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Thursday, July 18, 2019

Jón Leifs - Vikingasvar and works for voices and orchestra (Hermann Bäumer)


Information

Composer: Jón Leifs
  1. Viking's Answer (Víkingasvar), Op. 54
  2. The Lay of Helgi the Hunding-slayer (Helga kviða Hundingsbana), Op. 61
  3. Gróa's Spell (Grógaldr), Op. 62
  4. Jónas Hallgrímsson in memoriam (Jónasar minni Hallgrímssonar), Op. 48
  5. Spring Song (Vorvísa), Op. 46
  6. Landfall – Overture (Landsýn – forleikur), Op. 41
  7. Iceland Cantata (Þjóðhvöt – Íslandskantata), Op. 13: I. Moderato, maestoso, ma animato
  8. Iceland Cantata (Þjóðhvöt – Íslandskantata), Op. 13: II. Andante
  9. Iceland Cantata (Þjóðhvöt – Íslandskantata), Op. 13: III. Allegro spirituoso
  10. Iceland Cantata (Þjóðhvöt – Íslandskantata), Op. 13: IV. Adagio
  11. Iceland Cantata (Þjóðhvöt – Íslandskantata), Op. 13: V. Larghetto
  12. Iceland Cantata (Þjóðhvöt – Íslandskantata), Op. 13: VI. Allegro furioso
  13. Iceland Cantata (Þjóðhvöt – Íslandskantata), Op. 13: VII. Andante

Guðrún Edda Gunnarsdóttir, alto
Finnur Bjarnason, tenor
Ólafur Kjartan Sigurðarson, bass

Hallgrímskirkja Motet Choir and Scholar Cantorum; chorus master: Hörður Áskelsson
Fóstbræður Male Choir; chorus master: Árni Harðarson
Kársnesskóli boys’ choir; chorus master: Þórunn Björnsdóttir

Iceland Symphony Orchestra
Hermann Bäumer, conductor

Date: 2004
Label: BIS
http://bis.se/composer/leifs-jon/jon-leifs-vikingasvar

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 9 / SOUND QUALITY: 9

BIS continues its survey of music by the remarkable, truculent, inimitable Jon Leifs with this disc featuring mostly vocal works, some of which have been recorded previously. Even so those previous issues will not be easy to find (if they are still available at all), making comparison largely a moot point. The one instrumental work here is Viking’s Answer, for saxophone quartet, wind ensemble, percussion, violas, and double basses. Leifs wrote it in protest when he was turned down for a job, and as you can hear for yourself, he was pissed. Imagine combining the clunky rhythms and brass-laden climaxes of a Bruckner symphony with the percussive explosions of The Rite of Spring, all compressed into three-and-a-half minutes, and you’ll get the picture.

Spring Song, for mixed choir and orchestra, couldn’t be more different. It’s one of the few Leifs works comparatively light-hearted in tone and bright in texture. Landfall, the Iceland Cantata, and Jonas Hallgrimsson in memoriam are all vivid, patriotic works saturated with the rhythms and modes of Icelandic folk music and full of that primal quality that makes Leifs’ music so distinctive and unforgettable. The two cantatas for solo voices, The Lay of Helgi the Hunding-slayer and Gróa’s Spell, are more subdued, but nevertheless are wonderfully evocative and well sung (considering the ridiculous ranges of the vocal lines) by native artists comfortable with the language (the chorus survives its ordeal too). Gróa’s spell, in particular, is a major work that will appeal to many listeners not otherwise attuned to Leifs’ idiom.

Despite the ever-changing roster of conductors throughout this series, one constant has been the terrific playing of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, and Hermann Bäumer leads them with the necessary guts and vigor. Excellent sonics, with a typically huge dynamic range that will challenge your audio system, round out a disc that fans of the composer will want as a matter of course, and that should appeal to collectors of offbeat but rewarding vocal and choral music too.

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday

More reviews:
https://www.amazon.com/Vikingasvar-J-Leifs/dp/B0009VNBME
https://www.amazon.com/Jon-Leifs-Works-Voices-Orchestra/dp/B0002CH8AQ

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Jón Leifs (1 May 1899 – 30 July 1968), was an Icelandic composer, pianist, and conductor. Born in Iceland, he left for Germany in 1916 to study at the Leipzig Conservatory and graduated in 1921. During this period he also studied composition with Ferruccio Busoni. Beginning with piano arrangements of Icelandic folk songs, Leifs started an active career as a composer in the 1920s. In 1945 he moved back to Iceland, and became a fierce proponent of music education and of artists' rights. Most of his works is inspired by Icelandic natural phenomena and classic Icelandic sagas.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J%C3%B3n_Leifs

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Hermann Bäumer (born 28 January 1965 in Bielefeld) is a German conductor. He studied at the University of Music in Detmold, then served with the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, as both an orchestral player and at the podium. Since 2004, Bäumer has been General Music Director of the Osnabrück Symphony Orchestra and has guest-conducted in Germany and abroad. He has recorded for labels such as cpo and BIS. From 2011/2012 season onwards, Bäumer has been the General Music Director of the State Theatre in Mainz.
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermann_B%C3%A4umer
http://www.hermannbaeumer.com

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6 comments:

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  2. Reponga este álbum, por favor! Gracias...

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  4. Ronald Do could you please reupload this one?

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  5. Choose one link, copy and paste it to your browser's address bar, wait a few seconds (you may need to click 'Continue' first), then click 'Free Access with Ads' / 'Get link'. Complete the steps / captchas if require.
    Guide for Linkvertise: 'Get [Album name]' --> 'I'm interested' --> 'Explore Website & Learn more' --> close the newly open tab/window, then wait for a few seconds --> 'Get [Album name]'

    https://link-hub.net/610926/leifs-vikingasvar
    or
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    or
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