Scandinavian and Finnish composers.

[Symphonic Addict]

On reading the words of support by Jeffrey (vandermolen), Mapman, foxandpeng, Kyle and James (I also checked the Missing Members thread), I've decided to come back. Thanks for your kindness, it's nice to feel that one is appreciated by some people on here. Also, I brought back my original username. I'll stick with it from now on.

[Symphonic Addict]

Edit: It appears that he has blocked me, as I was unable to send him a message....

I think he has lots of folk blocked, as I'm also unable to message him. Shame, as I always appreciated his posts.

No, I haven't blocked anyone! I disabled an option of receiving messages from members here, but now I enabled it again.

[Franco_Manitobain]

On reading the words of support by Jeffrey (vandermolen), Mapman, foxandpeng, Kyle and James (I also checked the Missing Members thread), I've decided to come back. Thanks for your kindness, it's nice to feel that one is appreciated by some people on here. Also, I brought back my original username. I'll stick with it from now on.

Welcome back. It's great to hear from you again! 🙂

[Pohjolas Daughter]

OT
Yes same here RS. I'm quite used to the 'zero response' scenario to my postings. An example being my 'Eurovision Song Contest Thread' which was even less successful than the UK's own Eurovision entry for this year. 

And I am used to getting a dropped ball response [normally] when I try and resurrect the tennis thread.

PD

[pjme]

Yes same here RS. I'm quite used to the 'zero response' scenario to my postings. An example being my 'Eurovision Song Contest Thread' which was even less successful than the UK's own Eurovision entry for this year. 

   

yes, keep cool and enjoy the diversity (controversy    of GMG.

Never heard of Schjelderup.... but a Sunrise over the Himalayas made me prick up the ears.

[foxandpeng]

No, I haven't blocked anyone! I disabled an option of receiving messages from members here, but now I enabled it again.

Hellooo! Really good to have you back.

[vandermolen]

On reading the words of support by Jeffrey (vandermolen), Mapman, foxandpeng, Kyle and James (I also checked the Missing Members thread), I've decided to come back. Thanks for your kindness, it's nice to feel that one is appreciated by some people on here. Also, I brought back my original username. I'll stick with it from now on.

Woohoo Cesar! Best news I've had all day! So glad to hear this.
    

[Symphonic Addict]

Welcome back. It's great to hear from you again! 🙂

Hellooo! Really good to have you back.

Woohoo Cesar! Best news I've had all day! So glad to hear this.
    

Thank you very much, guys!

[kyjo]

On reading the words of support by Jeffrey (vandermolen), Mapman, foxandpeng, Kyle and James (I also checked the Missing Members thread), I've decided to come back. Thanks for your kindness, it's nice to feel that one is appreciated by some people on here. Also, I brought back my original username. I'll stick with it from now on.

Fantastic, Cesar!! This made my week! So great to have you back. I'm glad we were able to convince you to return!

[lordlance]

Stumbled upon this disc as I am subscribed to new releases by Gardner and I have to say the Bjerkestrand's First VC is intriguing. I may not revisit it but it doesn't really sound like classical music - not as "intellectual" - if that makes sense? It's scored for two synthesizers (one of which feature the composer himself). I think I could describe it as sounding sort of like film soundtrack music? Maybe atmospheric is the word.

I recommend it just to try something that sounds different:

[Symphonic Addict]

Listened to these recent releases:



Sometimes one is lucky to find music that is worth your time as with this disc devoted to the Norwegian composer Ole Hjellemo (1873-1938). The Symphony No. 2 is supposed to depict a mountain climb in Norway, there's a moderate grandiose atmosphere to it. It's a nicely orchestrated and fairly tuneful piece that doesn't outstay its welcome, though the Violin Concerto and Norwegian Caprice for violin and orchestra struck me like more memorable. A lovely disc overall.

On the other hand, the late-Romanticism of the Finnish composer Helvi Leiviskä (1902-1982) didn't impress me as much as the Norwegian's, both works were somewhat disappointing, especially for the Piano Concerto which sounded to me little cohesive, unfocused and too overlong for its material (the work is restored as the concerto is preserved only as a piano reduction and instrument parts, the original score is lost). Only the 3rd movement seemed more appealing with its uplifting character. The Symphony No. 1, whilst a tad overlong too, gave me a more favorable impression, where the inner movements struck me like the most interesting music, in part due to their compelling orchestration. I think the work can grow on repeated listens, I don't discard it like bad music.

[Symphonic Addict]

Today I was revisiting a striking and colourful work that made me think of the already widely-known phrase: why isn't this piece more popular? I mean, the Piano Concerto No. 3 'Metamorphoses' (1916) by the Finnish composer Selim Palmgren (1878-1951). This is superb Nordic late-Romantic music featuring glistening orchestration and memorable material. It's condensed in one movement (lasting 18:25 min.) that sounded to me more like a Fantasy for piano and orchestra; the performance is high-spirited and so vivid and so is the recording, more so than the one on Alba if my memory serves. Very glad to give it a spin. The other concertos are in a similar enjoyable vein.

[vandermolen]

Today I was revisiting a striking and colourful work that made me think of the already widely-known phrase: why isn't this piece more popular? I mean, the Piano Concerto No. 3 'Metamorphoses' (1916) by the Finnish composer Selim Palmgren (1878-1951). This is superb Nordic late-Romantic music featuring glistening orchestration and memorable material. It's condensed in one movement (lasting 18:25 min.) that sounded to me more like a Fantasy for piano and orchestra; the performance is high-spirited and so vivid and so is the recording, more so than the one on Alba if my memory serves. Very glad to give it a spin. The other concertos are in a similar enjoyable vein.

I like this CD Cesar especially 'The River' (PC No.2)

[71 dB]

Today I was revisiting a striking and colourful work that made me think of the already widely-known phrase: why isn't this piece more popular? I mean, the Piano Concerto No. 3 'Metamorphoses' (1916) by the Finnish composer Selim Palmgren (1878-1951). This is superb Nordic late-Romantic music featuring glistening orchestration and memorable material. It's condensed in one movement (lasting 18:25 min.) that sounded to me more like a Fantasy for piano and orchestra; the performance is high-spirited and so vivid and so is the recording, more so than the one on Alba if my memory serves. Very glad to give it a spin. The other concertos are in a similar enjoyable vein.

I know nothing about Selim Palmgren's music. One reason why I passively avoid getting into Finnish composers is because these kind of releases by small Finnish labels are OOP or expensive*. It is pretty depressing to discover a composer whose music is to your liking, but then realize only 10 % of his/her works have been recorded and even out of those, 75 % are on OOP discs. That said, the way you describe the Palmgren's 3rd Piano Concerto makes me interested. A fantasy for piano and orchestra in a late-romantic style? Yeah, sounds interesting!

* I have to say the CD cover art of Finnish classical releases suck most of the time which puts me off visually, althou I have to say this particular Palmgren disc has got a very nice cover art.

[71 dB]

So I listened to Palmgren's 3rd Piano Concerto on Spotify. I didn't care about it much. There just isn't anything in the music that interests me. To my ears the music is mostly stepwise scale runs up and down on piano with some orchestral backing. Listening to works/composers like this makes me feel I don't understand classical music at all. Give me Elgar and I understand EVERYTHING. 

[vandermolen]

So I listened to Palmgren's 3rd Piano Concerto on Spotify. I didn't care about it much. There just isn't anything in the music that interests me. To my ears the music is mostly stepwise scale runs up and down on piano with some orchestral backing. Listening to works/composers like this makes me feel I don't understand classical music at all. Give me Elgar and I understand EVERYTHING. 

Try PC No.2 a very eloquent work.

[Symphonic Addict]

So I listened to Palmgren's 3rd Piano Concerto on Spotify. I didn't care about it much. There just isn't anything in the music that interests me. To my ears the music is mostly stepwise scale runs up and down on piano with some orchestral backing. Listening to works/composers like this makes me feel I don't understand classical music at all. Give me Elgar and I understand EVERYTHING. 

Our tastes rarely overlap, so no surprises as to why you didn't like the work. In my case, it works very well as it is and it has partly to do with the fact that I'm not too picky. If the music in question has certain elements that appeal to me, so I'm sold, and that's a sort of advantage because I can enjoy a wide variety of pieces.

[71 dB]

Our tastes rarely overlap, so no surprises as to why you didn't like the work. In my case, it works very well as it is and it has partly to do with the fact that I'm not too picky. If the music in question has certain elements that appeal to me, so I'm sold, and that's a sort of advantage because I can enjoy a wide variety of pieces.

I'm sure our tastes overlap pretty often, but when they do overlap, it may not be particularly a Finnish composer. It is not about being picky. There was nothing I disliked about the music. Nowadays it is very rare for me to discover composers/works that blow me away. It is of course possible I would enjoy something more if I just listened to it more, but this particular piece of music didn't feel most promising in that regard.

Try PC No.2 a very eloquent work.

Okay, I'll check that out at some point (now watching Judd Trump vs Zhang Anda)

[CRCulver]

One reason why I passively avoid getting into Finnish composers is because these kind of releases by small Finnish labels are OOP or expensive*. It is pretty depressing to discover a composer whose music is to your liking, but then realize only 10 % of his/her works have been recorded and even out of those, 75 % are on OOP discs.

The Sibelius Academy library (now in the basement of the Helsinki Music Centre) has a CD collection open to the general public. Visit with a laptop and a portable CD drive, and rip all those out-of-print discs to your heart's content. The Helsinki municipal library system also has most of these CDs, but to call items up from the stacks or from other libraries requires a library card, and so is for residents only.

[Florestan]

The Sibelius Academy library (now in the basement of the Helsinki Music Centre) has a CD collection open to the general public. Visit with a laptop and a portable CD drive, and rip all those out-of-print discs to your heart's content.

Do they allow that?