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Sibelius: Symphony No. 7; Orchestral Works / Collon, Finnish Radio Symphony
Ondine

Sibelius: Symphony No. 7; Orchestral Works / Collon, Finnish Radio Symphony

$18.99

Details

Composer
Jean Sibelius
Artist
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Format
CD
Label
Ondine
Released
May 06, 2022
Catalog #
ODE 1404-2
UPC
761195140420

About

Fine performances, yes, but also a comprehensive, watertight Sibelius album to cherish.

Conductor Nicholas Collon began as the new Chief Conductor of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in September 2021. This all-Sibelius program, carefully selected by the conductor, is his debut album together with his new orchestra. Collon offers fresh and modern interpretation of Sibelius’ symphonic testament, the 7th Symphony, and brings to life the color and drama of Sibelius’ incidental music for two plays – Maeterlinck’s famous Pelléas et Mélisande and the historic King Christian II.

The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (FRSO) is the orchestra of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle), and its mission is to produce and promote Finnish musical culture. The Radio Orchestra of ten players founded in 1927 grew to symphony orchestra proportions in the 1960s. Its Chief Conductors have been Toivo Haapanen, Nils-Eric Fougstedt, Paavo Berglund, Okko Kamu, Leif Segerstam, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Sakari Oramo, Hannu Lintu, and as of autumn 2021 Nicholas Collon. In addition to the great Classical-Romantic masterpieces, the latest contemporary music is a major item in the repertoire of the FRSO, which each year premieres a number of Yle commissions.

REVIEW:

This is a rooted performance of Sibelius’s last symphony from the first non-Finn to lead the orchestra of the Finnish Broadcasting Company, one with true gravitas but little grandstanding.

Everything is clear in Collon’s recording but the moving parts heave despite the sure momentum, giving the discourse a visceral edge. The slight burgeoning of each note in the trombone motto, which blossoms but is traced more than declaimed, is indicative of the bigger picture: careful, sure but unobtrusive phrasing that moves the music on while conveying, especially in the final pages, the wrenching strain that is the essential precursor to that final, pained C major. Laura Heikinheimo’s sound is ideal in conveying the sense of gravitational, inevitable progress.

‘Élégie’ from King Christian II and ‘The Death of Melisande’ from Pelleas and Melisande need a special tenderness and space and get it but there are numbers in which Collon sounds absorbed by Sibelius’s creation of miniature structural marvels. Rarely have I heard the ‘Nocturne’ from King Christian II come to fruition like a miniature Symphony No 2, nor its ‘Ballade’ sound like a little sister to Pohjola’s Daughter.

But this is theater music and Collon sacrifices no greasepaint in his pursuit of structural logic. Perhaps it’s the cool finesse of the FRSO woodwinds, in particular, that succeed in drawing us into a sense of collective history in the old dances and old instruments (or imitations thereof) that characterize the music for King Christian II. It takes considered playing and extreme focus to reflect the ambiguities and fleeting emptiness of Pelleas. The broad bow strokes of ‘At the Castle Gate’, the steady withdrawal of ‘The Death of Melisande’ and the sinister lapping of ‘At the Seashore’ all speak of musicians well inside this music and determined to think patiently about its particular colors. Fine performances, yes, but also a comprehensive, watertight Sibelius album to cherish.

-- Gramophone

Tracklist 15 tracks

  1. 1 Symphony No. 7 in C Major, Op. 105 21:00
    Track
    1
    Title
    Symphony No. 7 in C Major, Op. 105
    Duration
    21:00
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  2. 2 I. Nocturne 07:24
    Track
    2
    Title
    I. Nocturne
    Duration
    07:24
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  3. 3 II. Élégie 05:09
    Track
    3
    Title
    II. Élégie
    Duration
    05:09
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  4. 4 III. Musette 02:13
    Track
    4
    Title
    III. Musette
    Duration
    02:13
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  5. 5 IV. Serenade 04:36
    Track
    5
    Title
    IV. Serenade
    Duration
    04:36
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  6. 6 V. Ballade 05:02
    Track
    6
    Title
    V. Ballade
    Duration
    05:02
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  7. 7 I. At the Castle Gate 02:51
    Track
    7
    Title
    I. At the Castle Gate
    Duration
    02:51
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  8. 8 II. Mélisande 04:14
    Track
    8
    Title
    II. Mélisande
    Duration
    04:14
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  9. 9 IIa. At the Seashore 02:15
    Track
    9
    Title
    IIa. At the Seashore
    Duration
    02:15
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  10. 10 III. A Spring in the Park 01:55
    Track
    10
    Title
    III. A Spring in the Park
    Duration
    01:55
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  11. 11 IV. The Three Blind Sisters 02:27
    Track
    11
    Title
    IV. The Three Blind Sisters
    Duration
    02:27
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  12. 12 V. Pastorale 01:51
    Track
    12
    Title
    V. Pastorale
    Duration
    01:51
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  13. 13 VI. Mélisande at the Spinning Wheel 01:47
    Track
    13
    Title
    VI. Mélisande at the Spinning Wheel
    Duration
    01:47
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  14. 14 VII. Entr'acte 02:42
    Track
    14
    Title
    VII. Entr'acte
    Duration
    02:42
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon
  15. 15 VIII. The Death of Mélisande 06:02
    Track
    15
    Title
    VIII. The Death of Mélisande
    Duration
    06:02
    Composer
    Jean Sibelius
    Ensemble
    Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Nicholas Collon