BaL 18.05.19 - Sibelius: Lemminkäinen Suite, Op.22

[Goon525]

I’ve just listened to the new BBC SO / Oramo, and very fine I thought it. I won’t say too much about the music, as, apart from The Swan, it’s not familiar to me, but the performance held my attention effortlessly. (Perhaps the last movement is a bit weaker than the others, but I suspect that’s down to Sibelius rather than this performance.) What I can say is that the recording is superb. I strongly recommend a listen.

(Note to fellow Qobuz subscribers: I couldn’t find the new disc by searching for Sakari Oramo or Lemminkainen, which you’d have thought were reasonable places to start. But I did find it by looking for Spring Song. It seems lateral thinking is quite often needed to find stuff that really is there. And the 24/48 recording is a joy, as I say above.)

[cloughie]

I’ve just listened to the new BBC SO / Oramo, and very fine I thought it. I won’t say too much about the music, as, apart from The Swan, it’s not familiar to me, but the performance held my attention effortlessly. (Perhaps the last movement is a bit weaker than the others, but I suspect that’s down to Sibelius rather than this performance.) What I can say is that the recording is superb. I strongly recommend a listen.

(Note to fellow Qobuz subscribers: I couldn’t find the new disc by searching for Sakari Oramo or Lemminkainen, which you’d have thought were reasonable places to start. But I did find it by looking for Spring Song. It seems lateral thinking is quite often needed to find stuff that really is there. And the 24/48 recording is a joy, as I say above.)

Weak - you cannot be serious - try Beecham’s recording. Lemmy returns very swiftly!

[LMcD]

Weak - you cannot be serious - try Beecham’s recording. Lemmy returns very swiftly!

Alexander Gibson and the SNO (as they were at the time) don't hang about either!

[Goon525]

Weak - you cannot be serious - try Beecham’s recording. Lemmy returns very swiftly!

Weaker is not the same thing as weak.

[visualnickmos]

Weaker is not the same thing as weak.

Surely the more accurate wording would be "Perhaps the last movement is not quite as strong as some others....."

[jayne lee wilson]

I’ve just listened to the new BBC SO / Oramo, and very fine I thought it. I won’t say too much about the music, as, apart from The Swan, it’s not familiar to me, but the performance held my attention effortlessly. (Perhaps the last movement is a bit weaker than the others, but I suspect that’s down to Sibelius rather than this performance.) What I can say is that the recording is superb. I strongly recommend a listen.

(Note to fellow Qobuz subscribers: I couldn’t find the new disc by searching for Sakari Oramo or Lemminkainen, which you’d have thought were reasonable places to start. But I did find it by looking for Spring Song. It seems lateral thinking is quite often needed to find stuff that really is there. And the 24/48 recording is a joy, as I say above.)

Try double-barrelled terms like "Oramo Chandos" or Oramo Sibelius" for this kind of search.... both of these bring it up right away.
Artist-name-only searches often seem to produce incomplete or slightly outdated results....

[Goon525]

Try double-barrelled terms like "Oramo Chandos" or Oramo Sibelius" for this kind of search.... both of these bring it up right away.
Artist-name-only searches often seem to produce incomplete or slightly outdated results....

Thanks, Jayne, will do.

[Goon525]

Thanks, Jayne, will do.

Interesting - just tried to find the new Matthias Goerne/Leif Ove Andsnes Schumann disc. I tried 'Goerne Schumann' which failed. So I tried 'Goerne Andsnes' and that worked. I’m grateful for the tip, Jayne, but Qobuz indexing can be pretty frustrating!

[jayne lee wilson]

Interesting - just tried to find the new Matthias Goerne/Leif Ove Andsnes Schumann disc. I tried 'Goerne Schumann' which failed. So I tried 'Goerne Andsnes' and that worked. I’m grateful for the tip, Jayne, but Qobuz indexing can be pretty frustrating!

Using "Goerne Schumann" I got this.....

https://www.qobuz.com/gb-en/album/schumann-liederkreis-op-24-kernerlieder-op-35-leif-ove-andsnes-and-matthias-goerne/hhc2kkes052mb

....at the top of the list. This was accessing Qobuz Download Store on their own website, then hitting "classical" and searching in there.

So I tried the same terms in Audirvana+/Qobuz Discover.... again, the album appeared immediately.

Where you search (and the resident software) can make a difference, as well as how or what with...
Having said that, patience is a virtue...and so are alternative search terms....

[cloughie]

Weaker is not the same thing as weak.

Sorry you’ve lost me there! Weaker than what - that movement is a blast, or should be - it is in most performances I’ve heard!

[Goon525]

Using "Goerne Schumann" I got this.....

https://www.qobuz.com/gb-en/album/schumann-liederkreis-op-24-kernerlieder-op-35-leif-ove-andsnes-and-matthias-goerne/hhc2kkes052mb

....at the top of the list. This was accessing Qobuz Download Store on their own website, then hitting "classical" and searching in there.

So I tried the same terms in Audirvana+/Qobuz Discover.... again, the album appeared immediately.

Where you search (and the resident software) can make a difference, as well as how or what with...
Having said that, patience is a virtue...and so are alternative search terms....

I use the Qobuz app on iPad or iPhone.

[Goon525]

Sorry you’ve lost me there! Weaker than what - that movement is a blast, or should be - it is in most performances I’ve heard!

Weaker than the previous movements. But I’ll accept 'less strong' if you prefer. The point is, it’s a comparative, not an absolute.

[cloughie]

Weaker than the previous movements. But I’ll accept 'less strong' if you prefer. The point is, it’s a comparative, not an absolute.

I still cannot accept that it is weaker in any respect, but maybe we’ll just agree to differ over the subject!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I've played the Danish State Radio SO/Jensen recording a couple of times over the past two day: wow! That is a vigorous and engrossing performance, and really good MONO sound, too.

(If I had to nominate a "least successful" movement - and, obviously I don't, so this comment is entirely gratuitous - it would be Lemminkäinen in Tuonela with its Tchaikovskian endless reiteration of that "lamenting" motif. The Finale is a really bracing experience in this recording - as successful as a conclusion to the Suite as Beecham's is as an individual piece.)

[cloughie]

I've played the Danish State Radio SO/Jensen recording a couple of times over the past two day: wow! That is a vigorous and engrossing performance, and really good MONO sound, too.

(If I had to nominate a "least successful" movement - and, obviously I don't, so this comment is entirely gratuitous - it would be Lemminkäinen in Tuonela with its Tchaikovskian endless reiteration of that "lamenting" motif. The Finale is a really bracing experience in this recording - as successful as a conclusion to the Suite as Beecham's is as an individual piece.)

Ferney, Beecham storms it! And whichever recording you listen to Leminkainen in Tuonela is heard to best effect played second, the suite flows better that way - my personal view but do try it, assuming that you haven’t as yet - Kamu was right!