Erland von Koch

Started by Sungam, May 16, 2007, 05:41:13 PM

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André

Boy, I haven't written in this thread since...2007  :o Since then I have discovered his symphonies, with great pleasure. The Trilogy is my favourite von Koch work. His Oxberg Variations are also very fetching. And of course his marvelous guitar and flute concertos.

vandermolen

Quote from: André on October 17, 2017, 06:49:12 PM
Boy, I haven't written in this thread since...2007  :o Since then I have discovered his symphonies, with great pleasure. The Trilogy is my favourite von Koch work. His Oxberg Variations are also very fetching. And of course his marvelous guitar and flute concertos.
Just listened again to my BIS CD of the Koch symphonies etc having read Andre's post (how do I do the French accent over the 'e'?  ???). It is a terrific CD and I especially like the powerfully redemptive ending of 'Sinfonia Seria'. I need to explore more of Koch's music.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

kyjo

Quote from: vandermolen on October 18, 2017, 02:44:13 AM
Just listened again to my BIS CD of the Koch symphonies etc having read Andre's post (how do I do the French accent over the 'e'?  ???). It is a terrific CD and I especially like the powerfully redemptive ending of 'Sinfonia Seria'. I need to explore more of Koch's music.

I've been meaning to listen to that BIS CD for quite some time now - must give it a spin. If those symphonies are anywhere near as good as the Impulsi Trilogy, I must hear them!
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff

vandermolen

Quote from: kyjo on October 18, 2017, 06:16:44 AM
I've been meaning to listen to that BIS CD for quite some time now - must give it a spin. If those symphonies are anywhere near as good as the Impulsi Trilogy, I must hear them!
And I must hear the Impulsi Trilogy Kyle!
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Mirror Image

Quote from: vandermolen on October 18, 2017, 06:46:51 AM
And I must hear the Impulsi Trilogy Kyle!

It's great, Jeffrey. You'll enjoy it I'm sure.

vandermolen

Quote from: Mirror Image on October 18, 2017, 07:09:58 AM
It's great, Jeffrey. You'll enjoy it I'm sure.
Thanks John - pleased to see the Tubin avatar!
:)
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

pjme

#46
Time to give Erland von Koch a fresh start.

Symphony nr. 5 is on YT - not the best sound, but Stig Westerberg is as always a reliable and committed musical guide.

https://www.youtube.com/v/vqJQQicFsjw

The hyper catchy (quasi exotic/bacchanalian/film) tune that snakes itself through the compostion reminded me of the music I heard at a Pow wow I witnessed years ago in Canada....
Good stuff!

The fascination with folk music not only produced numerous scores based on Swedish folk tunes; it went hand-in-glove with an environmentalist identification with the Nordic landscape, as the titles of many of his works reveal, among them the orchestral Arkipelag (1950), Lapplandmetamorfoser (1957), Midwinter Sacrificial Feast and Summer Solstice (1984–85). His interest broadened to encompass the music of the Sami, the indigenous people of northern Scandinavia, taking its fullest form in his Fifth Symphony, Lapponica (1976–77), a protest against the shabby treatment of the Sami by their southern neighbours. He responded to the sinking of the ferry Estonia with an orchestral Lament over the Estonia Catastrophe (1994–96).

"... he still held an essentially simple and modest view of the composer's task: "The melody is the key element, the very life and soul of music, and I have always endeavoured to cultivate its many expressive qualities"

Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/erland-von-koch-composer-inspired-by-scandinavian-folk-music-1661061.html


Christo

Quote from: pjme on April 04, 2019, 12:16:14 AM
Time to give Erland von Koch a fresh start.

Symphony nr. 5 is on YT - not the best sound, but Stig Westerberg is as always a reliable and committed musical guide.

https://www.youtube.com/v/vqJQQicFsjw

The hyper catchy (quasi exotic/bacchanalian/film) tune that snakes itself through the compostion reminded me of the music I heard at a Pow wow I witnessed years ago in Canada....
Good stuff!

The fascination with folk music not only produced numerous scores based on Swedish folk tunes; it went hand-in-glove with an environmentalist identification with the Nordic landscape, as the titles of many of his works reveal, among them the orchestral Arkipelag (1950), Lapplandmetamorfoser (1957), Midwinter Sacrificial Feast and Summer Solstice (1984–85). His interest broadened to encompass the music of the Sami, the indigenous people of northern Scandinavia, taking its fullest form in his Fifth Symphony, Lapponica (1976–77), a protest against the shabby treatment of the Sami by their southern neighbours. He responded to the sinking of the ferry Estonia with an orchestral Lament over the Estonia Catastrophe (1994–96).

"... he still held an essentially simple and modest view of the composer's task: "The melody is the key element, the very life and soul of music, and I have always endeavoured to cultivate its many expressive qualities"

Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/erland-von-koch-composer-inspired-by-scandinavian-folk-music-1661061.html

Great post, very informative. Everything I know by Von Koch is fine - but I know too little, even this Symphony No. 5 is new for me (but sounds intriguing).  :)
... music is not only an 'entertainment', nor a mere luxury, but a necessity of the spiritual if not of the physical life, an opening of those magic casements through which we can catch a glimpse of that country where ultimate reality will be found.    RVW, 1948

pjme

Thanks!
I still may have somewhere a tape recording of the Lapponica in this performance (Westerberg died in 1999) ... I had this great machine and loved to record radio broadcasts of rare and unusual works.



I do like this symphony - although it hardly sounds -to me -as a protest. I'm sure it would accompany to perfection a documentary on Lapland....

kyjo

I really enjoy the Fifth Symphony as well as the Third recently recorded by BIS. Invigorating stuff.
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff

The new erato

#50
Quote from: kyjo on April 04, 2019, 09:05:24 AM
I really enjoy the Fifth Symphony as well as the Third recently recorded by BIS. Invigorating stuff.
That's a great disc and I wish BIS would give us more.

SymphonicAddict

I've listened to Impulsi Trilogy, but my reaction was less positive than others here. Anyway, I'll try these symphonies in due course, I hope to be more struck by them.

André

On my disc Impulsi is coupled with the Oxberg Variations. Maybe you'd like it better ?

Mirror Image

Koch's music, IMHO, is similar to Holmboe's, but without the mystique.

kyjo

Quote from: SymphonicAddict on April 04, 2019, 09:02:44 PM
I've listened to Impulsi Trilogy, but my reaction was less positive than others here. Anyway, I'll try these symphonies in due course, I hope to be more struck by them.

How could I forget about the Impulsi Trilogy? Thrilling stuff! I'm surprised you weren't enthralled by it ;)
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff

SymphonicAddict

Quote from: André on April 05, 2019, 06:31:49 AM
On my disc Impulsi is coupled with the Oxberg Variations. Maybe you'd like it better ?

Both works will be in the listening pile. I should like this stuff!


Quote from: kyjo on April 05, 2019, 09:25:35 AM
How could I forget about the Impulsi Trilogy? Thrilling stuff! I'm surprised you weren't enthralled by it ;)

I think I didn't listen to it enough to get a better idea of it. I'll add the 5th Symphony too. Sadly the sound quality leaves much to be desired.

Symphonic Addict

Quote from: pjme on April 04, 2019, 12:16:14 AM
Time to give Erland von Koch a fresh start.

Symphony nr. 5 is on YT - not the best sound, but Stig Westerberg is as always a reliable and committed musical guide.

https://www.youtube.com/v/vqJQQicFsjw

The hyper catchy (quasi exotic/bacchanalian/film) tune that snakes itself through the compostion reminded me of the music I heard at a Pow wow I witnessed years ago in Canada....
Good stuff!

The fascination with folk music not only produced numerous scores based on Swedish folk tunes; it went hand-in-glove with an environmentalist identification with the Nordic landscape, as the titles of many of his works reveal, among them the orchestral Arkipelag (1950), Lapplandmetamorfoser (1957), Midwinter Sacrificial Feast and Summer Solstice (1984–85). His interest broadened to encompass the music of the Sami, the indigenous people of northern Scandinavia, taking its fullest form in his Fifth Symphony, Lapponica (1976–77), a protest against the shabby treatment of the Sami by their southern neighbours. He responded to the sinking of the ferry Estonia with an orchestral Lament over the Estonia Catastrophe (1994–96).

"... he still held an essentially simple and modest view of the composer's task: "The melody is the key element, the very life and soul of music, and I have always endeavoured to cultivate its many expressive qualities"

Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/erland-von-koch-composer-inspired-by-scandinavian-folk-music-1661061.html

Just revisited this amazing work from this video. Despite it doesn't have great sound, it's more than decent in general and the work itself is glorious, expertly written and performed here. It's like film music in several passages. Orgasmic!
Part of the tragedy of the Palestinians is that they have essentially no international support for a good reason: they've no wealth, they've no power, so they've no rights.

Noam Chomsky

kyjo

#57
von Koch is yet another superb, underrated Swedish composer to add to the ranks. The works of his that I know - the 3rd Symphony, Impulsi Trilogy, Oxberg Variations, Nordic Capriccio, and Askungen Suite no. 1 - all exude great flair, color, energy, folksiness, and even humor. I particularly love his imaginative use of percussion in the orchestra.
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff