Sibelius: The Complete Symphonies, Kullervo [Box set]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
From the Slavic-tinged exuberance of the First and Second to the dark undercurrents of the Fourth and Fifth and the passionate abstraction of the Sixth and Seventh, Sibelius's symphonies loom larger than ever among the 20th century's influential orchestral landmarks. Petri Sakari charts the composer's rugged, sometimes cryptic terrain with authority and inspires the Iceland Symphony Orchestra to a generous and heartfelt performance. You won't find the opulent sheen of Karajan's or Ormandy's Sibelius, nor the micro details Paavo Berglund elicits from his Chamber Orchestra of Europe remakes, but Naxos's modest asking price will bring you idiomatic, atmospheric, deeply felt performances that reveal more with each hearing. Jorma Panula's fine traversal of Kullervo ranks close to Berglund's reference EMI version (the earlier of his two for the label). A Sibelius cycle, in sum, to stand at the top of the list alongside Davis-Boston (Philips), Vanska-Lahti (BIS), and Berglund-Helsinki (EMI). --Jed Distler

Tracks:

I: Andante, Ma Non Troppo - Allegro Energico
II: Andante (Ma Non Troppo Lento)
III: Scherzo: Allegro
IV: Finale (Quasi Una Fantasia): Andante - Allegro Molto
I: Allegretto
II: Tempo Andante, Ma Rubato
III: Vivacissimo - Lento E Suave - Tempo Primo - Largamente -
IV: Finale: Allegro Moderato

Tracks:

I: Allegro Moderato
II: Andantino Con Moto, Quasi Allegretto
III: Moderato - Allegro (Ma Non Tanto)
I: Tempo Molto Moderato, Quasi Adagio
II: Allegro Molto Vivace - Doppio Piu Lento
III: Il Tempo Largo
IV: Allegro

Tracks:

I: Tempo Molto Moderato - Largamente - Allegro Moderato
II: Andante Mosso, Quasi Allegretto
III: Allegretto Molto - Un Pochettino Largamente
I: Allegro Molto Moderato
II: Allegretto Moderato - Poco Con Moto
III: Poco Vivace
IV: Allegro Molto - Allegro Assai - Doppio Piu Lento

Tracks:

Adagio -
Un Pochettino Meno Adagio - Vivacissimo -
Poco Rallentando Al Adagio - Allegro Molto Moderato - Allegro Moderato - Vivace -
Presto - Adagio - Largamente Molto - Affettuoso
Cantata: Oma Maa, Op.92: 'Our Own Land'
Tulen Synty, Op.32: The Origin Of Fire

Tracks:

I: Introductione: Allegro Moderato
II: Kullervo's Youth: Grave
III: Kullervo And His Sister: Allegro Vivace
IV: Kullervo Goes To Battle: Alla Marcia
V: Kullervo's Death: Andante

Tracks:

The Oceanides, Op.73
I: Intermezzo
III: Alla Marcia
I: All'overtura: Grave - Allegro/II: Scena: Tempo Di Menuetto - Allegro Moderato/III: Festivo: Tempo Di Bolero
Tapiola, Op.112
Finlandia, Op.26
Serenade No.1 in D, Op.69a
Serenade No.2 in g, Op.69b (Lento Assai)

Tracks:

Luonnotar, Op.70
Pohjola's Daughter, Op.49
En Saga, Op.9
I. Nocturne
II. Elegie
III. Musette
IV. Serenade
V. Ballade
The Bard, Op.64

Tracks:

Spring Song, Op.16
III. The Swan Of Tuonela
IV. Lemminkainen's Return
I. At The Castle Gate
II. Melisande
IIa. By The Seashore
III. A Spring In The Park
IV. The Three Blind Sisters
V. Pastorale
VI. Melisande At The Spinning-wheel
VII. Entr'acte
VIII. The Death Of Of Melisande
Valse Triste
Scene With Cranes
II. The Harp
III. The Maidens With Roses
IV. Listen, The Robin Sings
VI. Swanwhite And The Prince

Customer Reviews:

5 stars for the syms.......2006-03-18

with the Helsinki
3 Stars for the Bourgemouth on the poems.
But truth be told, no matter how EMPHATIC statements that his syms are not programmatic, that is fall into a logical step by step order, they are just that, very predictible.
I've given these syms 30 yrs, and lately I've lost interest.
While Schonberg, Berg, Webern, Varese were scoring creative new atonal/poloytonal works of new genius, here was Sibelius struggling with old forms, that fail to deliver anything really new. And he knew it, and bothered him to no end.
I feel there is way too much Beethoven/Bruckner(I like neither) influence in the syms for me to become a fan of the syms. I like the 1st sym "somewhat" that is I never listen to it, and small parts of the 4-7 syms. But I'm afraid I only like Sibelius pre 1905, the Kullervo, VC, tone poems. Here is where the genius of Sibelius truly lies.
The syms long ago held some interest, but lately i've moved on to Schnittke and Pettersson.
I also much prefer Vaughan Wialliams syms to all of Sibelius.
Sibelius was a genius in his element, that of representing the folk ideas of his land. His syms are like a string of ideas that lack the connective passages. IOW the whole is less than the few interesting parts.

Beautiful and comprehensive compilation of Sibelius works.......2005-09-29

For me, this has been the year of Sibelius. Previously, I had listened to (and enjoyed) Finlandia. I also had a couple of the symphonies but hadn't listened too them but once or twice. After listening to Finlandia again, I decided to seek out more SIbelius to sample. After some searching through reviews, I settled upon this compilation of works because it offered a large variety of Sibelius and seemed to be well-received. I have been very happy with this purchase! Not only have I spent countless hours listening to each of the 8 disks in this set, the enjoyment of the music has led me to many other wonderful performances of Sibelius by other worthy conductors such as Ashkenazy and Vanska. Still, this boxed set will always be fondly remembered as the one that introduced me to the wonders of so many of these pieces.

I was immediately captured by the haunting clarinet solo that begins the first symphony. All of the symphonies, performed by the Helsinki Orchestra, are recorded in very clear digital sound -- so the solo and the pecussion accompanyment were perfectly captured. I was hooked by the first symphony, but all of the symphonies are presented clearly and with outstanding interpretations. The Helsinki Philharmonic has always had a strong affiliation with Sibelius's music, and Paavo Berglund is a renowned Sibelius conductor who has recorded three separate symphony cycles (once with the Bournemouth Symphony orchestra, the 2nd time with these recordings, and a third time with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe). The commitment felt by the conductor and orchestra comes through in these performances.

In addition to the complete symphony cycle, there are a number of other treasures. A fine version of Finlandia is accompanied by a number of truly delightful tone poems such as Tapiola, the haunting Swan of Tuonela and Lemminkainen's Return (from the Lemminkainen Suite). These tone poems were inspired by the Finnish Kalevala. Other tone poems such as the Oceanides and Spring Song were inspired by Sibelius's love of nature. All receive strong performances by Berglund conducting the Bournemouth Symphony (in analog sound that is still quite good). The violin serenades (especially no. 2) were unexpected delights. The version of Kullervo is magnificent, as is the singing in Luonnotar and Oma maa. This set is a treasure trove of Sibelius treats!

excellent collection.......2004-06-28

This box set includes Sibelius' all symphonies, with Kullervo and his almost complete tone poems. The Symphonies are performed by Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Kullervo and tone poems with Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. All of them conducted by Paavo Berglund, who always a champion on performer of Sibelius.

Even so there are his incidental musics: Pelleas et Melisande, Swanwhite, Kuolema and King Christian II.
Especially Pelleas and Kuolema (which includes ever famous Valse triste) are the most beautifuls. Pelleas et Melisande is a very impressive music, and the best "Pelleas" music with Debussy's Pelleas (opera).

Kullervo is symphony-cantata for two soloists, men-chorus and orchestra, which be constitued in 5 movements, comparable in artistically with Mahler's 2nd Symphony "Resurrection". Especially the last movement "Kullervo's Death" is very effective, pathetique.

And one more a vocal work, a tone poem for soprano and orchestra: Lounnutar. This is based on Kalevala again, and Luonnotar is creator of nature in this poem. It is a very radical work, like his darkful 4th Symphony and The Bard. I think, The Bard is one of the best works of the composer, with it's harmonis, dark colours, contemplative mood. Still, this was written in tragic E-flat minor. It is based on a mythologic creature which plays an harp, like lyre in Greek mythology. And in the last minutes there is a dramatic climax and then music slowly fades out.

And there is the best Tapiola recording, I've ever heard (with Petri Sakari's version at Naxos). This is based on Kalevala, again. Tapio is the name of the forest god, according story. There are very impressive contrasts between hypnotic, a little hesitated, light colours and dramatic darkful colours. The orchestration is marvellous again. Especially, in last minutes there is a terrific storm scene and it's very spine chilling. Climaxes (which played by brass) are very powerful...

This is a very good addition to collectors of Sibelius fans and any classical music lovers. Highly recommended.

A must for Sibelius lovers.......2003-01-07

Jean Sibelius is one of those composers who I feel that even on his off days he did well. While I certainly can't say I enjoy all of his music enough to buy (Sacaramouche for instance), most of his music is highly pleasureful. All of the pieces on this set, conducted by Paavo Berglund, save maybe one or two, are part of the later catagory.

This set consists of most of Sibelius's major orchestral music, with the notible exceptions of Night Ride and Subrise, the first two sections of the Lemmenkainen Suite, and the Violin Concerto. It also contains such rarities as Origin of Fire, Our Own Land, and excepts from Swan White.

Berglund, I believe, was the first to fully record a complete cycle of Sibelius symphonies. The recordings here are not from his first set (which I have not heard), but the second cycle recorded in the mid-80s. The symphonies and two canatas mentioned above are recorded in digital, while the rest is analog. It's all in very good sound, though not perfect. That they wanted to keep the D and A recodings on seperate discs is the only possible reason I can see for why they left out the Violin Concerto (there's plenty of room on disc 4).

Now of course, contents are one thing, but what really matters is performance. And suffice it to say, they for the most part shine. This has easily the finest Symphony 1 I've heard, and the finale of Symphony 5 (truly one of the greatest works of the 20th century) shines with brillance. Symphony 3 makes its mark nicely, and Symphony 2, while perhaps a bit on the fast side, is certainly up to par. The only disappointment is Symphony 7, which falls totally flat compared to Davis/BSO.

The two cantatas are wonderful rarities, but its disc 5 where the choral aspect is full played out -- Kullervo. If you've never heard this piece, it's a 75 minute long programatic symphony (to use to term losely) with many ups and downs. This was the first ever recording, and most say it hasn't been topped.

The final three discs contain shorter works. Especially noteable are the absolutely beautiful Serenade #2 for Violin and Orchestra, the hauntingly lovely Luonnotar, a very rousing version of Lemminkainen's Return, and a passionate Pelleas and Mellsande.

Of course, it's almost impossible to have this big a set without some disapointments. Beyond the aformentioned Symphony 7, there's also not overly convincing Finlandia, and a WAY too slow Karelia Intermezzo. Thankfully, the rest of the set makes up for it. It's a great deal at only about $7 a disc retail, and if you're like me, on you'll keep coming back to.

A terrific and near-perfect set.......2002-04-05

This release couples Berglund's classic Bournemouth recordings of the Kullervo Symphony and a host of tone poems with his most recent cycle of the Symphonies.

The Bournemouth recordings are legendary, especially the Kullervo, which belongs in every classical music library. There is a real warmth to these readings, which charms me into letting the minor flaws in playing pass. The sound is pretty good, though slightly muddy at times (particularly in Tapiola), and the selections have been excellently remastered.

The Symphonies, recorded with the Helsinki Philharmonic in superb digital sound, are a real peak in the discography. Berglund doesn't play his Sibelius lukewarm; his readings are sharp, neo-classical and very powerful. You won't confuse these recordings with those of Colin Davis to be sure. Very comparable to Maazel's earlier readings with the Vienna Philharmonic, but with less over-dramatization. His First, Second, Third, Sixth and Seventh are as good as any, and his reading of the Fourth, while rather bleak for my taste (I like the idea of some kind of softening at the end) is a coherent vision, almost harsh in it's execution.

I really like Maazel's Pittsburgh Fifth, and Berglund's recording in no way comes close to Maazel's splendor or power as a total conception. But, Berglund's middle movement is the best I've heard by far; the obsessively repeated melody seems to weave in and out of the orchestral fabric very seductively. Berglund's knack for architecture is spot on here.

Tracks:

Andante Ma Non Troppo - Allegro Energico
Andante (Ma Non Troppo Lento)
Scherzo (Allegro)
Finale (Quasi Una Fantasia)
Allegro Moderato
Moderato - Allegro (Ma Non Tanto)
Moderato - Allegro (Ma Non Tanto)

Tracks:

Allegretto
Andante Ma Rubato
Vivacissimo
Allegro Moderato
The Oak Tree
Humoresque
Caliban's Song
The Harvesters
Canon
Scene
Intrada - Berceuse
Entr'acte - Arial's Song
The Storm

Tracks:

Tempo Molto Moderato, Quasi Adagio
Allegro Molto Vivace
Tempo Largo
Allegro
Tempo Molto Moderato
Andante Mosso, Quasi Allegretto
Allegro Molto

Tracks:

Allegro Molto Moderato
Allegretto Moderato
Poco Vivace
Allgro Molto
Chorus Of The Winds
Intermezzo
Dance Of The Nymphs
Prospero
Song I & II
Miranda
The Naiads
Dance Episode
Symphony No.7 In C Major Op.105

Tracks:

Introduction - Esa Ruuttunen
Kullervo's Youth - Esa Ruuttunen
Kullervo's And His Sister - Esa Ruuttunen
Kullervo's Goes To War - Esa Ruuttunen
Kullervo's Death - Esa Ruuttunen

Amazon.com

From the Slavic-tinged exuberance of the First and Second to the dark undercurrents of the Fourth and Fifth and the passionate abstraction of the Sixth and Seventh, Sibelius's symphonies loom larger than ever among the 20th century's influential orchestral landmarks. Petri Sakari charts the composer's rugged, sometimes cryptic terrain with authority and inspires the Iceland Symphony Orchestra to a generous and heartfelt performance. You won't find the opulent sheen of Karajan's or Ormandy's Sibelius, nor the micro details Paavo Berglund elicits from his Chamber Orchestra of Europe remakes, but Naxos's modest asking price will bring you idiomatic, atmospheric, deeply felt performances that reveal more with each hearing. Jorma Panula's fine traversal of Kullervo ranks close to Berglund's reference EMI version (the earlier of his two for the label). A Sibelius cycle, in sum, to stand at the top of the list alongside Davis-Boston (Philips), Vanska-Lahti (BIS), and Berglund-Helsinki (EMI). --Jed Distler

Customer Reviews:

Not the best........2006-11-10

The Icelandic orchestra plays these symphonies quite well, giving the conductor everything he asks. Naxos has given the performances rather bland sonics. They would be fine if the performances were better. But each symphony seems jerked and pulled around, going faster and slower at the whim of the conductor (changes not indicated in the scores). This means that CD1 - Symphonies #1 and #3 lose shape and seemingly go no where. Symphony #5 doesn't build the way it should. The heartwrenching emotional outbursts in the slow movement of #4 just don't grab us. Listen to Beecham or Bernstein or Rozhdestvensky (or Watanabe with Japan - nla), and you hear this. Symphony #6 and Symphony #7 fare better, but even they sound cautious and ill framed. Sibelius, after all, said that a symphony must be the supreme expression of logic (to which Mahler answered, "No, a symphony must embrace the world.") These performances do neither. The Kullervo (with a different orchestra and conductor), however, is wonderful. I'd suggest a buyer get that alone and leave the box to someone else.

Fabulous Budget Recording.......2006-03-13

This complete recording of the Sibelius symphonies is more than just a budget recording. The Iceland Symphony Orchestra with Petri Sakari does a great job in all aspects of the performance. They seem to create a Scandinavian atmosphere that is inherent in these symphonies. One feels transported to the mountains, forests, and lakes of Lapland; the cool airs, the vast, open spaces. Very poetic, to be sure, but the orchestra really brings these qualities out in the music. Their technical skill is on par as well. These players could stand up to the best orchestras, but we get to hear them for a far lower price. The two suites that Sibelius wrote for Shakespeare's play "The Tempest" also accompany the symphonies. While they are obviously weaker works, the suites come alive in the hands of the capable performers. In addition, the set contains the dramatic tone poem Kullervo. It is an amazing work, though on first listen, one may feel that the piece drags on. It takes more than one listen to catch how packed it is with musical substance. The Turku Philharmonic Orchestra plays Kullervo, but with no less verve and competence than the Iceland Symphony. Kudos to Naxos on creating a box set collection at budget price with such great performances and such voluminous liner notes.

Grab this boxed set. For this price it can't be beat!.......2003-02-15

I am surprised, no shocked, that my customer review is the first to appear for this boxed set of the Sibelius symphonies a year after it became available. I would have imagined that SOMEONE would have written of their enthusiasm for the set. When I saw no one had done so, I had to stop what I was doing and start writing.

Sibelius's symphonies are surely among the best of the 20th century. His unmistable sound world, his creative transformations of symphony form, his dramatic and lyric abilities all made him an original, a treasure. Certainly there have been other invaluable recordings of the symphonies - Berglund, Colin Davis, Karajan, Ormandy, Barbirolli. But for someone coming to the symphonies and wanting them all you couldn't start with a better set, not at THIS price.

Petri Sakari and his Icelanders do a bang-up job. Don't be fooled, this Iceland orchestra is a fine group.

For lagniappe there is fine performance of 'Kullervo' with Jorma Panula (another Sibelian) conducting.

How can you lose?

Track Listings: