Langgaard: Symphonies 12-14 - Dausgaard
Dacapo Records 6.220517
Stereo/Multichannel Hybrid
Classical - Orchestral
Rued Langgaard: Symphony No. 12 "Hélsingeborg", Symphony No. 13 "Belief in Wonders", Symphony No. 14 "The Morning"
Danish National Symphony Orchestra / DR
Thomas Dausgaard (conductor)
Rued Langgaard (1893-1952) was an odd, lonely figure in Danish music. His 16 symphonies make up a thought-provoking, original contribution to the history of the symphony. The three symphonies on this CD were written during the years 1946-1948, although the tonal language is provocatively conservative. Symphony No. 12 is an absurd construction full of autobiographical references. In nos.13 and 14 Langgaard revitalizes romantic aesthetics in a simple, yet emphatically insistent manner.
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(Symphony No. 14) and 15-16 June 2006 (Symphony No. 13).
Recording producer: Preben Iwan
Sound engineer: Jan Oldrup
Editing: Preben Iwan
Mastering: Preben Iwan and Jan Oldrup
Choir Master: Fredrik Malmberg
Artistic Director and General Manager, DNSO & Choirs / DR: Per Erik Veng
Review by Mark Novak - February 13, 2007
Langgaard is a fascinating composer. Take the Sym No. 12 on this recording. It is a 7 minute "reinterpretation" of his original 60 minute Sym No. 1 (which I am familiar with from a Chandos RBCD release some years ago). From one extreme to another with him! I think he would have been better to strike a balance somewhere in the middle with the material in Syms 1/12 but hey, that's just me. But the music itself (for all three works here) provides a nice late-romantic wallow. It strikes me as similar to Liszt's symphonic tone poems in character and sound. There aren't a lot of memorable melodies but the music is always tonally centered and a pleasure to listen to. These performances seem very good to me but I don't have anything to compare them to (and no scores in hand). A thoroughly enjoyable 60+ minutes of music. The booklet notes are very informative as well.
Sonically this is OK. The orchestra is a little bit distant and as a result the sound is a bit homogenous. The organ in the Sym 13 does not have the impact one would expect when it enters though the chorus (which is used sparingly in Sym 14) does have a big impact. This one sounds like a very good RBCD recording (not DSD native as far as my ears tell me).
Mark
Copyright © 2007 Mark Novak and HRAudio.net
Performance:
Sonics (Stereo):
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