Harmonious Families Vol. 2 - Niels & Axel Gade (Christina Åstrand; Iona Brown)

Information

Composer: Niels Gade; Axel Gade

1. Niels Gade - Overture 'Mariotta'
2. Niels Gade - Overture 'Hamlet', Op. 37
3. Niels Gade - Capriccio for violin and orchestra in A minor
4. Niels Gade - Overture 'Nachklänge von Ossian', Op. 1
5. Axel Gade - Violin Concerto No. 2 in F major, Op. 10: I. Allegro ma non troppo
6. Axel Gade - Violin Concerto No. 2 in F major, Op. 10: II. Serenade pastorale (Andantino)
7. Axel Gade - Violin Concerto No. 2 in F major, Op. 10: III. Finale (Allegro giocoso)

Christina Åstrand, violin
Danish Philharmonic Orchestra, South Jutland
Iona Brown, conductor

Date: 1999
Label: Danacord
https://www.danacord.dk/frmsets/records/510-r.html

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Review

This is an extremely interesting series focusing on parental relationships in Danish music. We have already had good recordings of some of the works on this present issue but I can confidently recommend Iona Brown's conducting as some of the best I've heard in this repertoire. The short 'Mariotta' Overture bristles and bustles along in typical Gadian post-Mendelssohn fashion whilst the Shakespearean tragedies of 'Hamlet' are intimately well-portrayed in this closely miked interpretation.

The short but purposeful 'Capriccio' shows Gade's intricate talents as a violin composer and the young attractive soloist, Christina Astrand is well-attuned to the various virtuosic melodies that permeate the work and I would stake my money that she is a name to watch out for. Indeed, more scholarly wonders percolate her playing of the Axel Gade Concerto, a seminal work that does not deserve the neglect it has unfortunately fallen into. Just less than half-an hour in length, the concerto features some fiendishly difficult solo passagework but there are some wonderful melodies, especially in the deeply felt and noble slow movement.

''Echoes of Ossian' is a popular work and I remember listening to a particularly fine Chandos version a couple of years back. Ioana Brown and the Jutland Orchestra are well-attuned to the spirit of the overture and the typically Danish atmosphere is beautifully caught. Danacord have provided an excellent recording balance and copious notes inform the listener with extremely detailed biographical details. You may not be discovering masterworks here but the whole project is commendable nonetheless.

-- Gerald Fenech, MusicWeb International

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Niels Gade (22 February 1817 – 21 December 1890) was a Danish composer and teacher. Gade began his career as a violinist with the Royal Danish Orchestra. After his 1st symphony was positively received and conducted by Felix Mendelssohn, Gade himself moved to Leipzig and befriending Mendelssohn, who had an important influence on his music. He returned to Copenhagen in 1848 and became director of the Copenhagen Musical Society and Copenhagen Conservatory. Among Gade's works are 8 symphonies, a violin concerto, chamber music and a number of large-scale cantatas.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niels_Gade

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Axel Gade (28 May 1860 – 9 November 1921) was a Danish violinist, composer and conductor. He was the son of Niels Gade.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axel_Gade

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Christina Åstrand (born 6 June 1969 in Skanderborg) is a Danish violinist. Åstrand entered the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus at the age of 13. After graduating in 1988, she spent a year in Paris as a private student of Gérard Poulet. When she was just 22, she became leader of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, a position she still holds today. Åstrand has also been a guest soloist with all the leading Scandinavian orchestras, and performs chamber music, often with Per Salo, her husband, who is a pianist. Her recordings include works by Niels Gade, Claude Debussy and Fini Henriques.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christina_%C3%85strand

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Iona Brown (7 January 1941 – 5 June 2004) was a British violinist and conductor. Brown was born in Salisbury and was educated at Cranborne Chase School, Dorset. Brown played violin in the Philharmonia Orchestra from 1963 to 1966, and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields from 1964 to 1980. She directed the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra twice, 1987-92 and 1995-97. As her health declined and her arthritis progressed, she shifted her focus from the violin to conducting, ending her violin career in 1998. In her last years, she was chief conductor of the South Jutland Symphony Orchestra of Denmark.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iona_Brown

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