The New Music Orchestra (OMN), founded in 1996 by Aleksander Lason, focuses on the exploration of contemporary music, with particular attention paid to innovative works that are of special importance for the development of musical culture and are interesting for audiences, some of which are unjustly forgotten and which are worthy of public presentation and recording. Led on this occasion by its permanent conductor Szymon Bywalec, this next release in the Witold Lutoslawski series is devoted to Chamber Works, comprising nine players, eleven players and chamber orchestra.

Witold Lutosławski’s Lacrimosa his first vocal-instrumental piece, was a diploma work. + Excluding the Christmas carols, he never returned to sacred music. + Surrounded by two quiet movements is the Trois poemes d’Henri Michaux’s central, highly dramatic movement, in which the choir does not sing but shouts. + Paroles tissées (1965) was written for singer Peter Pears. + Les espaces du sommeil is a poem for voice and orchestra. + Chantefleurs et Chantefables is a collection of brilliant, humorous miniatures.

Since 2015 young conductor Krzysztof Urbanski has been the principal guest conductor of one of Germany’s leading orchestras, the NDR Symphony Orchestra in Hamburg. He is also music director of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and principal guest conductor of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. For this album, Urbanski conducts works of Lutoslawski. The tracklist includes his Concerto for Orchestra, Little Suite (Mala Suita), and Symphony No. 4. Lutoslawski was one of the great composers of the twentieth century. Like Stravinsky and Shostakovich, Lutoslawski reveled in the sound and textures of the full orchestra.

Lutoslawski: Symphony No. 2 / Little Suite / Symphonic Vari

Lutoslawski: Symphony No. 3 / Paganini Variations

Lutoslawski: Symphony No. 4 / Violin Partita / Chain II / Fu

Classical Music

Classical Music

The great Polish composer Witold Lutoslawski was an important conductor of his own highly expressive music. With Chain 1 he developed a new compositional method linking contrasting musical ideas into a satisfying whole.

Lutoslawski: Preludes and Fugue for 13 Solo Strings, Postlud

Lutoslawski: Double Concerto for Oboe and Harp / Dance Prelu

Elgar, E.: Enigma Varations / Lutoslawski, W.: Concerto for

A 2020 GRAMMY nominee for best orchestral performance!

This new release, the second volume in the Witold Lutoslawski symphony cycle by the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and its chief conductor Hannu Lintu, brings together two symphonies which belong to the most remarkable symphonic creations of the late 20th century. In his 2nd and 3rd symphonies Lutoslawski is laying out the principal foundations of his creative legacy. Conductor Hannu Lintuwas recently nominated for a GRAMMY for his recording of new works by Kaija Saariaho (ODE 1309-2) together with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. He also won the Gramophone Award and ICMA Award for his recording of the Bartók Violin Concertos together with Christian Tetzlaff and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra.The same recording was also nominated for the 2019 BBC Music Magazine Awards. Recordings by the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra under Hannu Lintu on Ondine have gathered numerous excellent reviews in the international press. Two of their recordings were nominated for Gramophone Awards in 2018. One of them, including orchestral works and songs by Jean Sibelius also won an ICMA Award in January 2018. The first volume of their Lutoslawski symphony cycle was chosen ‘Recording of the Month’ by the BBC Music Magazine in February 2019.

REVIEWS:

Lutoslawski's four symphonies are major works in the repertory, and they have been recorded a number of times. Symphony No. 2 dates from 1967. It has two connected movements: Hésitant and Direct. Symphony No. 3 was composed in 1983 and has five movements. Both of these are fascinating, rich, and imaginative with unusual orchestral textures, often convincingly dissonant and abrasive, with busts of energetic outbursts — as well as many sensitive, quiet episodes. Both symphonies are played with the greatest virtuosity by the Finnish orchestra. The recordings were made November 2018 in Helsinki’s Music Center. The multi-channel recording is outstanding, capturing all of the unusual sonorities in a spacious sonic setting.

– Classical CD Review

Lintu’s performances are superb. In the Symphony No. 3, there is a good deal of fast and intricate writing for the woodwind and strings and this is realized with confidence and a verve which goes beyond previous performances I have heard. The brass can menace and roar as required and the tuned percussion adds vivid colour.

– MusicWeb International

ORCHESTRAL WORKS

The fifth and final volume of this Lutosławski set is the perfect cap to a series that has been called “as polished as it is animated, and alert to the individuality of Lutosławski’s musical vocabulary and mode of expression” (Gramophone). Features exclusive Chandos artists Tasmin Little, violin, and Michael Collins, clarinet.