Sibelius: SYMPHONY NO.7; RAKASTAVA FOR STRINGS, PROKOFIEV: ANDANTE FOR STRING ORCHESTRA, GLAZUNOV: SCÉNES DE BALLET FOR ORCHERSTRA CD. Gennady Rozhdestvensky

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Country: Denmark
Language: English/ French
Year Published: 2001
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Binding: CD Disc
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Code: 5866

Price: $9.50

This 1962 recording of Sibelius’s last symphony is led by one of Russia’s most dynamic conductors. A mere 20 minutes long, the work evolves in one continuous movement, with various tempo changes, climaxes, and anticlimaxes leading to a dramtic, tragic conclusion.In contrast, Rakastava, a three-movement suite from 1911, celebrates the composer’s return to an unsophisticated style of Finnish folk music. Both pieces receive finely calibrated playing from the Russians-the first pungent and strong (espcially in the signature trombone solo), the second more austere and haunting. The disc is rounded out by a modernist piece Prokofiev wrote in 1930 and Glazunov’s set of eight melodic and captivating dances, including a waltz, mazurka, and polonaise.