fredag den 8. juni 2012

Carl Nielsen

Happy Birthday Carl Nielsen 
The first week in June plus some days are always enjoyable in my little village. The most famous man from our place has his birthday on the 9th of June, this year it is birthday no. 147, and there are now rumours how to celebrate him in 2015.

The name and the man is Carl August Nielsen. This year the first week goes with the competition of the violin concerto, great talents from the whole world plays their hearts out. On saturday we have a little gardenparty in the museum, and of course we shall hear music og we shall all sing numbers of his danish songs. All danes grew up singing his tunes.


Our museum is this little house where Carl Nielsen grew up. The garden party is behind the house, and at this time of the year the isle of Funen shows it's best side as the garden of Denmark.

There are many very good recordings of  his music, and I think there will be new ones to enjoy culminating in 2015.

I am not pleased with the idea that a conductor should record every symphony of a composer. I simply don't understand it. My problem, they do it nearly all of them.

My favourite records is: (That's just mine, there may be many others, and I have not heard everything)

Symphony no. 1
London Symphony with Andre Previn (RCA)
San Francisco SO with Herbert Blomstedt (Decca)
Danish National with Michael Schönwandt (Dacapo). 

Symphony no 2
London SO, Ole Schmidt (Unicorn)
















Symphony no 3
Danish Radio SO with Yuri Ahronowtich (Unicorn)
Gothenburg SO with Wyung-Whun Chung (BIS)
The Royal Chapel, Leonard Bernstein, CBS




Symphony no 4
Royal Scottish SO, Bryden Thomas (Chandos)
San Francisco SO with Herbert Blomstedt (Decca)
Chicago SO, Jean Martinon (RCA)
Danish Radio SO, Ulf Schirmer (Decca)





Symphony no 5
New Philharmonia - Jacha Horenstein (Unicorn)
Danish Radio SO - Rafael Kubelik (EMI)



Symphony no 6
San Francisco SO with Herbert Blomstedt (Decca)  /  Royal Scottish SO, Bryden Thomas (Chandos)


Clarinet concerto
Olle Schill, Gothenburg SO, Myung-Whun Chung (BIS)
John Kruse, Chech Chamber, Bostock)  (Classico)





Shorter orchestral pieces
Danish Radio SO, Thomas Dausgaard (Dacapo)











Piano pieces
Leif Ove Andnes (Virgin)
John McCabe (Decca)
Martin Roscoe (Hyperion)






























Wind Quintett
Melos Ensemble (EMI)Vestjydsk kammerensemble (DG)




String Quartetts:
Kontra Quartett (RCA)
Young Danish Quartett (Dacapo)