Bent Sørensen’s distinctive music thrives on the intangible, from atmospheres and feelings to memories and dreams. This recording assembles three recent concertos from the Grawemeyer Award-winning composer performed by distinguished Nordic soloists, beginning with a second piano concerto played by its dedicatee and inspiration, Leif Ove Andsnes. Sørensen’s clarinet concerto for Martin Frost is inspired by the scents of Spanish poetry, while his trumpet concerto for Tine Thing Helseth feeds of his constant obsession with the beauty and vulnerability of Venice. Each is highly evocative and filled with Sørensen’s etched beauty.

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REVIEWS:

The Second Piano Concerto, obviously a difficult work to perform, is played by the Norwegian pianist, Leif Ove Andsnes, who proves a highly persuasive exponent. Serenidad (Serenade), for clarinet and orchestra, is sparsely scored. The soloist, Martin Frost, produces a beautifully refined and creamy tone. The Trumpet Concerto was composed with the young charismatic Norwegian, Tine Thing Helseth in mind. She is capable of producing a multitude of colours. The Norwegian Chamber Orchestra adds a transparent accompaniment. The recordings are to Dacapo’s immaculate quality, the release much commended to those looking for cutting-edge contemporary sounds.

– David's Review Corner (David Denton)

Three recent concertos by Bent Sørensen, which are full of attractive, vivid instrumental effects, are brought together by Dacapo Records, all with their dedicatees as the soloists. It may be fundamentally undemanding music, but it is beautifully made.

– The Guardian (UK)

A Bridge of Dreams

• Denmark’s four leading composers have allowed the experimental trio Alpha to take their music 'behind the looking glass' and let their works re-emerge in the trio’s very own sound world. • Played and recorded entirely by heart. • Alpha is a classical ensemble devoted to commissioning pieces, improvising, playing the world's folk music, diving into electro-acoustic music, electronica and medieval music as well as composing themselves.

In the veritable musical frenzy that struck Rued Langgaard(1893-1952) near the end of his life he composed several violin sonatas –a genre he had not paid much attention to since his early days. In this first in a series of three recordings presenting Langgaard’s complete works for violin and piano the award-winning violinist Gunvor Sihm and the Langgaard expert Berit Johansen Tange perform three late, incitingly Romantic works in addition to the unfinished sonata of Langgaard’s youth, which is given its world premiere recording. Gunvor Sihm was born in 1986 and started to play the violin at age 5 with Jan Mathiesen at Aarhus Music School. Through the years Gunvor has won several prizes, most recently the 1st prize at RDAM’s violin competition. Previously she has won a Gold medal at Berlingske Tidendes Classical Music Competition, 1st prize at Jakob Gades Violin Competition, Talent prize at “Young Classical Musicians”, 2nd prize at Oeresund’s Soloist Competition, and a Fine Arts Award from Interlochen Arts Camp in Michigan.

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REVIEW:

In the unfinished sonata of 1909–11 we hear that these musicians can do Romantic rhetoric as well as human impulse. Langgaard weights the piece towards the piano but Sihm holds her own on her 1725 Guarneri while enjoying the fight. She finds a way to bend wild phrases into submission and is thrillingly aware of where one might tip from joyous rhapsody into railing anger. In the central section of the second movement, Johansen Tange’s chords move from the thunderous to the consoling, while Sihm’s poise and control in the final bars is wondrous. Recorded sound is good and this is essential listening.

– The Strad

Rued Langgaard’s (1893-1952) inner division can be experienced at its extreme in the chamber music written between 1913 and 1924, in which the secure world of his youth is undercut by a dark musical understream. This is most apparent in the work for piano, Music of the Abyss, which is presented here in a transcription for chamber ensemble by Allan Gravgaard Madsen (born 1984) of which this is the first recording. This meeting between Langgaard and Gravgaard brings to a climax the work’s view of modern man’s destructive strength in a crazy ride towards the abyss.

The Danish composer Anders Koppel's musical collaboration with his son, saxophonist Benjamin Koppel, forms the background for these two unusual concerts with a quite unique soloist configuration, now released for the first time on CD. In the double concerto the saxophonist meets the classical recorder virtuoso Michala Petri in a fantastic interplay of tradition, improvisation and tonal diversity, while the triple concerto features the warm sound of the mezzo saxophone as framed by cello and harp, played here by the soloists Eugene Hye-Knudsen and Tine Rehling.

This new release features concertante works from one of Denmark’s most iconic composers and one of its freshest new voices. Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen was the great maverick of contemporary Nordic music until his death in 2016. For Violin and Orchestra ventures into the jungle in classic Gudmundsen-Holmgreen style, leading us to consider our place in a world full of noises. Allan Gravgaard Madsen’s double concerto Nachtmusik takes the opposite route, blossoming outwards from the microscopic examination of a single note. Danish National Symphony Orchestra concertmaster Christina Astrand brings both works to life, joined by her duo partner Per Salo in Nachtmusik written for them.

Friedrich Kuhlau is known as Beethoven’s strongest advocate in Denmark and the man who wrote Elverhøj. But Kuhlau was first and foremost a pianist, one whose works for the instrument have a depth and character of their own. In the first of a new series, Marie-Luise Bodendorff reassesses Kuhlau’s contribution to the piano literature with fresh, muscular performances of music including the previously unrecorded Divertissement, Op. 37. Marie-Luise Bodendorff took her first piano lessons at the age of five and was admitted to the Hochschule fur Musik in Karlsruhe at the age of 10. From 2002 to 2007 she studied with Russian piano authority Vladimir Krainev at the Hannover University of Music, Drama, and Media. She currently resides in Copenhagen, Denmark, and has been a part time professor of piano at the Royal Danish Academy of Music since 2016.

REVIEW:

The Finnish composer-pianist Magnus Lindberg has been the Marie-Josée Kravis Composer-in-Residence at the New York Philharmonic since 2009, at which time the post was initiated by the NYPO’s current Music Director, Alan Gilbert.

I have been aware of Lindberg for some time, but this was my first opportunity for in-depth listening. First impressions were of a restless, often aggressive musical persona; of constantly changing musical landscapes, and brightly coloured, dramatic orchestration. Lindberg’s music is not excessively dissonant or discordant, and he does not shy away from key-centres either. In that sense his music is, as represented here, relatively accessible. On the other hand, it is very complex, and almost profligate in its material; none of these works has a single dominating motif … that I could discern, anyway.

As you listen, you become more and more aware of how cunningly shaped his music is, following definite emotional paths, and evolving, as it were, organically. Thus Expo, on track 1, has a kaleidoscopic feel to it, yet in the end seems satisfyingly inevitable and complete. The performance by the NYPO in the première, recorded here, is quite wonderful, reminding us what a very great ensemble this is.

They are matched by the astonishing pianism of Bronfman in the concerto. This is in three movements, which play without a break. Though it requires both hands to perform (and how - an extra one or two wouldn’t have come amiss), it has a close and intriguing affinity with the Ravel D minor concerto, written for Paul Wittgenstein, who lost his right arm in WW1. Lindberg’s work follows the same kind of progress as the Ravel - from an opening in Stygian depths of darkness to an affirmative conclusion. There are also numerous specific references to the French composer’s themes, rhythmic patterns and textures that are both fascinating and maddeningly elusive. It is a fine and often thrilling work, and Bronfman’s performance, again in the première, is breathtakingly assured.

The Italian phrase Al largo - apparently man being offshore, on the open sea - has much in common with Expo in its sense of shifting land- and seascapes. It is, though, a much longer, more fully developed work, dominated by heroic brass fanfares, busy tuned percussion, and delicate woodwind writing; the solo oboe is particularly prominent. Again there is a sense of finding, then losing, then rediscovering tonal centres as points of rest and stability.

This is an exciting CD, brilliantly performed and recorded; as an introduction to one of the most approachable and individual voices in contemporary music, it could hardly be bettered.

-- Gwyn Parry-Jones, MusicWeb International

REVIEW:

These are strong, exciting performances of symphonies that demand the sort of bold muscularity in their execution that these artists offer. In Alan Gilbert’s hands the First Symphony sounds extremely confident and wholly mature. It starts with a bang and the tension in the first movement never lets up. The playing of the New York Philharmonic throughout is fresh and unaffected, full of spirit and drive. Even the Andante flows purposefully forward, and contrasts nicely with the Allegro comodo that does duty for a scherzo–with its harmonic kinks so personal to Nielsen. The finale has the same “pedal to the metal” drive as the opening, bringing the performance to a rousing conclusion.

The performance of the “Inextinguishable” Fourth Symphony also features some really impressive energy and power. In the first movement the brass play with a precision and clarity that few other versions can match, and in the finale the dueling timpani compete with real bravura. The slow movement here reminds me of Shostakovich in its bleak intensity, and my only quibble with Gilbert’s interpretation concerns the symphony’s coda where, like most of his colleagues, Gilbert broadens the pace in the closing bars when Nielsen clearly wants to drive the music home in tempo. Gilbert does pull it off: with an orchestra that has the weight and strength of the New York Philharmonic the effect is convincing, but Gibson (on Chandos) remains unmatched here.

Dacapo’s engineering, as with the previous release in this series, is natural and very present. The woodwinds feel just slightly recessed in more fully scored sections, but I can attest that the music really does sound like this in actual performance with a large orchestra, and certainly nothing gets lost. More importantly, the engineers have captured the impression of a live performance, caught on the wing, and the audience is mercifully quiet. This is a very impressive release.

– David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

The Will-o'-the-Wisps in Town is an extraordinary fairy tale cantata created by the Danish composer Per Nurgerd and his close friend, author Suzanne Brugger, on the basis of a little known fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. This world premiere recording focuses on the charismatic "Marsh With", sung by mezzo-soprano Helene Gjerris, who also premiered the work in Birmingham, UK, at the international celebration of the 200th anniversary of Hans Christian Andersen's birth. Helene Gjerris has captivated audiences and composers since the mid-1990s. Several new works have been written especially for her. In contemporary music in particular her charismatic performance comes into it's element.

PLAETNER: Electronic Music

Drama, surprise, humour and still life - with a bubbling undertone of anarchy. Composer Ib Nørholm (b. 1931) presents us with a delightful twist on Danish nocturne and condensed music drama for two in Tavole per Orfeo. This world premiere recording by soprano Else Torp and guitarist Per Pålsson unfolds as a fascinating testimony to an inspired encounter between words and music and a meeting of strong artistic personalities. Else is a core member of Paul Hillier’s Theatre of Voices, with whom she has performed around the world.

Tarp: Piano Works

Schlagt sie tot! is an opera about radical change and religious fanaticism. It paints a multifaceted portrait of a complex figure who transformed the world, namely the controversial catalyst of the Reformation, Martin Luther. He was a charismatic, uncompromising artistic personality, at times hateful and in constant struggle with his inner demons. Five hundred year old events, not unlike the politics of our own age, are brought to life in Bo Holten’s and Eva Sommestad Holten’s music drama, which reflects human emotion in a society set ablaze by the fire of change.

This new release is a premiere recording of Bent Sorensen’s Sneklokker (Snowbells). Performed by the Danish National Vocal Ensemble conducted by Paul Hillier, the vocal work arose in 2010 as the audio accompaniment for an art installation titled “The White Forest.” “A ground-breaking, intimate art of yearning.” (Information)

The Danish King Frederik IX's preoccupation with music must be described as atypical, in fact, unique for a member of a royal house, since it is hardly possible to cite other examples of ruling monarchs whose favorite pastime was orchestral conducting. As a conductor Frederik IX, although self-taught, favored technically difficult challenges in the great symphonic repertoire, in particular music from Wagner's operas, gave the King's unusual musical activities a certain aura. This limited edition set celebrates two very unique King/orchestra relationship, namely King Frederik IX's close affiliation with the Royal Danish Orchestra and Danish National Symphony Orchestra.

This is a story about a struggle for power in old Denmark, and a magnificent opera about events which led to the murder of King Erik Clipping in 1286. To present this dramatic episode from Danish history, a power play rooted in love, jealousy and honor, Heise composed gripping music with a razor-sharp dramatic sense and great lyrical beauty. It is Danish romance at its most powerful and immediate. Drot og Marsk has been called “the best opera of the 17th Century”. The opera was composed in the years 1876-77 to a libretto by Christian Richardt and had its premiere at the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen in 1878 and was quickly established as part of the theatre’s regular repertoire. Drot og Marsk is amongst the most frequently performed Danish operas.

A professor for many years, Per Nørgård has been loudly praised and awarded great prizes around the world. His music, though, can be relatively quiet in its exterior and searching by nature. Per Nørgård holds his senses open to signals from the planet and the cosmic miracle. This Danish Nestor works not so much for deafening fanfares or death by double bar lines — so, ‘when do you begin to get things finished?’, as his mother once sighed! For this reason his pieces may require a little extra attention. A work by Nørgård comes to life when its listeners attend to it with just the right amount of openness. Our receptiveness is rewarded tenfold as pleasure in responding to the works, and in the longer term by a generally enhanced attentiveness. Singing Secrets is a thoughtful and profoundly lyrical album which is both a strikingly original statement and a splendid addition to Dacapo Records’ extensive Norgard catalogue. The program demonstrates the range of Norgard’s compositions, with chamber and vocal pieces illustrating some of the distinctive steps of his musical journey.

Long regarded by Danish musicians as their secret treasure, the songs of Peter Heise perfectly represent the unique qualities and achievements of the Danish Golden Age. Though mostly not in direct contact with each other, these artists and writers shared a profound interest in exploring and understanding their personal life and experience, and left a body of introspective work which has had a huge impact on European culture. No longer a secret, these songs can now take their rightful place alongside the works of Hans Christian Andersen, Christen Kobke, Soren Kierkegaard and so many others.

REVIEW:

The Danish composer Peter Heise 1830-1879 composed about 300 songs, most of them on Danish texts, a few also on German poems. Dacapo now presents the complete recording of those songs. Anyone loving lieder will appreciate these romantic and melodically fine songs in consistently good interpretations. The producers must be given credit for always finding the right voice type for the songs with a variety of male and female voices.

– Pizzicato

The German composer Friedrich Kuhlau (1786-1832) fled to Denmark as a young man and with his strong cosmopolitan personality became a loner – and at the same time a key figure – in the Danish Golden Age. Kuhlau championed new tones in Danish music, and his melodically appealing violin sonatas were the first Danish sonatas in the Romantic style. With this recording Duo Åstrand/Salo lends new luster to music that has only rarely been performed in our time.

Norgard, P.: Seadrift / Nova Genitura / Fons Laetitiae

The last stop on a long journey, here is the third and final installment of a warmly received Langgaard cycle undertaken by violinist Gunvor Sihm and pianist Berit Johansen Tange. The present volume includes the violin sonatas Nos. 2 and 3 - highly accomplished works with strong individual features - and two single-movement pieces composed by Langgaard the precocious teenager: the charming Aubade written on a summer holiday with his parents, and the dark-colored Night Watchman's Song. Gunvor Sihm trained at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, from where she graduated in 2014 under Professor Serguei Azizian. Before that Gunvor studied 2 years at San Francisco Conservatory of Music with Ian Swensen. Gunvor Sihm has won several prizes, among others the prestigious Van Hauen's Music Prize 2011, the Eigil Harby Foundation's scholarship in 2015 and Gladsaxe Music Prize 2018. From 2011-15 Gunvor played in the 1st violins of Copenhagen Phil, until she won the position as 2nd Concertmaster for the 2nd violins of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra. Gunvor was a soloist with among others Odense Symphony Orchestra, Aarhus Symphony Orchestra, Tivoli Copenhagen Phil, Danish National Chamber Orchestra and, on several occasions, Copenhagen Phil. With Nightingale String Quartet Gunvor Sihm has recorded the complete string quartets by Rued Langgaard for Dacapo.

SVIN has been at the forefront of progressive Danish music for a decade, as both a lauded pioneer and a well-guarded secret. The ten movements of ELEGI build from a base of reflective melancholy to one of high energy, combining the ambient drones familiar from some of SVIN’s previous albums with junkyard percussion, ritualistic fervor, and a sure sense of Zen. It is composed music with the impulses of a tight, reactive improvisation and with a vast range of timbres and textures, acoustic and electronic.

A most promising start to an essential, richly recorded survey', observed Gramophone about the first volume of Vagn Holmboe's complete string quartets by the Nightingale String Quartet. In this, the second instalment, the Nightingale's continues convincingly with energetic, precise, yet lively and poetic interpretations of the Holmboe quartets, which stand amongst the most significant contributions to the genre in the 20th century. Nightingale String Quartet is based in Copenhagen and is made up of Gunvor Sihm and Josefine Dalsgaard, violins, Marie Louise Broholt Jensen, viola, and Louisa Schwab, cello. All the members of Nightingale String Quartet studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen, where Professor Tim Frederiksen has been their faithful mentor ever since the Quartet was founded in 2007.