Our Summer BAL 73: Sibelius Symphony 6

[Belgrove]

Since Sibelius features in this week’s concerts, how about Symphony Number 6? Scouring the BAL archive, it does not seem to have been done. I vividly recall Rattle conducting the Berliners at the Barbican when the 6th and 7th were played without a break. An interesting and illuminating experiment that worked, at that concert at least.

My introduction was through Davis with the Boston SO, who captures the work’s evanescence and limpid purity, and that remains my first, albeit rather conventional, choice. Vänskä’s more recent recording with the Minnesota orchestra runs it second. I never took to Karajan’s much lauded account, and Davis’ versions with the LSO did not recapture the sparkling clarity with the BSO. I’ve not listened to some of the more historic recordings, has anyone heard the Barbirolli? The list, culled from Presto’s site, is pretty long with versions appearing variously with different couplings, in boxed sets with some multiple versions with the same orchestra. There may be others lurking under the bushes, or in plain sight.

Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, (SACD/D)
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Hannu Lintu, (SACD/D)
Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Okko Kamu, (SACD/D)
Orchestre de Paris, Paavo Järvi, (SACD/D)
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan, (CD/D)
London Symphony Orchestra, Colin Davis, (SACD/D)
Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, (CD/D)
Hallé Orchestra, Mark Elder, (CD/D)
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Neeme Järvi, (CD/D)
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, (CD/D)
Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Petri Sakari, (CD/D)
Berliner Philharmoniker, Simon Rattle, (SACD/D/Vinyl)
London Symphony Orchestra, Anthony Collins, (CD)
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Robert Spano, (D)
Hallé Orchestra, John Barbirolli, (D)
BBC Philharmonic, John Storgårds, (CD/D)
Philharmonia, Herbert von Karajan, (D)
Symphony Nova Scotia, Georg Tintner, (CD/D)
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Berglund, (CD/D)
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Paavo Berglund, (CD/D)
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Pietari Inkinen, (CD/D)
San Francisco Symphony, Herbert Blomstedt, (D)
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Lorin Maazel, (D)
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo, (D)
Boston Symphony Orchestra, Colin Davis, (CD/D)
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Leif Segerstam, (D)
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Paavo Berglund, (D)
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Lorin Maazel, (CD/D)
Finnish National Orchestra, Georg Schnéevoigt, (CD/D)
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Adrian Leaper, (D)
Northern Sinfonia, Thomas Zehetmair, (CD/D)
Scottish National Orchestra, Alexander Gibson, (D)
Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy, (D)
Philharmonia Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy, (CD/D)
New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, (D)
Kölner Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester, Hans Rosbaud, (CD/D)
Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester, Kurt Sanderling, (CD/D)
Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria, Adrian Leaper, (D)
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Simon Rattle, (CD)
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Thomas Beecham, (CD/D)
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Arvo Volmer, (D)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Thomas Søndergård, (CD)
Utah Symphony Orchestra, Maurice Abravanel, (CD).

Over to you...

(D denotes Download).

[Pulcinella]

With kind permission from Belgrove (), I have restructured the list into one that is alphabetical (by conductor), and taken the liberty to make the Colin Davis LSO entry a double one: one for the RCA recording and another for the LSO Live one.

Utah Symphony Orchestra, Maurice Abravanel, (CD)
Philharmonia Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy, (CD/D)
Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy, (D)
Hallé Orchestra, John Barbirolli, (D)
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Thomas Beecham, (CD/D)
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Berglund, (CD/D)
Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Paavo Berglund, (D)
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Paavo Berglund, (CD/D)
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Paavo Berglund, (D)
New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, (D)
San Francisco Symphony, Herbert Blomstedt, (D)
London Symphony Orchestra, Anthony Collins, (CD)
Boston Symphony Orchestra, Colin Davis, (CD/D)
London Symphony Orchestra, Colin Davis, (Presto CD/D) [RCA]
London Symphony Orchestra, Colin Davis, (SACD/D) [LSO Live]
Hallé Orchestra, Mark Elder, (CD/D)
Scottish National Orchestra, Alexander Gibson, (D)
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Pietari Inkinen, (CD/D)
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Neeme Järvi, (CD/D)
Orchestre de Paris, Paavo Järvi, (SACD/D)
Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Okko Kamu, (SACD/D)
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan, (CD/D) [DG]
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan, (CD) [EMI/Warner, Karajan Official Remastered Edition)
Philharmonia, Herbert von Karajan, (D)
Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria, Adrian Leaper, (D)
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Adrian Leaper, (D)
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Hannu Lintu, (SACD/D)
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Lorin Maazel, (D)
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Lorin Maazel, (CD/D)
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo, (D)
Berliner Philharmoniker, Simon Rattle, (SACD/D/Vinyl)
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Simon Rattle, (CD)
Kölner Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester, Hans Rosbaud, (CD/D)
Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Petri Sakari, (CD/D)
Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester, Kurt Sanderling, (CD/D)
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, (CD/D)
Finnish National Orchestra, Georg Schnéevoigt, (CD/D)
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Leif Segerstam, (D)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Thomas Søndergård, (CD)
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Robert Spano, (D)
BBC Philharmonic, John Storgårds, (CD/D)
Symphony Nova Scotia, Georg Tintner, (CD/D)
Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, (CD/D)
Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, (SACD/D)
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Arvo Volmer, (D)
Northern Sinfonia, Thomas Zehetmair, (CD/D)

[Bryn]

Let's not forget jlw's promotion of:



Available for download or streaming.

[richardfinegold]

I have both Vanska, Karajan, Blomstedt, Berglund/Bournemouth, Bernstein. . The first Vanska is my choice

[Pulcinella]

Let's not forget jlw's promotion of:

... (Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Berglund)

Available for download or streaming.

Duly added.

[silvestrione]

This is interesting! I'm working my way through Storgards, Vanska, Davis(x2) and Karajan (x2), and probably Rattle as well somewhere.

Ah! I see I have 3 x Karajan, there's an EMI/Warner one as well as the DG, with the BPO.

[silvestrione]

I don't know this symphony at all well, but I can imagine a BAL presenter (old style) spending some time on exploring who manages the transitions best, particularly between tempi within a movement, and particularly at the end, when the excitement builds up and dies away to silence, almost as though the piece has finished - then a quiet coda starts up. An enigmatic coda, i think.

So far I prefer Storgards to Vanska, on the whole, the former incisive with some bite to the sound, and certainly , for me, managing the upward change of gear in the first movement more effectively. The recorded orchestra sound a tad more amorphous, on my equipment, than the Chandos for the BBC Phil, which has presence.

[Pulcinella]

This is interesting! I'm working my way through Storgards, Vanska, Davis(x2) and Karajan (x2), and probably Rattle as well somewhere.

Ah! I see I have 3 x Karajan, there's an EMI/Warner one as well as the DG, with the BPO.

Thanks: list amended.

I don't know it well, either, though I have four recordings in full sets (Philharmonia/Ashkenazy, Bournemouth/Berglund, Boston/Davis, and LSO/Davis on RCA), and a BBC MM release (BBCSSO/Segerstam).
I shall try to find some time to listen to them.

[LMcD]

I have Ashkenazy/Philharmonia (part of the 4-CD set), Davis/LSO Live and Berglund/BSO (Bournemouth not Boston).

[Bryn]

I have Ashkenazy/Philharmonia (part of the 4-CD set), Davis/LSO Live and Berglund/BSO (Bournemouth not Boston).

"Boston"? Helsinki or COE, surlely?

[Pulcinella]

"Boston"? Helsinki or COE, surlely?

No: B for Bournemouth not Boston.
Berglund's set with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, I assume, one of the sets I have.

[Bryn]

No: B for Bournemouth not Boston.
Berglund's set with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, I assume, one of the sets I have.

Ah, with Davis having recorded a Boston set, I thought this was a slip confounding Davis with Berglund.

[BBMmk2]

My favourites are
Hannu Lintu, (Finnish RSO)
Rattle(CBSO)
Barbirolli (Hallé)
Oramo(CBSO)
Vänskä, Lahti
A. Collins, (LSO)
Berglund(BSO), the earlier one.

I think that’s it!

[LMcD]

No: B for Bournemouth not Boston.
Berglund's set with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, I assume, one of the sets I have.

Your assumption is correct! I've just ordered nos. 1 and 4-6 on Forte (Karajan/BPO) for a modest £2.79 with free delivery.

[Pulcinella]

My favourites are
Hannu Lintu, (Finnish RSO)
Rattle(CBSO)
Barbirolli (Hallé)
Oramo(CBSO)
Vänskä, Lahti
A. Collins, (LSO)
Berglund(BSO), the earlier one.

I think that’s it!

That's a lot of favourites, BBM!
I'm just listening to the four 'commercial' recordings I have in the order listed in post #8: the Berglund has impressed and captured my attention most so far, but I'm happy to have all of them!

I'm a bit surprised that this thread hasn't generated more interest, and would be interested to read thoughts from other forum members.