Carl Nielsen: Symphonies Nr. 2 & 3 - Herbert Blomstedt, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra

The Symphony No. 2 "The Four Temperaments" (Op. 16, FS 29) is the second symphony by Danish composer Carl Nielsen written in 1901 to 1902 and dedicated to Ferruccio Busoni. It was first performed in 1 December 1902 for the Danish Concert Association, with Nielsen himself conducting. As indicated in the subtitle, each of its four movements is a musical sketch of a humor of the four temperaments: choleric, phlegmatic, melancholic, and sanguine. Despite its apparent concept of program music, the work is a fully integrated symphony in traditional symphonic structure. Progressive tonality is demonstrated in the symphony; the first three movements are in descending thirds: B minor, G major, and E flat minor, and the final movement springs out the D major chord. The second symphony, as in the first, still belongs to the tradition of Brahms and Dvořák, but more compact and concentrated with simple but powerful finishing by an A major march.

Symphony No. 3 (Sinfonia Espansiva) was written between 1910 and 1911. It typically lasts around 33 minutes. It followed Nielsen's tenure as bandmaster at the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen. Nielsen himself conducted the premiere of the work on February 28, 1912 with Copenhagen's Royal Danish Orchestra. The character designation of the first movement (Allegro espansivo) serves as the symphony's subtitle, but it is not clear what Nielsen meant by 'espansiva'. Robert Simpson wrote that it suggests the "outward growth of the mind's scope". Uniquely amongst Nielsen's symphonic output, it includes vocal parts: wordless vocal solos for soprano and baritone in the second movement.

The recordings of the Nielsen symphonies by Blomstedt with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra won critical acclaim. The recordings were re-issued at a later date in box-sets with different pairings of the symphonies. This one is the original release containing Nr. 2 & 3. Enjoy!

Tracklist:
Symphony No. 2 "The Four Temperaments"
1. Allegro collerico (Choleric)
2. Allegro comodo e flemmatico (Phlegmatic)
3. Andante malincolico [sic] (Melancholic)
4. Allegro sanguineo - Marziale (Sanguine)
Symphony No. 3 (Sinfonia Espansiva)
5. Allegro espansivo
6. Andante pastorale*
7. Allegretto un poco
8. Finale: Allegro

*Kevin McMillan (baritone), *Nancy Wait Kromm (soprano)


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