Although I will not be reviewing it now (maybe in the future) I am pleased to say that after about 20 years, we now have a new commercially available recording of the masterful Symphony No. 6, with Christian Lindberg directing the Norrköping SO. While it does not have the pure visceral impact of Kamu's famous recording with the same forces, in my opinion Lindberg really brings out the myriad orchestral details which Pettersson has packed into this score, and the results are enlightening and breath-taking. It really is like listening to this work with new ears (preview: listen to the passage at 28:07, in particular the low strings and the razor-sharp percussion, nobody does it better than Lindberg here).
Christian has made a Facebook campaign of sorts to try to spread the word out to as many people as possible on this new recording, and at the absolute steal price of $8.98 on eClassical.com, you should get this recording immediately, if you do not have it already. Christian even posted a link to my entry on the Symphony No. 6 on his Facebook page. How cool is that!
Is the Lindberg now your favourite recording?
ReplyDeleteIf I had to choose only one I would still go with Kamu. I really like the Lindberg but the approach is quite different. Lindberg's take is very clear, with tight ensemble and some really excellent balances, which brings out a lot of Pettersson's orchestrational details. With Kamu, it sounds like a life or death struggle, a desperate fight, and that makes Kamu's version just so amazing.
ReplyDeleteWhat about sound quality?
ReplyDeleteSound quality is the best among the available recordings--in other words, better than the CPO. I do think there might be a bit too much close-miking of certain sections to my taste, but a lot of orchestrational detail is brought out.
ReplyDelete