Sibelius - Symphony No. 2 / Remastered (Ct.rec.: George Szell, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra)

Album available // Sibelius: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 43 by George Szell
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) - Symphony No.2 in D /D-dur / Ré Majeur, Op. 43
00:59 I. Allegretto, Poco allegro, Tranquillo ma poco a poco ravvivando il tempo al Allegro
10:26 II. Tempo andante ma rubato, Andante sostenuto
23:06 III. Vivacissimo, Lento e suave, Largamente
28:50 IV. Finale: Allegro moderato

Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Conductor: George Szell
Recorded in 1964
New mastering in 2024 by AB for CMRR

To fully understand the success of Sibelius's Symphony No. 2, one must evoke the nationalist sentiments that were fervent in Finnish society at the time when this powerful work came into existence. After centuries of foreign domination, first by Sweden and then by Russia, Finland, at the time of Sibelius's birth, experienced an awakening that inspired its inhabitants to reclaim their cultural heritage. This was the climate in which the future national composer of Finland grew up, and he was not immune to its impact.

The awareness of their cultural identity led Finns to revive their mythology and literature and restore their own language to the place that Swedish, the official language of the administration, had usurped. When, in April 1892, the Helsinki audience heard Kullervo, a gigantic piece for choir and orchestra with five movements, for which Sibelius drew inspiration from the national epic, the Kalevala, their enthusiasm knew no bounds. The composer's patriotic sentiments were further strengthened by his marriage to Aino Järnefelt. The young woman's father, a provincial governor, was actively involved in the Finnish language rehabilitation movement.

Meanwhile, the success of Symphony No.1 and Finlandia had turned Sibelius into a national hero. In the following years, he would gain international stature. Observing, during a tour with the Finnish Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by his friend Kajanus, the warm reception that foreign audiences gave to his music, he came up with the idea of writing a new symphony. His close associates urged him to spend an autumn in Italy and dedicate himself entirely to composition. Carpelan, one of his most devoted friends, managed to raise the necessary funds for the journey, and in February, Sibelius finally settled in Rapallo. There, he began working and decided to set music to a theme from the life of Don Juan. The main theme of the andante of Symphony No.2 still reflects the essence of this initial project. On the way back, he stopped in Florence and briefly considered illustrating certain parts of the Divine Comedy. Delayed, he completed his Symphony No. 2 only in January 1902. From its first performance, the patriotic fervor it exuded ensured immediate success.

Schubert: Rosamunde, D. 797, Incidental Music by George Szell

[classicalmusicreference]

Album available // Sibelius: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 43 by George Szell
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) - Symphony No.2 in D /D-dur / Ré Majeur, Op. 43
00:59 I. Allegretto, Poco allegro, Tranquillo ma poco a poco ravvivando il tempo al Allegro
10:26 II. Tempo andante ma rubato, Andante sostenuto
23:06 III. Vivacissimo, Lento e suave, Largamente
28:50 IV. Finale: Allegro moderato

Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Conductor: George Szell
Recorded in 1964
New mastering in 2024 by AB for CMRR

To fully understand the success of Sibelius's Symphony No. 2, one must evoke the nationalist sentiments that were fervent in Finnish society at the time when this powerful work came into existence. After centuries of foreign domination, first by Sweden and then by Russia, Finland, at the time of Sibelius's birth, experienced an awakening that inspired its inhabitants to reclaim their cultural heritage. This was the climate in which the future national composer of Finland grew up, and he was not immune to its impact.

The awareness of their cultural identity led Finns to revive their mythology and literature and restore their own language to the place that Swedish, the official language of the administration, had usurped. When, in April 1892, the Helsinki audience heard Kullervo, a gigantic piece for choir and orchestra with five movements, for which Sibelius drew inspiration from the national epic, the Kalevala, their enthusiasm knew no bounds. The composer's patriotic sentiments were further strengthened by his marriage to Aino Järnefelt. The young woman's father, a provincial governor, was actively involved in the Finnish language rehabilitation movement.

Meanwhile, the success of Symphony No.1 and Finlandia had turned Sibelius into a national hero. In the following years, he would gain international stature. Observing, during a tour with the Finnish Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by his friend Kajanus, the warm reception that foreign audiences gave to his music, he came up with the idea of writing a new symphony. His close associates urged him to spend an autumn in Italy and dedicate himself entirely to composition. Carpelan, one of his most devoted friends, managed to raise the necessary funds for the journey, and in February, Sibelius finally settled in Rapallo. There, he began working and decided to set music to a theme from the life of Don Juan. The main theme of the andante of Symphony No.2 still reflects the essence of this initial project. On the way back, he stopped in Florence and briefly considered illustrating certain parts of the Divine Comedy. Delayed, he completed his Symphony No. 2 only in January 1902. From its first performance, the patriotic fervor it exuded ensured immediate success.

Schubert: Rosamunde, D. 797, Incidental Music by George Szell

[saltburner]

At the time, this was the most highly recommended version. I have the LP!

[plastique]

Still my favorite recording. I'm a huge fan of Szell, thanks for this remaster!

[alison]

Wonderful. Woke up this morning with it going through my head after first listening to it a couple days ago. Has replaced my long-beloved Ormandy/Philadelphia recording as my favorite of this piece!

[thomasthornton]

This is crazy. . . I was just listening to this exact recording earlier! Thank you.

[petko]

Magnificent. Great music in amazing performance, so energizing. Thank you so mutch 🖐

[notaire]

Wunderschöne und detaillierte Interpretation dieser spätromantischen und nordisch komponierten Sinfonie mit gut vereinigten und perfekt entsprechenden Tönen aller Instrumente. Der intelligente und unvergleichliche Dirigent leitet das ausgezeichnete Orchester im gut analysierten Tempo und mit künstlerisch kontrollierter Dynamik. Die verbesserte Tonqualität ist auch erstaunlich hoch als eine Originalaufnahme von sechzig Jahren vor. Wunderbar vom Anfang bis zum Ende!

[CaroleHoldem-lhnp]

A Powerful Performance of Sibelius Symphony No2, Classical Music at its Best, Great Recording 🎶💥⭐️⭐️💥🥰

[classicalmusicreference]

To fully understand the success of Sibelius's Symphony No. 2, one must evoke the nationalist sentiments that were fervent in Finnish society at the time when this powerful work came into existence. After centuries of foreign domination, first by Sweden and then by Russia, Finland, at the time of Sibelius's birth, experienced an awakening that inspired its inhabitants to reclaim their cultural heritage. This was the climate in which the future national composer of Finland grew up, and he was not immune to its impact.

The awareness of their cultural identity led Finns to revive their mythology and literature and restore their own language to the place that Swedish, the official language of the administration, had usurped. When, in April 1892, the Helsinki audience heard Kullervo, a gigantic piece for choir and orchestra with five movements, for which Sibelius drew inspiration from the national epic, the Kalevala, their enthusiasm knew no bounds. The composer's patriotic sentiments were further strengthened by his marriage to Aino Järnefelt. The young woman's father, a provincial governor, was actively involved in the Finnish language rehabilitation movement.

Meanwhile, the success of Symphony No.1 and Finlandia had turned Sibelius into a national hero. In the following years, he would gain international stature. Observing, during a tour with the Finnish Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by his friend Kajanus, the warm reception that foreign audiences gave to his music, he came up with the idea of writing a new symphony. His close associates urged him to spend an autumn in Italy and dedicate himself entirely to composition. Carpelan, one of his most devoted friends, managed to raise the necessary funds for the journey, and in February, Sibelius finally settled in Rapallo. There, he began working and decided to set music to a theme from the life of Don Juan. The main theme of the andante of Symphony No.2 still reflects the essence of this initial project. On the way back, he stopped in Florence and briefly considered illustrating certain parts of the Divine Comedy. Delayed, he completed his Symphony No. 2 only in January 1902. From its first performance, the patriotic fervor it exuded ensured immediate success.


Schubert: Rosamunde, D. 797, Incidental Music by George Szell

[matzek.]

Eine der schönsten Sinfonien auf diesem Planeten.

[rickdarby]

What an exhilarating performance. Szell characterizes the symphony in a way I've not heard before: brisk, purposeful and illuminated from within. And what an orchestra! And what a remastering! Listening, I am reminded that life is worth living.

[JudithSanchez-yh]

Me gustó mucho. No la conocía. Gracias!!

[Piflaser]

For me still the best Okko Kamu with BPO and Lorin Maazel with VPO.

[clydeblair]

Hard to compare Cleveland with RCO. Both so dynamic and lovely but love the RCO.

[Sh.moon.]

Are you sure this was recorded in 1964? Because Decca says it was released in 1965 but recorded in 1957. Is it a different recording from the one in George Szell Decca & Philips recordings 1951-1969?

[RModillo]

What is the provenance of these masters? If remastered, did you have a good look at the analogue studio tapes? Or are they adapted from previous commercial issues?

[clydeblair]

Great performance besides the Barbirolli and incidentally the Colin Davis.

[Skidoo]

A cold interpretation, give me Barbirolli.

[mswdesign]

Your transfers are always notably inferior to the files we can get from the rights-holders. Not a single one I've looked at didn't have clipping and distortion not present in the originals. Now if your product is basically free, I'd still say that you are performing a service to people, especially if the recordings are hard to acquire. But nobody should assume that your work is equal to the quality of an official release.