12:47

Rarely performed but recognized as a hidden masterpiece, Sibelius's score for Jedermann is unusual in that the music closely follows the words and action of this morality play, intensifying Everyman's hubris, penance, escape from the Devil's clutches and ultimate salvation.The Two Serious Melodies reflect Sibelius' dark mood during the difficult years of World War I, while In memoriam resonates with his preoccupation with death in 1909 following a life-saving throat operation, and was performed at his own funeral in 1957. This is the fourth of a six volume set that explores Jean Sibelius's orchestral works beyond the higher profile symphonies, violin concerto and tone poems.Finnish conductor Leif Segerstam is an acclaimed Sibelius interpreter, having been awarded the annual Finnish State Prize for Music in 2004; and in 2005 the highly esteemed Sibelius Medal.

Ivry Gitlis - The Art of Ivry Gitlis: Tchaikovsky, Bruch, Sibelius, Mendelssohn, Bartok (1992) 2CDs

Posted By: Designol
Ivry Gitlis - The Art of Ivry Gitlis: Tchaikovsky, Bruch, Sibelius, Mendelssohn, Bartok (1992) 2CDs

Ivry Gitlis - The Art of Ivry Gitlis (1992) 2CDs
Tchaikovsky - Bruch - Sibelius - Mendelssohn - Bartók

EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 529 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 374 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: VoxBox | # CDX2 5505 | Time: 02:39:09

There are several reasons to own this Vox Box 2CD set. For the first, it includes five great violin concertos in some of the very best performances in their discography. For the second, Ivry Gitlis (born 1922) is a great living violinist and these recordings made in early 1950s show his art in the best way, when Ivry's violin sounded powerful and brilliant.

Halle, Sir Mark Elder - Jean Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7; En Saga (2016)

Posted By: Designol
Halle, Sir Mark Elder - Jean Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7; En Saga (2016)

Hallé, Sir Mark Elder - Jean Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7; En Saga (2016)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 257 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 166 Mb | Artwork included
Genre: Classical | Label: Hallé Concerts Society | # CD HLL 7543 | Time: 01:12:17

British orchestras and their audiences have long held a special affinity for the orchestral works of Jean Sibelius, and the Hallé's venerable tradition of playing his music continues in this superb recording of the Symphony No. 5 in E flat major, the Symphony No. 7 in C major, and the symphonic poem En Saga. Mark Elder's straightforward interpretations are clear-headed and meticulous yet intensely passionate, and the orchestra responds to his direction by digging deep and playing with a commitment that is nearly perceptible. These symphonies and En Saga are representative of Sibelius' mature style, so their deliberate pacing and steady unfolding of motives into organic developments over long time spans require attentive listening, but the clarity of Elder's readings makes the progress of the music easy to follow. Add to this the exceptional reproduction, which brings out every detail with crispness, and presents the Hallé's warm and rich sonorities with credible presence, and the end result is a nearly ideal presentation of Sibelius' music.

Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Leif Segerstam - Jean Sibelius: Scaramouche, Complete Ballet (2015)

Posted By: Designol
Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Leif Segerstam - Jean Sibelius: Scaramouche, Complete Ballet (2015)

Jean Sibelius - Scaramouche: Complete Ballet (2015)
Turku Philharmonic Orchestra; Leif Segerstam, conductor

EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 246 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 167 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical | Label: Naxos | # 8.573511 | Time: 01:10:58

The beautifully played Sibelius recordings by conductor Leif Segerstam and the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra have often been revelatory, not least in the much-neglected area of the composer's theater music. Segerstam found much of interest in the composer's incidental music, the forerunner of the soundtracks Sibelius might well have written if he had lived in our time. But Scaramouche, Op. 71, composed in 1913, is something else again: it is music for a pantomime, a genre not much in evidence for today (although it certainly has affinities with the music video). The action of the mostly wordless play (there were a few spoken passages, excised in this performance) was continuous, and so, thus, was Sibelius' music. It is thus a genuine piece of dramatic music, of which there is very little in the Sibelius catalog, and for the most part it has more to do with the developmental thinking of the symphonies than it does with the incidental music scores.