A great combination: Grieg and Sibelius!
584971
A classic performance of a "classic" piece by one of the greatest conductors ever! The orchestra is superb as would be expected. I particularly like that the two suites are available on this one disc together with the very complimentary selection by Sibelius. Worth your consideration.
3121958
Okko Kamu has never been represented much on recordings. Other than his Sibelius, I can think of little else he has committed to disc beyond some presentations of a few Scandinavian composers like Nielsen, Berwald, Larsson, Stenhammar and Sallinen. Though not as vivid as Maazel/Vienna, attractively detailed as Stokowski or nicely balanced as Collins, there is little to criticize about his Sibelius First Symphony. It is generally well conceived, though there may be a few moments where phrasing seems just a touch too deliberate. The last movement however is delivered pleasingly, with ample gusto and songfulness....His Sibelius Third has been my favorite interpretation for quite some time. Kamu does not allow the kind of routineness that fairly frequently mars other conductors' versions, because his performance sounds utterly natural and spontaneous. Instrumental voices come through with just the right amount of expressiveness. An absolutely top notch conception of the Third, and easily the most cogent and attractive I've heard.
4474361
Sparkling, full of life and intensity

is how I would describe these concertos

By Camargo Guarnieri. Guarnieri now one

of the best Latin-American composers

of the 20th century composed these

concetos beetween 1931 and 1963, the

Piano Concerto #1 is recorded here for

the first time. In the first Piano

concerto we hear a lot of Brazilian

percussion such as the cuica(Friction Drum)

and reco-reco(a scraper) use masterfully

especially in the final movement of

the first concerto. The Second Piano Concerto

is equally fun to listen to, and with a last

movement that opens with a tune that

one would expect to hear out the Rio

carnival. The last concerto #3, is

is also a great work. The soloist

Max Barros is wonderful, and so

are conductor Thomas Collin and

the Warsaw Philharmonic. Indeed

music full of life, emotion and

intensity. Five Stars!!!
247891
I will openly admit that I did not buy this for the L.A. Variations by Salonen, though I do like the pieces.  I purchased this because Salonen feels and expresses Sibelius like no other conductor I have heard.  He seems to carry the spirit of Sibelius within him.
The 5th symphony by Sibelius is, with the 4th (don't make me choose between the 2), my favorite of Sibelius' symphonies.  He wrote it after rising from a deep depression (a depression expressed beautifully in his 4th which was written in the midst of that depression) and the glorious exploration of the instruments, especially the French Horns and the Woodwinds, in my humble opinion, convey this escape from the darkness in wonderful fashion.
To top it off, Salonen, as I stated, just knows his countryman's outstanding and astoundingly brooding and beautiful works like no other conductor I have ever heard.
My only complaint, and it isn't about this DVD, is that Salonen has not recorded all of Sibelius' symphonies; I'd buy all of his interpretations in a heartbeat!
1986925
I bought the SACD version without any particular expectations (I try to encourage publishers to support the format by buying as many new SACD releases as possible). Kullervo is not one of the most frequently performed works of Sibelius. For these reasons, I was expecting a curiosity, a work of youth, as the low-numbered opus suggests. Far from it, this is thrilling music, the finale sent shivers down my spine, the way "Finlandia" can, but to appreciate it fully, you need to understand the story and the backstory.

The tale of Kullervo comes from the Kalevala, the Finnish national epic, and is one of unrelieved woe. The Finnish people only gained their independence after fending off th Swedes, the Russians and the Germans, and the Kalevala was a vital part in their national awakening, as is Kullervo.

Kullervo is a tragic figure in the mold of Oedipus, and directly inspired Tolkien's Turin Turambar. He is enslaved as a child, and thinks his family killed. He kills his captor, the god Ilmarinen's wife and escapes to discover his family is alive. His father sends him to collect taxes and on the way he meets and seduces a woman. They discover to their horror that she is his sister. In despair, she commits suicide. Kullervo returns to his family to find they are all dead. He decides to take revenge by slaying his evil uncle (who sold him into slavery in the first place), and eventually overcome by grief, commits suicide.

For whatever it's worth, David Hurwitz at Classics Today gives this recording a perfect 10/10.

After reviewing two other recordings, a few minor flaws crop up. The orchestra has a tendency to overpower the solists in the third movement "Kullervo and his sister". But otherwise a finely played and rousing interpretation.
1492859
Emil Gilels was without a doubt one of the greatest pianists of all time. He particularly excelled in the romantic works as his recordings of Brahms, Chopin, and Tchaikovsky are some of the best recorded to name a few. When it comes to pianists and Grieg, most tend to play his magnificent Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 16 and call it a day. Grieg's solo piano output include a Piano Sonata, a Ballad and 66 lyric pieces, 20 of which are featured.

Complete CD content can he found here:
http://www.pianistdiscography.com/discography/pianistLabel.php?cdnum=1534&labRich=2&PIANIST=19

Pianists Mikhail Pletnev, Leif Ove Andsnes and Sviatoslav Richter all have CDs that feature lyric pieces, but none of them come close to comparing to Gilels. Gilels' beautiful tone and sense of timing make each one of these short works shine so much that you will become enraptured after just one listen. This is a CD I always recommend to others interested in classical piano and I always find myself coming back to listen to this one despite the countless other works by other composers out there. The lyrical quality and melodies of these works put them in the class of the romantic greats Chopin, Schumann and Liszt. This is not just one of the best Grieg CDs you can find, its one of the best classical piano CDs out there. The rest of the Grieg Lyric pieces are also well worth listening to, and for those be sure and grab the Pletnev, Richter and Andsnes renditions.
3139657
Here is an ideal box of Sibelius's music.  It doesn't include Symphony #3 or #6, but I'll talk about that below.  It does include all of his RCA and Sony Stereo recordings, and the repetitions of Symphonies 1, 2 and 7 are fascinating. Missing from this box from Sony is the Oistrakh concerto recording (he recorded it with both Ormandy and Rozhdestvensky), and the EMI Lemminkainen Suite.  Luckily I have both of those, and they fit nicely into this box.
The great conversation that any of us would have loved to hear was one between Sibelius and Mahler.  Sibelius said that a symphony must be the total expression of logic.  Mahler answered with his famous line, "Ein Symphonie muss die Welt umfassen."  A symphony must embrace the world. How those points differ is well demonstrated here.
Some conductors tug and pull Sibelius, trying to make his symphonies dramatic - which they already are.  Those recordings wear thin quickly.
There are faster conductors, too.  Beecham, a noted Sibelian, has a fast Symphony #2, almost too fast.  But it's exciting.  Ormandy does not keep a metronomic beat throughout a movement, but he doesn't tug and pull either.  Without fail here, he highlights the "logic" of the music, making it build to a climax or whisper beautifully.  He had at the time one of the greatest orchestras there were, and they follow him brilliantly.
Another reviewer mentions Ormandy was viewed as a "light-weight" conductor.  He was great at the lighter fare.  But Karelia or Finlandia are not given light-weight readings.  Ormandy knew this music and how to make it live.
Symphony #1 (1978 version) starts the set, and some of it is surprisingly slow.  But every tempo I didn't expect in this set always gets into my blood and moves me to accept it and love it.  This set will take a few more hearings before I get where Ormandy is coming from, but I already know I get a lot from these performances that don't come from newer conductors.
Missing are Symphony #3 and #6.  Lots has been written about #3, about how difficult it is to understand or how hard it is to bring off.  I don't find that at all.  The piece is of almost classical purity.  The shifting beats of the second movement are pliant and almost dancing.  This made several writers think of it as both scherzo and andante.  But clearly the last movement is the Scherzo and Finale in one.  Why Ormandy did not recored this at all is baffling.  I wish he had.  #6 is much harder to understand, but considering Ormandy's successes with all the others, I know his recording would have been revelatory.
My admiration for Ormandy, even in Sibelius, stems from his non-interventionist way of conducting.  Of course he's interpreting, but I never have the feeling he is super-imposing his "ideas" over those of the composer.
BTW, the sound is top drawer all the way.
500108
I would venture to say that virtually all lovers of Classical Music, not to mention opera, are familiar with sparkling overture to Nicolai's "Merry Wives of Windsor." Fewer are likely to be acquainted with the rambunctious fun of the complete opera, which is unfortunate. Fewer still are those who have encountered other works by Nicolai. That  situation can, and should be rectified with the present recording.
  A couple of years ago, I happened to hear the overture to "The Knight Templar" (Der Templeritter) on the radio, and then heard it several more times. Its themes soon became almost as familiar to me as those of the justly popular "Merry Wives." The tone is somewhat more serious, as befits the subject, but is, in my opinion, equally as beautiful. The performance I heard on the radio was the very one under discussion. Thus, when I became aware of its availability, I quickly ordered it, even though I was still unfamiliar with the other selections on the cd. Suffice it to say I was not disappointed, either with those remaining selections, the performance or the recording itself.  Karl Anton Rickenbacher and the Bamberger Symphoniker acquit themselves brilliantly! If you love "The Merry Wives of Windsor" overture (and who does not?), get this disc, sit back and enjoy!
720407
In little over half an hour, the soloist in the Sibelius Violin Concerto is called upon to convey dreaminess, despondency, fury, contemplation, love and rejection with rapid shifts. You can find recordings by other more famous violinists who show equal command of the emotional range in the score, but no performer I have heard has also nailed the daunting technical demands of this mega-challenging late romantic violin concerto as Pekka Kuusisto has.

Listen carefully to superstar violinists who have recorded this concerto, and you will hear numerous occasional rough spots in their arpeggios and runs, intervals, multiple-stops, and intonation. Sibelius throws every challenge he can at the soloist. Kuusisto just breezes through them all.

Virtuosity, to me, is the art of not only playing with passion authentic to the score but of making technical perfection which on paper would seem all but impossible sound effortless. That's what Kuusisto does here, and it's not a studio/overdubbing trick. I heard him do this live with this work with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as well. He's just wired into this piece as no one else is.

Conductor Leif Segerstam and the Helsinki Philharmonic are also virtually flawless in their task of supporting and propelling the soloist and giving this concerto more emotional heft. Their performances of the other two pieces on the CD, Sibelius' Karelia Suite and Belshazzar's Feast (without Kuusisto), are equally marvelous. But the best reason to buy this CD is Pekka Kuuisto's showstopping turn in the Violin Concerto. If you love this piece, or if you just enjoy marveling at violin virtuosity, this CD is one you will want to own
954510
This is unmistakably a feather in DG's somewhat tattered cap. It is the most distinguished vocal recital in decades, and a reminder that Grieg, supposedly a miniaturist, also excelled in longer-form compositions. Check out the neglected piano BALLADE Op. 24 (RUBINSTEIN COLLECTION 13) or the important HAUGTUSSA cycle included here.

Kirsten Flagstad reigned supreme in this repertoire for decades and her RCA HAUGTUSSA is legendary. Von Otter is less matronly, fresher and I daresay more insightful than Mme Flagstad in the cycle. There is no want of passion and ardor in these performances; there is also tender delicacy when called for, and von Otter's comprehension of the Grieg vocal idiom is complete.

Bengt Forsberg's pianism is extraordinary, unashamed and extrovert and part of a rare partnership between singer and accompanist--for once both are (literally) on the same page. Moreover, Forsberg has the benefit of sumptuous sound which gives the piano its due. Here is the most empathetic voice-piano collaboration since the heyday of the late Gerald Moore.

This CD is indispensable, and you will want multiple copies to present as gifts.
4895480
"The Perlman Edition" is a new CD series from EMI which collects many of the violinist's most celebrated recordings for the label.  These performances of the Sibleius and Korngold Violin Concertos, and the Sinding Suite, with conductor Andre Previn and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra from 1979-80, are among the best. The material on this title has been available on CD previously -- the Sibelius and Sinding were coupled on one disc, while the Korngold was paired with the Goldmark, which has yet to be reissued.  In my opinion, Heifetz owned these three works, however only his recording of the Sibelius is available in stereo (and as a performance, it plays second fiddle to his mono account with Beecham available on Naxos).  With that being said, it is great to hear a world class violinist like Perlman tackle these works in the prime of his career in stereo.  While I don't see myself buying all of the "Perlman Edition" discs, it is certainly good to have them back in print, particularly this one.
3390807
I've listened to this recording so many times in the past 2 months.  I learned the symphonic poems and overtures on the old 4-LP box set released in the U.S. as Legend (LGDD 101). Conducted variously by Chalabala (op. 107-110); Ancerl (op. 62, 67, 91-93); Neumann (op. 78); and Klima (op. 111) it was a place to start, but not wholly satisfying.  Then came the Kubelik recordings on Deutsche Grammophon LP:  I never felt that he got to the heart of Dvorak like Kertesz did.  Next, for me was the Jarvi set.  Better.  Good clean readings. Good tempos and dynamics.  I tried the Harnoncourt readings with the Concergebouw: made me think of Kubelik.  Way too smooth and Brahmsian.  The discs "in hand" with Theodore Kuchar and the Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra are really fabulous.  I get the sonic impression that this is a "young" orchestra.  There is a delight and fire in their playing that is truly infectious.  The "line" is fluid.  They know where they're going.  This is music making at its finest.  Not just technique and notes but a complete concept of the entire work.  Like standing at the far end of a gallery and taking in a big painting.  It's about the big work, not just the details. This is available at a great price and I strongly recommend these performances.  There is joy and passion in Dvorak.  Kuchar and the Janacek Phil. players know this and they deliver.  Enjoy!
1713136
Gathering nearly all of Grieg's and Sibelius' most popular works in a very generous timing (77 minutes), this Karajan Gold CD is probably the best buy for a newcomer willing to discover the two most famous Nordic composers. It should however be recommended mainly to this public rather than to music lovers who already know these works and own recordings of them, because there are other performances around that are both more expressive and closer to the spirit of the music - including other ones by Karajan. Previous reviewers seem precisely to belong mainly to the first category.

The playing is very good indeed throughout, and the Karajan Gold remastering has much improved the originally rather opaque and lacklustre sound, especially in the Peer Gynt suites, which has now much more depth and a chamber music quality common to other Karajan recordings from that time (his Wagner CD on the same series for instance). There are however some coughs and other minor noises (chairs?) in the Sibelius works that could have been avoided - at the very end of Finlandia for instance.

What is generally missing in these performances is the sense of contrasts in tempi - it has often been the case with Karajan, like in his complete recording of Bruckner symphonies.
The Peer Gynt suites are played nearly throughout at the same flowing speed, which prevents a satisfying contrast between the two tunes in Anitra's Dance, makes the accelerando in The Hall of the Mountain King ineffective, and deprives Peer Gynt's Return Home from all its necessary drive. Solveig's Dance is played in a very self-conscious manner too, as if it was a mere demonstration of string sonorities.

Karajan's previous recording (from 1974) is comparatively more polished, cold and detached, but with the brilliant passages much more effective - the crescendo in the Hall of the Mountain King is much more overwhelming and skilfully managed and Peer Gynt's Return Home much rougher. It is however coupled with an excellent Sigurd Jorsalfar suite (much lesser known than Peer Gynt but just as good) that is well worth listening to.

The Holberg Suite is generally the most successful performance on the CD, all the more as it was the only time Karajan recorded it. The Gavotte and its central Musette could be better contrasted though, and the Sarabande and Air sound a little laborious and void despite their flowing speeds. The outer movements are however very crisp and exciting. The whole of the suite is played in a very `noble' and dignified way which may sound too serious and not appeal to everyone, but I find it paradoxically brings humor as I cannot help but imagine Karajan suddenly put a wig and silk stockings on before conducting this work!

As for the three Sibelius pieces, Karajan's 1970s performances on EMI have far more depth and character than these ones, in which the orchestra sound moreover rather thick - the Valse Triste is rather heavy in particular. The Swan from Tuonela is played too quickly and fails to convey any sense of mystery and awe - this is supposed to be a swan swimming over the dark waters of a lake in the land of the dead, not one eating bread from passers by on a Sunday afternoon! Finlandia is seriously lacking in bite too, and in too undifferentiated tempi - just listen to Karajan's two previous recordings on DG and EMI in comparison! When the Finnish anthem appears at the end of the work, it is so understated that I cannot but think that had the Finns been so shy at this crucial time of their history, they would still be under the Russian yoke nowadays!
3511081
DG has assembled historical Wagner orchestral excerpts which are breathtakingly beautiful and extremely well performed. (Of course at my advanced age I'd reasonably ask if anything recorded in 1962 or even 1951 can truly be called historical, however I smilingly admit 1939 and 1927 or 1928 fall within that category!) Briefly the choice of conductors (Furtwngler, de Sabata, Knappertsbusch, Elmendorff, and Jochum) is excellent, and a listener who is prepared to enjoy Wagner excerpts will truly enjoy the excellent and often inspirational selections.

Orchestras represented (Mnchner Philharmoniker, Berlin Philharmoniker, Orchester der Staatsoper Berlin, Staatskapelle Berlin, as well as Symphonieorchester  des Bayerischen Rundfunks) exhibit top notch Wagnerian ensemble. The remastering of all the offerings are excellent, sounding as though they could be newly recorded for this DG set of 4 CDs, a well-chosen compilation.
2376886
These recordings, all of Sibelius works played by the Royal Philharmonic under Sir Thomas Beecham, apparently date from the 1950s, and the sound isn't all that shabby. The prize, for me, is the incidental music from Pelleas et Melisande, a wonderful sonic journey of eight tracks, all marvelously played. I've never heard a better rendition of of this suite than the one on this disc, period. The Oceanides and Tapiola come off well, though I confess I'm not as taken with the compositions themselves. The version of the Symphony No. 7 to be found here, though, is one of my all-time favorite recordings of the work: with powerful articulations lying beneath that somewhat amorphous exterior. If you can find a decent copy of this out-of-print release, snatch it up without hesitation. This is classic Beecham interpretation of Sibelius.
710934
This is a wonderful CD that serves as both an introduction to Heppner's  incredible Heldentenor voice and a nice excerpts disc of Lohengrin.  Heppner is known the world over for his interpretation of Wagner and once  you here his voice on this disc you'll know why.  This is very accessible  music for the non-Wagner fan as well and one that I love to listen to time  and time again.  Heppner's voice moves me like very few others!  I can't  wait for the next Heppner disc.
3394345
It is an interesting footnote that Prokofiev felt himself overshadowed in his own time by first Stravinsky and then Shostakovich. Yet no other musical voice of the 20th century is quite so immediately recognizable as is his own. Erik Schumann, ably accompanied by the excellent Henri Sigfridsson, brings both brilliance and accessibility to these works, not stinting on either beautiful tone or brooding intensity. Indeed, the first sonata is quite possibly the finest performance I have heard, either on recordings or in the house. Schumann displays the well-known hallmarks of Zakhar Bron's pupils: great technical finish and thrilling sound. He and his accompanist also bring a deep understanding of the music at hand and of its origins. In addition to the F minor and D major sonatas, there are also wonderful arrangements (the first two by Jascha Heifetz) of the March from The Love of Three Oranges, The Mask from Prokofiev's ballet Romeo and Juliet, and the Waltz from Cinderella. The playing throughout is magnificent, and the engineering of this disc is altogether excellent, offering both depth of field and warmth to these performances from the WDR Cologne broadcasts on the Avi label. This is a "must-have" not only for devotees of Prokofiev but also for lovers of great violin playing.