Michael W Hansen Carl Nielsen Herbert Blomstedt - Nielsen Symphonies no 46 Blomstedt San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (20 tracks) +Album Reviews

Nielsen rocks!

Ed Luhrs | Long Island, NY USA | 07/21/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First off, the Blomstedt recordings are exceptional, for both symphonies 1-3 and 4-6. The music included in addition to the symphonies is great fun, especially the "Hymnus Amoris," on the 4-6 release, which is an excellent, thoroughly enjoyable choral work. The recording is demonstration quality--clear, crisp definition with great performances. Nielsen is a highly original symphonic composer. In that way, he is like Sibelius. But he also demonstrates an intriguing quirkiness in his compositional style. By quirky I mean that his symphonies go through fits of ecstasy, melancholy, joy, eeriness, and solemnity, often within the space of mere minutes of listening. It takes a few listens to get into it. I enjoy it very much, though. "The Inextinguishable" has melodic elements in the first movement such as would melt the heart, and these fine moments are given a noble return in the finale, along with great use of tympani drums. The fifth and sixth are the especially quirky ones, the sixth the quirkiest of all. But chances are, if you're looking into Nielsen, you want to embrace music that contains vitality and a rich depth of expression... if so, you will really come to love all the orchestral works on these discs for their shifting intricacies, evolving patterns, and subtle orchestrations, and I will recommend it all wholeheartedly. These are great orchestral works."

One of the greatest symphonies ever

Daniel R. Greenfield | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States | 04/22/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The greatest symphonies are not only peerless works of art, but they also speak profoundly and prophetically from the historical context out of which they were conceived. In this respect, I've always considered Shostakovich's Fifth and Ives's Fourth as the two greatest symphonies of the last century. Then I discovered Nielsen's Fifth...

Nielsen's Fifth, as performed by Blomstedt in this recording, is a stunning, miraculous, amazing, tragic, and ultimately life-affirming masterpiece. Written in the wake of the Great War when the scope of its horror had become fully apparent to the composer, it speaks profoundly and prophetically of the rise of nationalism, fascism, and the eternal conflict between a peaceful social discourse and the war-machine of the state.

The two other symphonies on this album are also noteable. The Fourth is a near great work, which was also written during the Great War and deals with the "Inextinguishable" spirit of mankind. The Sixt!h is enigmatic, iconoclastic, humorous.

Everyone interested in 20th Century classical music should purchase this complete set of Nielson symphonies. It will quickly become a treasured part of any music collection."

More Great Music!

Eric Brinkmann | Palo Alto, CA United States | 06/30/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Blomstedt Nielsen cycle was originally issued on 3 cds with two symphonies each, but it has now been put onto 2 double cds, making the deal even more attractive. The fourth and fifth are among my favorite symphonies, and the SF symphony gives as fine a performance as I know of them. Just listen to the opening tuba blast in the 'Inextinguishable' and you know you're in for something special."

Stellar performances

G.D. | Norway | 10/08/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a classic, and deservedly so - Blomstedt recorded the cycle of Nielsen symphonies twice, but this one - his second - is without doubt the better one. The last three symphonies are coupled with two performances taken from another Decca recording with Ulf Schirmer; these are the charming Little Suite for Strings and the magnificent 20-minute choral and orchestral Hymnus Amoris. The latter features some fabulous singing from Barbara Bonney and John Mark Ainsley as well, and strongly serves to underpin the already solid recommendation secured by Blomstedt's symphonies.

The fourth symphony is the stand-out here, receiving a vigorous, utterly electrifying performance. Blomstedt paces the work wonderfully, constructs the musical arguments with care (even though they come across as fresh and spontaneous) and manages to draw out some hugely satisfying climaxes and equally realizing the untroubled, pastoral sunniness of other parts. But it is really the orchestral contributions from San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. that in the end pips any competitor to the post, with one marvelous solo after another, wonderfully characterized and superbly balanced against the orchestra. The fifth symphony exhibits many of the same virtues, again finding Blomstedt on top-form, drawing a thoroughly impressive mix of profundity exuberance and thoughtful, blue summer-sky playing from the orchestra. Again the solos are marvelous, and again Blomstedt's pacing and sculpting of the music comes across as well-neigh perfect. There might be other, equally satisfying versions of the fifth out there, but it seems safe to say that I haven't heard any superior ones.

The sixth symphony is a more difficult work in all respects, but again Blomstedt draws a performance that must be said to be an unqualified success. It is taut, elegant and well-argued, but Blomstedt also manages to fully realize the probing, searching and playful nature of the work, filling the textures with air and again eliciting superb responses from the orchestra. Sound quality is really superb, wonderfully balanced and with a wide dynamic range, and overall this is, again, a set that truly stands out. Very strongly recommended."

Search - Michael W. Hansen, Carl Nielsen, Herbert Blomstedt :: Nielsen: Symphonies no 4-6 / Blomstedt, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra

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