![]() ![]() ![]() Better performances are available, but only if you're prepared to invest in several full-priced CDs. If you must have all this music on a single disc, this is your only option for now. Ondine's distant microphones and the cavernous Kuhmo Church, where the recording sessions were held, combine to produce a sonic mush that quickly becomes tiresome. However, a larger ensemble would have been preferable for several selections, especially the Andante Festivo. The Virtuosi di Kuhmo is a small, but more than capable band of talented young musicians, all college-aged to judge from the booklet photo. (Sibelius himself conducted a stunning performance this work during a 1939 radio broadcast, but that unforgettable recording is no longer available.) On the other hand, Csaba is quite effective in the more intimate selections, such as the lovely Canzonetta, Romance, and Impromptu – all of which deserve to be better known. Perhaps the most striking piece in this collection is the grand Andante Festivo of 1922, but Csaba simply plows through it, missing its inherent nobility and grandeur. Most will be immediately recognizable as chips off the master's workbench, but the gypsy elements in Humoresque 3 and the very brief Viennese waltz that begins the oddly titled Suite Caracteristique will probably surprise even this composer's greatest admirers. The remainder are transcriptions of works for piano, string quartet, or, in the case of The Lover, male chorus. Only a few of these pieces were originally conceived for string orchestra. The beautiful opening theme at first seems indivisible from the oscillating icy haze of the orchestral violins and maintains its mystery where other players might be inclined to exploit its beauty in riper tone and richer, more. Also included are the two Humoresques of Opus 89 scored for solo violin and strings. Lisa Batiashvili vn Staatskapelle Berlin / Daniel Barenboim (DG) 'Batiashvili homes in here on the ethereal quality of the lyricism. Ondine's program, however, brings together everything that Sibelius produced for this medium, except his arrangement of the scherzo from the string quartet (for which there was plenty of room on this disc). Today record producers generally use them the same way – as filler. Most were dashed off to fill out one concert or another devoted to his longer, more serious works. Sibelius, it should be noted, never intended them to be presented this way. These miniatures can be quite enjoyable on their own, but they tend to become monotonous when played back to back, as they are here. I believe it was the great philosopher Mae West who said, "Too much of a good thing is wonderful." While undoubtedly true in some areas of human endeavor, this principle hardly applies to the string orchestra music of Sibelius. His next quartet (A minor, JS 183) was the work that marked the completion of his studies in 1889, and it was performed at the Institute’s soiree.
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