At long last, these classic recordings are available again! We have had the
early Jensen sets on Dutton for some time now and it was high time that Tuxen's
legendary coupling was to see the light of day. I have played this disc over
and over again and was consistently bowled over by the dramatic intensity
and pungency of the 'Espansiva' in particular. Tuxen's dramatic account is
surely the prime recommendation of this work and should hold the standard
for some time to come. I compared it with a live 1959 performance by Thomas
Jensen and the DSNRO, and the Tuxen came out consistently on top especially
in the sublime Andante pastorale, a miracle of refinement with a
substantial contribution from the soloists, Inger Lis Hassing and Erik Sjoberg,
both singers of ethereal beauty. The Allegro Finale is equivocally
thrilling in its intensity and passion, a tribute to the postwar magic of
the DNRSO and a memorial to the instinctive feel of Tuxen for Nielsen's music.
The Fifth is another superb performance. Here the competition is quite fierce,
one cannot forget Georg Hoberg's far-out 1933 version and Thomas Jensen's
superbly recorded 1954 version for Decca (also on Dutton). Tuxen is marginally
slower than the latter which is my benchmark recording. He creates a palpable
sense of tension and irresistible momentum and the playing of the orchestra
is indeed magnificent throughout. The Adagio non troppo benefits from
greater clarity and vision particularly in the two big climaxes that conclude
the movement, a life-affirming permeation of faith and hope that is the kernel
of Nielsen's music. And with the massive Finale, Tuxen and his orchestra
are indeed on home ground, their sense of precision is disarming whilst the
power and passion of the music carry all before it. I fail to understand
EMI's flagrant denigration of this wonderful recording which is indeed a
'Great Recording of the Century'. Well, thanks to Mike Dutton who has done
a superb job in remastering these originals and creating recordings that
are indeed models of their kind. The short 'Saul and David' Prelude is indeed
beautiful and makes a welcome addition to the big guns. You might be buying
the new Schonwandt and Bostock cycles but this issue is the missing link
to the elusive Danish recordings that blazed the trail for this wondrous
composer and which are essential, indeed indispensable additions to the
discography of Carl August Nielsen.
Reviewer
Gerald Fenech
THE ESSENTIAL NIELSEN SYMPHONIES
Symphony No. 1: Danish State Radio Symphony Orchestra: Thomas Jensen. Decca
LXT 2748 June 1952 Dutton Laboratories
CDLXT
2502.
Symphony No. 2 'The Four Temperaments Danish State Radio Symphony Orchestra
Thomas Jensen EMI HMV Z 7000-3 October 1947. Dutton Laboratories
CDCLP4001
Symphony No. 3 'Espansiva'. Danish State Radio Symphony Orchestra Erik Tuxen
Decca AK2161-5 October 1946 Dutton Laboratories
CDK1207
Symphony No. 4 'The Inextinguishable' Danish State Radio Symphony Orchestra
Launy Grondahl. EMI HMV DB2015-60 August 1951. Dutton Laboratories
CDCLP4001
Symphony No.5. Danish State Radio Symphony Orchestra Erik Tuxen/Thomas Jensen
EMI HMVZ7022-6 April 1950/Decca LXT 2980 April 1954 Dutton Laboratories
CDK1207/CDLXT2502.
Symphony No. 6 'Sinfonia Semplice' Danish State Radio Symphony Orchestra
Decca LXT 2749 June 1952 Danacord
DACOCD
351-53 (Transferred from TONO pressings).
Footnote:
The final recording of the Sixth is somewhat blurred and not as clear as
the impeccable Dutton transfers of the contemporary First. One hopes that
some Decca pressing or master may be found and used for the transfer of this
unique recording. I would also add as supplements, Jensen's pioneering 1944
unpublished 'Four Temperaments' and the 1933 Georg Hoberg version of the
Fifth to the awesome shortlist above. Both are available on Danacord Vol
6 of the Historic Carl Nielsen collection. I will also be discussing these
recordings in greater detail when publishing a paper on the Nielsen symphonies
that will be exclusive to Music on the Web readers.
Danish State Radio
Symphony Orchestra. Erik Tuxen.
