performed by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Mariss Jansons, or below by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Neeme Järvi (cover image by Michal Dolnik) Thankfully, we have now arrived at uncontested, overwhelming greatness in Shostakovich’s symphonic output. Not … Continue reading Shostakovich Symphony no. 4 in Cm, op. 43
performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under Neeme Järvi, or below by the Orchestra of the USSR Ministry of Culture and the Russian State Academic Choir Cappella under Gennady Rozhdestvensky (cover image by Paul Morris) …whereas in October, the … Continue reading Shostakovich Symphony no. 3 in E flat, op. 20, ‘The First of May’
performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under Neeme Järvi, or as below with the WDR Radio Chorus and WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne under Rudolf Barshai (cover image by Taton Moïse) [O]ne is tempted simply to cut it off … Continue reading Shostakovich Symphony no. 2 in B, op. 14, ‘To October’
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, or below by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Neeme Järvi (cover image by Johannes Plenio) I have made the music so complex to such an extent that when I listen to … Continue reading Prokofiev Symphony no. 2 in Dm, op. 40
performed by the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein, or below by the Detroit Symphony under Neeme Järvi second part of the above video It is based on no program either literary or spiritual. It is not cyclical. I wanted … Continue reading Randall Thompson: Symphony no. 2 in Em
performed by Neeme Järvi and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra second, third and fourth movements (cover image by Kent Henderson) George Gershwin won’t make it into the series, he has plenty of fame already. For a genius jazzy symphony, here’s something … Continue reading William Grant Still: Symphony no. 1 in A flat, ‘Afro-American’
performed by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under Neeme Järvi (cover image by Igor Goryachev) George Whitefield Chadwick was born on 13 November 1854 in Lowell, Massachusetts. I haven’t seen a lot around about his musical education, but he took organ … Continue reading George Whitefield Chadwick: Symphony no. 3 in F
performed by Neeme Järvi and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra …[w]e of the North should be far more likely to be influenced by old English, Scotch or Irish songs, inherited with our literature from our ancestors. -Amy Beach (cover image by … Continue reading Beach Symphony in E minor, Op. 32, ‘Gaelic’
performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra under Neeme Järvi, with Soile Isokoski and Jorma Hynninen Nielsen’s third symphony premiered on 28 February 1912, in the same concert as the premiere of his violin concerto, this time with the composer on the … Continue reading Nielsen Symphony no. 3, op. 27 “Sinfonia Espansiva”
performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra under Neeme Järvi So… The inevitable Carl Nielsen. This is (likely) the Dane you’re looking for. I’d written multiple articles on works of Nielsen in the past, but they’re kind of like the middle … Continue reading Revisit: Nielsen Symphony no. 1 in Gm, op. 7
performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Ochestra under Neeme Järvi or as below by the Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra under Boris Khaikin mvt. 2 mvt. 3 mvt. 4 Opus one! If you read Tuesday’s Wikipedia-heavy article about Rimsky-Korsakov, you’ll hopefully remember … Continue reading Rimsky-Korsakov Symphony no. 1 in Em, op. 1
(I have written an updated article on this symphony in the few years since this original article. It can be found here, and I’d suggest reading it at least in addition to if not in place of what is below. For posterity, I’ve kept the original article as is.) performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra under Neeme Järvi Let me just say I love the fact that Nielsen was playing in the second violins for the premiere of this piece. How cool is that? We’re getting back around to symphonies, probably for at least the next month or so. I … Continue reading Nielsen Symphony no. 1 in Gm, op. 7
Fugue for Thought 