Nielsen: Aladdin Suite; Pan and Syrinx; Saga Deam; Maskarade Overture; Helios Overture

Carl Nielsen (Composer), Niklas Willen (Conductor), South Jutland Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: South Jutland Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Niklas Willen
• Composer: Carl Nielsen
• Audio CD (August 16, 2005)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Naxos
• ASIN: B000A17GDS
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #129,177 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #4 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Languages > Scandinavian Languages

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb Shorter Orchestral Pieces by Nielsen, September 2, 2005

By 

J Scott Morrison (Middlebury VT, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Nielsen: Aladdin Suite; Pan and Syrinx; Saga Deam; Maskarade Overture; Helios Overture (Audio CD)

We are used to thinking of Carl Nielsen as one of the great symphonists of the twentieth century and there are multiple sets of recordings of them. But he also wrote a fair amount of orchestral music not in symphonic form, and many of those jewels are included in this wonderful issue from Niklás Willén leading the South Jutland Symphony Orchestra, a very fine regional Danish orchestra. Included here are the Aladdin Suite, Cupid and the Poet, Saga-Dream, the Helios Overture, the Overture and Act II Prelude to his opera 'Maskarade,' and Pan and Syrinx.

All are given really quite good performances. Clearly this orchestra and its Swedish chief conductor have this music in their bones. My own favorite of these is the evocative 'Helios Overture' that Nielsen wrote after he and his wife took a trip to Greece; it portrays the sun rising and setting over the Aegean Sea, and unlike some tone-poems, it actually conjures up in sound those phenomena. I'm particularly fond of the contrapuntal section that always makes me think, 'Aha, a fugue of sunbeams.'

The jolly 'Maskarade' Overture is another favorite of mine, but perhaps best of all is the contemplative 'Saga-Dream' ('Saga-drom'), Op. 39, that has some of Nielsen's most beautiful melodies, including some really quite Brucknerian writing for the horns. 'Pan and Syrinx', Op. 49, is thought by some to be Nielsen's finest short tone poem but it doesn't quite measure up, in my books, to that assessment. Still, it contains reminders of Nielsen's unique approach to orchestral timbre, and it includes one of Nielsen's characteristic raucous outbursts from the percussion section (similar to that in his Clarinet Concerto).

Most intriguing of all, though, is the 'Aladdin Suite.' Written in 1919 as incidental music for a play by Adam Oehlenschläger, it has all the gestures that later came, via movie music, to be associated with music from the mysterious Middle East, including the most amazing section, called 'The Marketplace at Ispahan,' that out-Iveses Charles Ives in its overlay of four distinct musics in different keys and meters; it quite effectively calls to mind the multifarious activities of a busy marketplace. It really must be heard to be appreciated. Willén and his orchestra manage to keep all four planes of sound quite distinct and yet they meld into a glorious whole.

Considering that this is a budget issue, and that is contains masterful performances of some of Nielsen's finest music, this CD is a must-buy.

TT=67:56

Scott Morrison

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fleshing Out the Library of Carl Nielsen's Works on a Shoestring, October 25, 2005

By 

Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Nielsen: Aladdin Suite; Pan and Syrinx; Saga Deam; Maskarade Overture; Helios Overture (Audio CD)

While more and more conductors are regularly programming the gorgeous symphonies of Danish composer Carl Nielsen (and justly so), the other works by this inventive yet resolutely romantic composer appear only as filler on recordings of the symphonies. This fine recording by Niklás Willén conducting the South Jutland Symphony Orchestra of Denmark should change all that. The wealth of beauty and creative ideas in these five shorter works flesh out the thoughts of a composer difficult to categorize.

Nielsen's opera 'Maskarade' receives performances in Denmark and now some smaller opera companies and universities are giving it presence, and if the entire opera follows the pleasures of the Overture, we should hope for greater exposure. The 'Helios Overture' is more of a tone poem then overture in its structure: it makes sonically visual the play of the sun on the sea both at sunrise and sunset. 'Pan and Syrinx' while short suggests some of the wonderful percussion writing found in 'The Inextinguishable' symphony without the overtones of war. 'Saga Dream' is simply Nielsen at his best and for those who know the symphonies, this will conjure the majesty of the 'Sinfonia Espansiva' and the 5th, while for those unfamiliar with the symphonies will gain a quick course on why they are so well loved.

This very affordable album is a must for those who love Carl Nielsen and also a very fine introduction to those for whom this will be an introduction to an important 20th Century master. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, October 05

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 2 Great Pieces and a Few Good Ones, December 5, 2005

By 

Allen A. Smith "amateur historian" (Miami, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Nielsen: Aladdin Suite; Pan and Syrinx; Saga Deam; Maskarade Overture; Helios Overture (Audio CD)

Nielsen's Helios Overture is one the greatest tone poems ever written. Even people who hate Nielsen love it. It really leaves you feeling that you have just witnessed a sunrise from the Acropolis. This piece alone is worth the price of the CD.
"Fantasy Voyage to the Faroes" is a beautiful seascape piece that you will want to play again and again. Both of these great tone poems are well preformed.
The other pieces on this CD are good, but they are mostly for lovers of Nielsen's music.