The Nielsen Nexus

[The new erato]

For me Nielsen's fourth is the greatest of his symphonies.

For me too.

[calyptorhynchus]

Ok, finished Maskarade and I remembered that when I have listened to it before I noticed that the third act has a problem. Found this again.

I know Nielsen himself was dissatisfied with the third act and wanted to revise it, but I don't think the problem is the music, it' s the libretto. I don't think there's enough wrapping up at the end, I want to know how Jeronimos, Magdelone and Leonard sort things out, I want to see more of the happy couples (Leander and Leonora, Herik and Perille), I want to see what happens to Arv.

Could this be be the only opera in the world that's too short?

[Superhorn]

  You have to get the terrific DVD of Maskarade from the Royal Danish opera in Copenhagen,
which fortunately has English substitles.  The production sets the action in the present day,
but with no damage to the opera .In fact, there are lots of clever bits made possible by
updating .  The entire cast seems to be having a ball , including the audience .
There's another DVD version, but it's from Austria and is in German, which I haven't seen.
   There are no international superstars in the Copenhagen performance, but the cast is
all Danish ,with one Norwegian, and still excellent. The conductor is Michael Schonwandt,
one of Denmark's leading conductors , and he does a terrific job .









                                                                                                                                                        

[eyeresist]

So. The 6th symphony. Whose is best?

Chung
Blomstedt
Schmidt
Kuchar
Saraste
Jarvi
Rozhdestvensky
Etc. ...

[Mirror Image]

So. The 6th symphony. Whose is best?

Chung
Blomstedt
Schmidt
Kuchar
Saraste
Jarvi
Rozhdestvensky
Etc. ...

For me, it's a toss-up between Blomstedt and Schonwandt. You can't go wrong with either IMHO.

[Scion7]

[starrynight]

Just my opinion but the problem with posting images alone with things is that the links eventually won't work and they won't convey any information at all.  Just a personal annoyance of mine. 

[Scion7]

[DaveF]

Well, I think you've managed to insult everyone by posting that image on a forum dedicated to matters of culture and taste!

And so as not to go completely off-message, I'd be interested in anyone's recommendations for a good Commotio (my fave, btw, is an old LP by Grethe Krogh Christensen).

DF

[not edward]

So. The 6th symphony. Whose is best?

Chung
Blomstedt
Schmidt
Kuchar
Saraste
Jarvi
Rozhdestvensky
Etc. ...

I think the two 6ths I come back most to are two recordings from perhaps slightly surprising sources: Eugene Ormandy and Bryden Thomson. Both really bring home to me the intensity and taut structures of the first and third movements but are also fully alive to the bizarre humour that runs through the second and some of the fourth movement.

Re: Commotio, I'd be interested too; I've got the Kevin Bowyer recording on Nimbus which I've found very satisfying, but I don't know if there is better to be had.

[eyeresist]

Listening to the Blomstedt Danish cycle while waiting for my Kuchar set to be delivered (if it ever is). I've read the 1st described as Brahms's 5th, but that only really works if you've never heard any other 19th century symphonies. It's more like Franck x Dvorak x Balakirev.

[calyptorhynchus]

Listening to the Blomstedt Danish cycle while waiting for my Kuchar set to be delivered (if it ever is). I've read the 1st described as Brahms's 5th, but that only really works if you've never heard any other 19th century symphonies. It's more like Franck x Dvorak x Balakirev.

And don't forget Svendsen and Gade as influences.

[eyeresist]

And don't forget Svendsen and Gade as influences.

I confess I don't know their symphonies.

[DaveF]

I've always heard the 1st as Berwald's 5th, with a dash of Svendsen's 3rd - the latter of which I believe really did exist, before becoming another of those Nordic symphonies that got chucked on the fire.

[Karl Henning]

I confess I don't know their symphonies.

Leave it that way, is my opinion.

[The new erato]

For those with and interest beyond the symphonies, this set is now cheaply available (cheapest on an ongoing offer on europadisc):

[asin]B007N0SVDS[/asin]

6 discs for the price of two midprice discs.

Believe me. There's plenty of wortwhile things here!

[Karl Henning]

For those with and interest beyond the symphonies, this set is now cheaply available (cheapest on an ongoing offer on europadisc):

[asin]B007N0SVDS[/asin]

6 discs for the price of two midprice discs.

Believe me. There's plenty of wortwhile things here!

Many thanks! I'm in.

[Scion7]

Yes, Nielsen's chamber pieces are very good.

[Karl Henning]

The Wind Quintet was an instant classic, of course; the quartets I have long wanted to investigate, and this is an undeniably ripe opportunity.  I have a curious idea that I have heard one or more of the violin sonatas, but orchestrated . . . should investigate that, and may do so to-day . . . .

[The new erato]

There are also some works for solo violin that is very god - suprisingly so given that nobody seems to know them (I have that particular single disc from this set; exceedingly fine disc); and I really do like some of the piano works; unpretentious mainly, but utterly charming in the Springtime in Funen mould. I have the Roscoe set on Hyperion and like it a lot.