Lahti Symphony Orchestra - Poltera Plays Prokofiev - SUPER-AUDIO CD [Super Audio CD (SACD)]

Details 1. Minea (Concertante Music for Orchestra) - Lahti Symphony Orchestra 2. Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra - Eero Munter/Lahti Symphony Orchestra 3. Symphony No 15 - Eero Munter/Lahti Symphony Orchestra

Conductor Dalia Stasevka who received the BBC Music Magazine's 'Personality of the Year' Award in 2023 and the Lahti Symphony Orchestra present three works by the Finnish composer Helvi Leiviskä, who was Finland's first major female composer. Initially inspired by the language of late Romanticism - she mentioned Brahms as her favourite composer - Leiviskä developed an original, modern style that eschewed all schools, convinced that it was more important to tread one's own path than to follow fashionable styles. While her output may seem small in terms of quantity, it more than makes up for it in the quality of the works, especially her symphonies, a genre she considered 'the highest manifestation of music'. This disc presents three works the Sinfonia Brevis, a confidently crafted work reminiscent of Sibelius; the austere, restrained, melancholy and at times very dissonant Symphony No. 2, which could be called 'tragic'; and the Suite for orchestra No. 2, which uses material from a powerfully descriptive score originally composed for a film. This recording bears witness to the 'Leiviskä renaissance' that has taken place in recent years, which has contributed to the rediscovery of a neglected but important voice in Finnish music Details 1. Sinfonia Brevis, Op. 30 [12 35] 2. I. Kevään Tulo (The Coming of Spring) Allegro Molto E Cantabile [06 53] 3. II. Humoreski (Humoresque) Vivace [03 07] 4. III. Kehtolaulu (Lullaby) Andante Semplice [03 59] 5. IV. Epilogi (Epilogue) Allegro Ma Non Troppo [06 28] 5. I. Andantino Quasi Allegretto - Più Animato E Ritmico [07 21] 6. II. Allegro Molto [09 25] 8. III. Andante Cantabile [11 42]

The term sinfonietta is generally used to describe a work that is smaller in scale or lighter in approach than a standard symphony. It only came into common usage during the first half of the 20th century, which is when the three works included on this disc were in fact composed. Worth noting is also that Sergei Prokofiev and Benjamin Britten wrote their respective sinfoniettas while they were still in their teens - early attempts at multi-movement works for ensemble. Prokofiev revised his Sinfonietta twice, with the 1929 version recorded here, and went on to become one of the great symphonists of his time. Britten chose a different path, with operas forming the most important part of his legacy. Perhaps symptomatically, his Sinfonietta - his Op. 1 - was initially composed for wind quintet and string quintet, a scoring which he later expanded into the version heard on the present recording. Like Britten, Francis Poulenc was not naturally inclined towards large-scale orchestral works, and his Sinfonietta is indeed his only symphonic piece. The most recent of the works on the disc, it is in a neo-classical vein with sparkling dance rhythms as well as lyrical moments. The three works are here performed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra conducted by Dima Slobodeniouk, a team which has released several highly acclaimed albums on BIS. Details 1. Sinfonietta FP 141~I. Allegro con fuoco 2. Sinfonietta FP 141~II. Molto vivace 3. Sinfonietta FP 141~III. Andante cantabile 4. Sinfonietta FP 141~IV. Finale. Prestissimo et très gai 5. Sinfonietta in A major Op. 5~I. Allegro giocoso 6. Sinfonietta in A major Op. 5~II. Andante 7. Sinfonietta in A major Op. 5~III. Intermezzo. Vivace 8. Sinfonietta in A major Op. 5~IV. Scherzo. Allegro risoluto 9. Sinfonietta in A major Op. 5~V. Allegro giocoso 10. Sinfonietta, Op. 1~I. Poco presto ed agitato 11. Sinfonietta, Op