Nielsen: Symphonies no 4-6 / Blomstedt, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra

Michael W. Hansen (Performer), Carl Nielsen (Composer), Herbert Blomstedt (Conductor), Ulf Schirmer (Conductor), San Francisco Symphony Chorus (Orchestra), Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), Barbara Bonney (Performer), John Mark Ainsley (Performer), Lars Pedersen (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Michael W. Hansen, Barbara Bonney, John Mark Ainsley, Lars Pedersen
• Orchestra: San Francisco Symphony Chorus, Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Herbert Blomstedt, Ulf Schirmer
• Composer: Carl Nielsen
• Audio CD (October 12, 1999)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Decca
• ASIN: B00001X5A3
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #17,651 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #25 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Vocal Non-Opera > Hymns
  • #28 in Music > Classical > Forms & Genres > Symphonies > Modern & 20th Century
  • #34 in Music > Classical > Historical Periods > Modern, 20th, & 21st Century > Forms & Genres > Symphonies

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nielsen rocks!, July 20, 2000

By 

Ed Luhrs (Long Island, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nielsen: Symphonies no 4-6 / Blomstedt, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (Audio CD)

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.

35 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the greatest symphonies ever, April 22, 2001

By 

Daniel R. Greenfield "Dan" (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Nielsen: Symphonies no 4-6 / Blomstedt, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (Audio CD)

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.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More Great Music!, June 30, 2000

By 

Eric Brinkmann (Palo Alto, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nielsen: Symphonies no 4-6 / Blomstedt, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (Audio CD)

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.