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Nielsen: Symphonies Nos 2 & 3 – LSO Live

Nielsen: Symphonies Nos 2 & 3

  • Catalogue Number LSO0722
    UPC 822231172222

    James Mallinson producer
    Neil Hutchinson and Jonathan Stokes for Classic Sound Ltd balance engineers

    Recorded live at the Barbican, December 2011

    DSD (Direct Stream Digital) recording
    Notes in English / en français / auf Deutsch

  • The Sunday Times’ Pick of the Week
    'Colin Davis establishes himself as a first-class Nielsenian on our pick of the week ... With this coupling, Davis leaves the best for last, too: Nielsen’s most accessible symphony, ‘The Four Temperaments’ (No 2), a work ideally suited to Davis’s volatile humours; and the ‘Sinfonia Espansiva’, arguably the composer’s greatest and most characteristically nationalist.'

    ***** ‘The newly released Nielsen: Symphonies 2 & 3 is drawn from concerts in December 2011 and showcases authoritative performances that for me are the best in class. Nielsen needs a firm hand, and gets one from Davis; his intellectual grip and rigour is astonishing for a man of his age.’
    The Mail on Sunday

    ***** ‘The sonics on both are up to the high standards of LSO Live SACDs. Individual solos come through clearly and with great spatiality, and the orchestral climaxes are rich and clean, free of the compression effects frequently heard on standard CDs.’
    Audiophile Audition

    **** ‘An exhilarating display of the life-force at full blast in both composer and conductor.’
    BBC Music Magazine

    ‘Zesty and affectionate, with depth of feeling when required, there is a freshness to this account that makes it worth hearing, and the joyous finale has a bounce that is infectious.’
    Classical Source

    'With this sublime setting down of Symphonies 2 & 3, Colin Davis brings to a triumphant conclusion his enlightening Nielsen symphony cycle. The first title in the series, Symphonies Nos. 4 & 5, was an instant critical success (with some caveats), while the second, with Symphonies 1 & 6, was similarly acclaimed. Nielsen’s Second Symphony was a result of the composer’s exposure to a naïve painting representing the four temperaments of the human personality. The Third is the most characteristically Danish of his symphonies, and is given a non-pareil reading here in glowing surround sound which tames the Barbican acoustic.'
    Classical CD Choice

£7.99

Sir Colin Davis, London Symphony Orchestra


Nielsen’s Second Symphony was inspired by a naïve but vivid painting representing the Four Temperaments of the human personality. Adopting these defining characters for each of the symphony’s movements Nielsen realised a sonic depiction of emotion. His Third Symphony, the most openly Danish of his symphonies, portrays spaciousness, power and vitality and is considered his greatest international achievement.


Composer   Nielsen
Conductor   Sir Colin Davis
Performers   London Symphony Orchestra
Soloists   Lucy Hall, Marcus Farnsworth

Track list
1. Symphony No 2: I. Allegro collerico (Choleric)
2. Symphony No 2: II. Allegro comodo e flemmatico (Phlegmatic)
3. Symphony No 2: III. Andante malincolico (Melancholic)
4. Symphony No 2: IV. Allegro sanguineo (Sanguine)
5. Symphony No 3: I. Allegro espansivo
6. Symphony No 3: II. Andante pastorale
7. Symphony No 3: III. Allegretto un poco
8. Symphony No 3: IV. Finale. Allegro

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