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Superb XR-remastered sound from this John Culshaw production for Capitol
This is one of the great recordings of the Second Symphony of Sibelius, and it's something of a mystery as to why it's not been reissued before. We are grateful to ardent Sibelius enthusiast John J Davis for the loan of his LP for this transfer - of his collection 37 recordings of the work this is the only one he rates amongst his personal favourites which has remained stuck in the LP era. It was excellently received at the time - its UK issue (on Parlophone) was reviewed in The Gramophone in May 1958:
I'm pleased to report that, with XR remastering and the judicious use of Ambient Stereo processing (optional) this 'exceptionally good' sound quality is further improved - although the original production by legendary Decca producer John Culshaw (who worked on a series of recordings for Capitol in 1956-7) was certainly of the highest quality for its day, a certain constriction in the broad strings of this work is clearly evident when played alongside this newly remastered version, and overall the orchestral sound is more fully rounded throughout. The Second Symphony was one of my first introductions to the music of Sibelius in my early teens and made a great impression on me then. The present recording serves as an excellent reminder of why I enjoy this work so much - highly recommended in every respect. It also persuaded me to listen again to what is currently the only other recording offered by Pristine that was conducted by Schmidt-Isserstedt - the 1937 Kulenkampff/BPO world première recording of Schumann's Violin Concerto (PASC004) which was among the twelve recordings that constituted our entire catalogue when we launched in February 2005 - if you've not heard it I'd strongly recommend giving it a listen! Andrew Rose
*NB. The present recording includes a revised timpani part at the end of the finale from the conductor Serge Koussevitzky. Although it never received the approval of the composer, so was never officially incorporated into the published score, Koussevitzky's revision has been taken up by others besides Schmidt-Isserstedt (though not by any Finnish conductors), including Anthony Collins and Sir Charles Mackerras:
and:
Click here to view additional notes Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt biographical notes from Wikipedia
Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt (5 May 1900 Berlin – 28 May 1973, Holm-Holstein, Germany) was a German conductor and composer. He studied music in Heidelberg and Münster. He was also a composition student with Franz Schreker at the Berlin Hochschule für Musik, and received a doctorate in 1923. He was a repetiteur at the Wuppertal Opera starting in 1923. He held conducting positions at the opera houses of Rostock (1928 - 1931) and Darmstadt (1931 - 1933). He had the post of first conductor at the Hamburg State Opera from 1935 to 1943. In 1944, he was named music director at the Berlin State Opera. In 1945, after the end of World War II, the British military authorities invited Schmidt-Isserstedt to found an orchestra at the North German Radio in Hamburg. In six months, he assembled the North German Radio Symphony Orchestra and conducted its first concert in November 1945. He was subsequently the orchestra's first principal conductor. He became an advocate of music by composers whose music had been outlawed in Germany, such as Bartók, Stravinsky and Hindemith, during the Nazi regime. His favortite composer, however, was Mozart, and Schmidt became associated with his music through several recordings and notable performances of his works. In particular his recordings of Mozart's operas Idomeneo and La finta giardiniera are greatly admired. From 1955 to 1964, he was principal conductor also of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra. He conducted memorable performances of Le nozze di Figaro at the Glyndebourne Festival in 1958, and of Tristan und Isolde at Royal Opera, Covent Garden in 1962. He made a well-regarded recording of all the Beethoven symphonies. In Germany, Schmidt-Isserstedt was a noted champion of the music of Michael Tippett. Schmidt-Isserstedt's own compositions included songs, the opera Hassan gewinnt (Rostock, 1928), and works for orchestra. His son was the British record producer Erik Smith.
Notes from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Schmidt-Isserstedt
Sibelius - Symphony No. 2 musical notes from Wikipedia
Jean Sibelius's Symphony No. 2 in D major, Opus 43 was started in winter 1900 in Rapallo, Italy, and finished in 1902 in Finland. It was first performed by the Helsinki Philharmonic Society on 8 March 1902 with the composer conducting. After the first performance, Sibelius made some revisions, and the revised version was given its first performance by Armas Järnefelt on 10 November 1903 in Stockholm. It is in four movements, with the third movement and the finale played attacca:
The duration is approximately 45 minutes. In Finland, this popular work with its grandiose finale was connected with the struggle for Finland's independence, even being dubbed the "Symphony of Independence" as it was written at a time of Russian sanctions on Finnish language and culture. Sibelius's reaction to this has been widely debated; some claim that he had not intended any patriotic message and was purely identified as a nationalist composer, while others believe that he wrote the piece with an independent Finland in mind.[citation needed] Tying in with Sibelius' philosophy on the art of the symphony (the Finnish composer wrote that he "admired [the symphony's] severity of style and the profound logic that created an inner connection between all the motifs...") The work grows almost organically out of a rising three-note motif heard at the opening of the work, which, after appearing in many guises throughout the entire symphony (and indeed forming the basis for most of the material) forms the dramatic theme of the finale. The first recording was made by Robert Kajanus with the London Symphony Orchestra for the HMV label in May 1930. NB. The present recording includes a revised timpani part at the end of the finale from the conductor Serge Koussevitzky which, although it received the approval of the composer, was never officially incorporated into the published score of the work.
Notes from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._2_(Sibelius) Full score at IMSLP: http://imslp.org/wiki/Symphony_No.2,_Op.43_(Sibelius,_Jean)
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