Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
Compiling a best-of release for Jean Sibelius is difficult, perhaps even more difficult than for other composers of his era. This is because Sibelius had several distinct styles, and a largely different audience to go with each one. Those who immerse themselves in the intense gloom of the Symphony No. 4 have little use for the triumphant strains of Finlandia or the finale of the Symphony No. 2 that came close, the local composers having nothing on hand that would quite fill the bill, to becoming an anthem for World War II-era Britain. And Sibelius as a miniaturist had an entirely different outlook from Sibelius as a symphonist. For some listeners he is a lyrical Scandinavian melodist in the mold of Grieg. There are still other Sibeliuses; in his discovery of Finnish epic literature he drew on Wagner's ways of dealing with similar material. This two-disc set from Naxos does a fine job under the circumstances, with good introductions to all the facets of the composer's style. The best-of format works worst in the cases of symphonists whose forms are organic, and one misses the bleak Symphony No. 4 and the beautifully constructed Symphony No. 7. Nevertheless, the famous Sibelius symphonic excerpts are all here, and restricting the selection to those gives the compilers a chance to get into more unusual orchestral material: the Suite No. 2 from the Incidental Music for Shakespeare's "The Tempest," Op. 109; the early En Saga, Op. 9; and some big hits: Finlandia, the Valse Triste, and the Karelia Suite. There are short solo piano pieces, two songs, not only the Violin Concerto, Op. 47, but also the lesser-known Romance, Op. 42. The selections, drawn from the vast Naxos catalog of performances by Scandinavian and Eastern European groups, are nowhere less than workmanlike, and the program has the effect of constantly revealing something new but still holding together -- exactly what is desirable in a release of this kind, and exactly what is hard to pull off with Sibelius.
© TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From $10.83/month
Pelleas and Melisande, Op. 46 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Patrick Gallois, Conductor - Jyväskylä Sinfonia, Orchestra, MainArtist
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Kyllikki, Op. 41 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Håvard Gimse, Artist, MainArtist
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
The Oceanides, Op. 73 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Petri Sakari, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Andante festivo, JS 34b (Version for string orchestra) (Jean Sibelius)
Capella Istropolitana, Orchestra, MainArtist - Jean Sibelius, Composer - Adrian Leaper, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
6 Songs, Op. 36 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Hannu Jurmu, Artist, MainArtist - Jouni Somero, Artist
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
2 Pieces from Kuolema, Op. 44 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Jorma Panula, Conductor - Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Symphony No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 82 (Jean Sibelius)
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Jean Sibelius, Composer - Adrian Leaper, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Romance in C major, Op. 42 (Jean Sibelius)
Capella Istropolitana, Orchestra, MainArtist - Jean Sibelius, Composer - Adrian Leaper, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Pohjola's Daughter, Op. 49 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Petri Sakari, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Finlandia, Op. 26 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Jorma Panula, Conductor - Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
DISC 2
Karelia Suite, Op. 11 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Petri Sakari, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Petri Sakari, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 47 (Jean Sibelius)
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra - Jean Sibelius, Composer - Dong-Suk Kang, Artist, MainArtist - Adrian Leaper, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
En saga, Op. 9 (Jean Sibelius)
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Jean Sibelius, Composer - Adrian Leaper, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
7 Songs, Op. 17 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Hannu Jurmu, Artist, MainArtist - Jouni Somero, Artist
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
The Tempest, Suite No. 2, Op. 109 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Petri Sakari, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Op. 39 (Jean Sibelius)
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Jean Sibelius, Composer - Adrian Leaper, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Lemminkainen Suite, Op. 22 (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Petri Sakari, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
5 Pieces, Op. 85 "The Flowers" (Jean Sibelius)
Jean Sibelius, Composer - Risto Lauriala, Artist, MainArtist
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43 (Jean Sibelius)
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Jean Sibelius, Composer - Adrian Leaper, Conductor
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Album review
Compiling a best-of release for Jean Sibelius is difficult, perhaps even more difficult than for other composers of his era. This is because Sibelius had several distinct styles, and a largely different audience to go with each one. Those who immerse themselves in the intense gloom of the Symphony No. 4 have little use for the triumphant strains of Finlandia or the finale of the Symphony No. 2 that came close, the local composers having nothing on hand that would quite fill the bill, to becoming an anthem for World War II-era Britain. And Sibelius as a miniaturist had an entirely different outlook from Sibelius as a symphonist. For some listeners he is a lyrical Scandinavian melodist in the mold of Grieg. There are still other Sibeliuses; in his discovery of Finnish epic literature he drew on Wagner's ways of dealing with similar material. This two-disc set from Naxos does a fine job under the circumstances, with good introductions to all the facets of the composer's style. The best-of format works worst in the cases of symphonists whose forms are organic, and one misses the bleak Symphony No. 4 and the beautifully constructed Symphony No. 7. Nevertheless, the famous Sibelius symphonic excerpts are all here, and restricting the selection to those gives the compilers a chance to get into more unusual orchestral material: the Suite No. 2 from the Incidental Music for Shakespeare's "The Tempest," Op. 109; the early En Saga, Op. 9; and some big hits: Finlandia, the Valse Triste, and the Karelia Suite. There are short solo piano pieces, two songs, not only the Violin Concerto, Op. 47, but also the lesser-known Romance, Op. 42. The selections, drawn from the vast Naxos catalog of performances by Scandinavian and Eastern European groups, are nowhere less than workmanlike, and the program has the effect of constantly revealing something new but still holding together -- exactly what is desirable in a release of this kind, and exactly what is hard to pull off with Sibelius.
© TiVo
Details of the original recording : 64:45 - 67:06 - DDD - Enregistré entre 1988 et 2005 - Notes en anglais
About the album
- 2 disc(s) - 20 track(s)
- Total length: 02:11:43
- 1 Digital booklet
- Main artist: Jyvaskyla Sinfonia
- Composer: Jean Sibelius
- Label: Naxos
- Area: Finlande
- Genre: Classical
- Period: Romantic Music
(C) 2006 Naxos (P) 2006 Naxos
Improve album information
Why buy on Qobuz?
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalog with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets, and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.