Johansen: Piano Concerto / Pan / Symphonic Variations / Epigrammer

David Monrad Johansen's catalogue of works displays a mere thirty-six opus numbers as well as a dozen unnumbered compositions from various periods. The Epigrams on Norwegian motifs form his last lengthier composition as well as one that is more clearly related to Norwegian folk music than the other works recorded here. Monrad Johansen harmonized the given melodies in his characteristic manner while above all ennobling them with the tender colours and sumptuous fireworks of his detailed orchestration. However, it is first and foremost in his successful Pan op. 22 symphonic music that he exhibits his mastery in orchestral colouration, which in part may have its model in Richard Strauss but also follows the French impressionists. The Symphonic Variations and Fugue op. 23 (1944-46; rev. 1959 and 1964), more than Pan and its equal portions of German and French influence, are related to Monrad Johansen's German education and exhibit many neoclassical elements. Already at the beginning of his artistic career Monrad Johansen distinguished himself as an outstanding pianist, and since 1927 he was drawn to the idea of composing a concerto, a idea realised nearly 30 years later.In its general outline the concerto displays the traditional three-movement structure and classical formal models. However, what particularly stands out is the dramatic alternation between the piano part, which is maintained in virtuosic style throughout, and the contributions by the orchestra