Richard Pennycuick [[log in to unmask]] wrote:
>I recall Don Satz was somewhat less than rapturous about Peterson-Berger's
>2nd and my limited experience of minor late C19-early C20 Swedish composers
>(Lindberg, Norman) makes me more than usually cautious about investigating
>him, despite Mikael's recommendation (which label is the CD, BTW?).
Norman is on Musica Sveciae. He is talented in my opinion, and rather
underrated - not so boring as some people say. Lindberg is a fine
composer...his output is mainly organmusic though, what is natural as he
was a born organist. You should check out his arrangement of "Gammal
Faebodpsalm" - very nice.
>I find much to admire in eg Alfven, Atterberg, Larsson, Stenhammar. Would
>Don or someone care to "rank" Peterson-Berger in some way?
Mikael Rasmusson <[log in to unmask]> writes among a lot of other
things:
>Alfven: A Swedish Richard Strauss, unfortunately it was too much Strauss
>and not enough Alfven after the First World War.
haha, Strauss would be one of the last composers I would say Alfven is
like. You must agree their tone-language are very...*very* different.
What do you think they have in common?
>Atterberg: Sounds too German to me. Not so original.
I think you label Atterberg German just because his style is very...I am
searching for the right word...approachable! Atterberg is a fine composer
indeed. I can agree he has not a swedish sound - like Peterson-Berger, but
he has OTOH a very frequent use of swedish folk melodies, not only in the
rhapsodies, but a lot ain the symphonies...and that can also be a way of
being Swedish...
>Stenhammar: Reminds me (too much) of Rachmaninov (central European Late
>Romanticism). The 2nd Symphony is of course a masterpiece and the Serenade
>is entertaining. The 2nd Piano Concerto starts off well but then turns
>Rach...
Stenhammar, maybe the finest composer we have...had surely been regarded a
really great composer, had just his output been larger.
>Larsson: Also an uneven Composer.
Comes up with a few good ones, Pastoral-Suite, Foerklaedd Gud...but I
agree: uneven!
>Peterson-Berger: Wrote 5 Symphonies (No 4 never recorded), 4 Operas (No
>complete recordings), a number of Songs and Piano Works. You might call
>him a Swedish Grieg. His musical language is original and what I would
>call genuine Swedish.
Probably the most "swedish" of them all, there I can agree. But Alfven
is also a very "swedish" composer. "Arnljot" is recorded - on HMV E
061-34925, with Erland Hagegaard as Arnljot - The Stockholm
Philarmonics/Okko Kamu.
>His large-scale works may contain a moment or two of sudden loss of
>inspiration, but to me he is No 1 in Sweden.
NOT agreed!
>My ranking would be: Peterson-Berger, Rangstroem (have you heard of him?),
>Berwald, Stenhammar, Alfven, Larsson, Atterberg.
If I would try do a ranking, it would follow: Alfven, Stenhammar,
Atterberg, Rangstroem, Berwald, Larsson.
But of course there are difference in ranking and ranking depending on
what we are ranking, for example when talking of just talent I consider
Rangstroem higher...
James Zehm <[log in to unmask]>
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