Yes, indeed: so let’s have some, to celebrate…also taking the opportunity to mention Valtteri Bottas, a man without a seat for 2025. I hope he finds one, I always liked his attitude – even when he stopped winning things.
Jean Sibelius born 8th December 1865
by 41 Comments
To get us started:
I like the Hilary Hann but this is my particular favourite.
I can hear why.
By their couplings shall ye know them:
Hahn went for the Schoenberg concerto and emphasised the lean, 20th century aspects of the Sibelius.
Mullova went for the Tchaikovsky concerto and emphasised the big romantic aspects of the Sibelius.
Both valid approaches.
I am hugely romantic so it should come as no surprise. I like both.
I may buy the Hahn as I already have the Mullova recording on Phillips with the Boston. They will compliment one another nicely.
If you can handle a bit of grainy mono, this performance is a classic – and still available on CD, I think…
I love a good historic performance. I’ve got an Erato Fauré boxset with a few recordings going back to the 1920s that are wonderful
Can’t see this, Tiggs – what was it?
Lisa Batiashvili’s version of the violin concerto with Daniel Barenboim.
It is coupled with Tchaikovsky.
If you can find it, I’d recommend Ida Haendel’s recording with Bournemouth/Berglund – one of the best I’ve heard.
I first heard the Sibelius violin concerto in the Slasher Heifetz recording with the Chicago Symphony and the Prokofiev on the other side. No doubt there are many superior versions, but I always go back to it.
This is superb, and not heard so often
Superb indeed @fitterstoke! The animation really enhances the superb music.
Thanks a lot for starting a thread on Sibelius. I live in Helsinki for a whole year but know precious little about this giant of Finnish music.
The Sibelius Monument is a thing of great beauty.
And when the wind blows it makes music.
It was interesting to discover that the story of Luonnatar is taken from the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala. These programme notes from a performance at Konserthuset in Stockholm were rather useful.
https://www.konserthuset.se/en/about-us/our-operation/festivals/grande-finale/liner-notes-and-curious-facts/luonnotar/
“In Finland’s national epic, the Kalevala, the creation of the world begins when Ilmatar, a goddess, leaves her airy existence and becomes impregnated by the sea. For seven hundred years she floats around with Väinämöinen in her belly, unable to give birth. A duck is looking for a place to build its nest, and Ilmatar reaches one knee out of the sea. But when her own pain becomes too great, she kicks out with her leg. The bird’s nest sinks, the eggs crack and the pieces become the earth, sky, sun, moon and stars.”
I’m guessing that most Finns know this story very well. I’ll ask my pal Juha in Turku.
An interesting titbit.’
“Jean Sibelius dedicated his tone poem Luonnotar to (Finnih soprano, Aino) Ackté and she premiered the work on 10 September 1913 at the Three Choirs Festival in Gloucester, England.[16] She also sang in the first performance of Luonnotar in Finland, in January 1914.”
She was one of Finland’s first international opera stars.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aino_Ackt%C3%A9
Luonnotar is a real piece of National Romanticism. Worth remembering that Finland in 1913 was not an independent country but an “independent” country, a Grand Duchy under Russian rule.
Interesting article about the premiere at Gloucester in 1913.
https://richardbratby.co.uk/2015/07/23/throwback-thursday-the-three-choirs-festival/
“So the premiere attracted attention across the UK. “It was “probably [Sibelius’s] very latest work” reported The Times; “at any rate, when asked for the score and parts a fortnight ago, he replied to the Festival authorities that it was ‘still in his head’”. In fact, Sibelius had rehearsed Luonnotar with its dedicatee Aino Ackté before her departure for England. Billed as “New scena for soprano and orchestra”, Luonnotar was premiered on the evening of 10th September. Ackté received six curtain calls.”
Travelling from Helsinki to Gloucester in 1913 was a journey and a half for Aino!
I’ve developed a bit of a thing for exploring various recordings of the old geezer’s symphonies of late. Finding as close to a perfect cycle from one orchestra under a single conductor with an eye to buying a boxset. I’ve narrowed it down to four but I think two may be unavailable except at extortionate cost. I shall report back when a decision has been made.
I’ll be waiting – I have my own ideas, of course…🙂
I narrowed it down to three and just ordered one of them. This has taken weeks of listening and reading. The one I would have bought is too pricey and only available second hand. I could piece it together as individual discs but that’ll be a bit troublesome so the Herbert Blomstedt/San Francisco Symphony is chalked off though I can still access it via Tidal. The three remaining ones are the LSO/Sir Colin Davis, The Bournemouth Symphony/Parvo Berglund but the one I’ve bought is The Helsinki Phil/Leif Segerstam. I may pick up the Berglund as well sometime as it’s pretty cheap so why not.
You know how I love a good remix…have you heard that young wippersnapper Klaus Mäkelä conducting the Oslo Symphony Orchestra?
Not yet. It’s on my radar though.
I’d listen to the Mäkelä before you buy, Mr P – mixed reviews.
A bit overhyped, IMHO.
Remixed reviews. 😉
Arf!
Oslo Philharmonic
I’ll definitely listen first. One of the advantages of a Tidal sub. Try before you buy. I do exactly that all the time.
£30 on taxdodgers
If I intend a purchase I’ll shop around. I can usually find most CDs cheaper elsewhere tbh.
OK. I’ve had a bit of a listen to this Mäkelä travesty. Sorry Tigg if you like this but it’s awful. He shouldn’t have even attempted this until he’s grown some hair on his balls. He’s too young, too gauche. It’s really, really not good.
Also my view, in a nutshell. I thought I’d leave it unexpressed until you had a chance to listen for yourself, Mr P.
It’s not a version I listen to often, but it’s certainly an alternative view.
😘
You will have noticed he gets a slot in my top twenty this year with the violin concerto.
They are all interpretations but I certainly don’t rate his. I’ll listen to some of his other offerings but after this I will approach his take on Stravinsky with trepidation. Maybe it wasn’t his very young age as regards the Sibelius, maybe he’s just a lousy conductor of Sibelius. He is however very young so maybe he’ll take another swipe at it some time in the future and make more of a fist of it.
Helsinki/Segerstam would have been my recommendation.
Also in the mix: Bournemouth/Berglund, as you mentioned – and Sakari/Iceland.
If you like an older, “Golden age” recording, I’d suggest SNO/Gibson, Colin Davis with the Boston SO and as many single Beecham recordings as you can find!
It seems almost impolite not to own them played by the Helsinki Phil, plus it’s a very good cycle.
Berglund has recorded three cycles has he not but this first one is my preference out of the first two. I find the second one a little to fast for my tastes. I’ve not bothered with the third, fatigue began to set in.
The first Bournemouth set definitely the best of the three…
Here’s a little cross-thread fertilisation for you @fitterstoke!
I just stumbled across this Fenno-Swedish Xmas carol by Sibelius.
“A poem by the Finnish Swedish speaking poet Zacharias Topelius published in 1887. Jean Sibelius composed the music sometime between 1895-1909. In 1909 it was also translated to Finnish and is known as “En etsi valtaa, loistoa” (I seek not might, nor splendour)”
Which makes me wonder….Did Sibelius speak any Swedish?
He certainly did!
“Finland, like most of the Scandinavian countries at that time, was dominated by Swedish culture, and like most middle and upper class Finns of this era, the family spoke only Swedish. Sibelius did not learn to speak the language of his native country until he was enrolled in a local school at age eight.”
https://www.kennedy-center.org/artists/s/sa-sn/jean-sibelius/#:~:text=Finland%2C%20like%20most%20of%20the,local%20school%20at%20age%20eight.
I believe the form of his name gives the game away…
His name certainly doesn’t sound Finnish. But not wildly Swedish either.
It had never crossed my mind that he might have had Swedish as his first language.