Great Romantic Symphonies

 
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Great Romantic Symphonies

[ Naxos / 10 CD ]

Release Date: Monday 26 March 2012

This item is currently out of stock. It may take 6 or more weeks to obtain from when you place your order as this is a specialist product.

The word 'symphony' is used to describe an extended orchestral composition in Western classical music. By the eighteenth century the Italianate opera sinfonia-musical interludes between operas or concertos-had assumed the structure of three contrasting movements, and it is this form that is often considered as the direct forerunner of the orchestral symphony. With the rise of established professional orchestras, the symphony assumed a more prominent place in concert life between 1790 and 1820 until it eventually came to be regarded by many as the yardstick by which one would measure a composer's achievement.

The nineteenth century brought various changes to the symphonic form. Although both inspired by Beethoven, Berlioz's experiments with instrumental colour and orchestral size are a world away from the colossal symphonies of Brahms. Composers such as Mahler and Bruckner pushed the traditional symphonic landscapes to their limits, in sharp contrast to the uplifting Classically based symphonies of Mendelssohn and Schubert. The nationalistic flavours apparent in the programme symphonies of Schumann, Strauss and Dvoƙák exemplify the way in which the symphonic form flourished in the Romantic era, whilst the visceral impact of the Gallic panache is typified by the symphonies of Franck and Saint-Saëns.

Tracks:

Disc 1
Franz Schubert
Symphony No. 8 in B Minor, D. 759, "Unfinished"
Symphony No. 9 in C Major, D. 944, "Great"

Disc 2
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 68

Robert Schumann
Symphony No. 1 in B-Flat Major, Op. 38, "Spring"

Disc 3
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98

Robert Schumann
Symphony No. 4 in D Minor, Op. 120

Disc 4
Felix Mendelssohn
Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 56, "Scottish"
Symphony No. 4 in A Major, Op. 90, "Italian"

Disc 5
Hector Berlioz
Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14
Benvenuto Cellini, Op. 23
Le carnaval romain, Op. 9

Disc 6
Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 1 in D Major, "Titan"

Disc 7
Anton Bruckner
Symphony No. 4 in E-Flat Major, WAB 104, "Romantic" (1881 version, ed. R. Haas)

Disc 8
Camille Saint-Saens
Symphony No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 78, "Organ"

Cesar Franck
Symphony in D Minor

Disc 9
Antonin Dvorak
Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, Op. 95, B. 178, "From the New World"
Symphonic Variations, Op. 78, B. 70

Disc 10
Richard Strauss
Eine Alpensinfonie (An Alpine Symphony), Op. 64, TrV 233
Don Juan, Op. 20, TrV 156