MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             

Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger

REVIEW Plain text for smartphones & printers

Support us financially by purchasing
this through MusicWeb
for £12 postage paid world-wide.

Adolf Fredrik LINDBLAD (1801-1878)
Symphony No. 2 in D major (1855) [38:16]
Per August ÖLANDER (1824-1886)
Symphony in E flat major (1868?) [27:40]
Gävleborg Symphony Orchestra/Mats Liljefors (Lindblad)
Västerås Symphony Orchestra/Harry Damgaard (Ölander)
rec. Ljusgården I Polhemssoklan, Gävle, January 1996 (Lindblad); live, Västerås Concert Hall, 8 October 1977 (Ölander)
STERLING CDS1005-2 [65:56]

I am in the midst of a batch of reviews of Sterling reissues of composers, whose names have, with few exceptions, been new to me. Here we have two more, both Swedish, born in the early part of the nineteenth century, giving this a different feel to some of the others I have reviewed, where the music was late nineteenth-early twentieth.

Adolf Lindblad has been called a Swedish Schubert, the type of comparison that does neither party any favours. Nevertheless, it is easy to see why such a sobriquet might have been bestowed on him. Born only four years after the Viennese master, there is a definite connection in styles, though it is unlikely that Lindblad knew much of Schubert’s work. Further, his major area of endeavour was in songs, writing in excess of two hundred. His renown extended well beyond Sweden: he was championed by Spohr and was a long-term friend of Mendelssohn. While his two symphonies were recorded by Marco Polo (8.225105) in 1999, this one by Sterling was the world premiere. It is a graceful and gentle work, untroubled by stormy waters, full of sweet though not really memorable melodies. Schubert’s fifth symphony is a reasonable comparison in style and atmosphere, though hardly at that level of inspiration.

Per Ölander’s main claim to fame was winning the King’s prize for a new Nordic-themed opera in 1876, when he worked as a customs officer. Unlike Lindblad, Ölander had no significant contact with the major leagues of music in Austria and Germany, but little more is known about him. This symphony appears to be only work of his in the recorded repertoire. If Lindblad’s symphony was a little old-fashioned in its Schubertian grace, Ölander’s is much more so. If anything, it reminds me of a slightly updated Haydn, while the Scherzo has very strong allusions to Beethoven’s Pastoral symphony, especially its third movement with the country dancing. Taken in its own right, it is pleasingly tuneful, but lacking much in the way of drama.

The performances are perfectly fine, though the orchestras certainly wouldn’t have been greatly challenged. The Ölander was a live recording, but the audience must have been very well-behaved as I wouldn’t have known but for the booklet notes, which are very good for such obscure subjects.

All of the Sterling issues I have met so far have been at the very least pleasant, and some have been very good. This one fits in towards the top end.

David Barker

Previous review: John France


 

 



Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Chandos recordings
All Chandos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing