Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra - Scandinavian Classics - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

The Royal Danish Orchestra's performing history stretches back to 1448, making it the oldest orchestra in the world, with Carl Nielsen counted amongst it's distinguished former members. His 16 years of experience as one of the orchestra's second violinists helped shape him as a composer, and it was this ensemble that introduced his symphonies to the world. From the 'imminent storm of genius' of the First Symphony to the disarming outlandishness of the Sixth, Nielsen's symphonies are recognised as among the greatest in their genre, heard here in recordings made with a league of conductors whose bond with Denmark and Nielsen's music is second to none.

Brahms was 43 years old when, after a long period of maturation, his First Symphony was published. Felix Weingartner commented on it 'taking hold like the claw of a lion' and it's urgency marked a new phase in Brahms' musical development. The Second Symphony is traditionally seen as the pastoral element in the cycle, while the Third, with it's melodic beauty, has the courage to end quietly, an act of astonishing serenity. The compelling Passacaglia finale of the Fourth Symphony represents a fitting summation to one of the greatest symphonic cycles in the classical canon. The symphonies are only available in a box not separately. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the collaboration between Adam Fischer and the Danish Chamber Orchestra- so it's a 'Silver Wedding' recording. Fischer has called his relationship with the orchestra 'a musical marriage'.

Two previously unissued broadcast performances of Brahms make major additions to the recorded legacy of Thomas Jensen. A long unavailable, newly remastered studio recording of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto also contributes to an appreciation of the Danish conductor as a dynamic figure who could inspire the most exciting and flexibly molded interpretations of the central orchestral repertoire. Thomas Jensen studied at the Danish Conservatory of Music. Jensen led several Danish ensembles, including the Danish National Symphony Orchestra (from 1957) and the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra (then known as the Aarhus Civic Orchestra). In Aarhus he built the small orchestra up through broadcasts and tours within Denmark and later to Germany and the Netherlands. He also conducted the Tivoli Concert Hall Orchestra.