This symphony is written in a very conservative style considering its creation date (1944), but it is a very warm and beautiful score. Ths spirit of the symphony is expressive and postromantic.
The *sounds like some other better known composer game* kind of misses the forest for the trees in regard to Atterberg (and many other less familiar composers). Ditto with "conservative style." No, it doesn't sound like Schoenberg or Messiaen or Stravinsky, but musical "progress" during the last century was a multi-layered and complex phenomenon. Atterberg's music also doesn't sound like Brahms or Bruckner or even R. Strauss or Rachmaninoff. It shares only a Nordic folk song quality with Grieg or Alfvén. The only composer it reminds me of, weirdly, is Randall Thompson, and that's a matter of parallel evolution of *not* overtly radical, but still evolving and advancing, music during the 20th Century. This *is* very definitely 20th Century music--just the line of it that is less familiar to many of us. Paul Johnson, in his "Art: A New History" surprisingly included Soviet Realism and other underappreciated 20th Century movements that future art historians--unconcerned with our ephemeral contemporary concepts of art hipness--also probably will treat seriously. The future list of great symphonists of the 20th Century likely will include Atterberg, as well as Malcolm Arnold; maybe Havergal Brian, Allan Pettersson (our Bruckner?), Kalevi Aho, Aulis Sallinen, Harald Sæverud, George Antheil, and others who aren't exactly cutting edge and who might not immediately come to mind right "now." Shostakovich--hardly a musical adventurer and not too long ago dismissed as a hack propagandist--already is regarded as the greatest symphonist of the last century after Mahler.
I'm not sure that in music, being on the cutting edge actually means anything. This and most of his other symphonies I find very good. And for my money you can keep most of Shostakovich and all of Bruckner.
yes biy! I've just discovered atterburg right now and this very richly detailed account has warmed my soul greatly as someone who knows pretty much nothing about classical music who was scanning the comments for some context. Yippee! and also lovely was to find Shostakovitch mentioned at the end who was (and is) exactly who I was (and am) going to put on then (now). POSITIVE VIBES +++
Try this ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-uGfxKf4Uf-c.html a recording of my 4th & 5th Symphonies. I'm used to the 'find the influences' game although happy when Malcolm Arnold was mentioned in that regard in a review.
+Silviu x I agree. This adagio is in the pure Atterberg's style. At the very begining, it should be just a peacefull and cold whisper. Then, slowly, begins a mysterious crescendo. Until a colourfull forte. But in Jarvi 's interpretation, it starts too fast. We can't have the requisite rest, so we cant be progressively awaken. It spoils the atmosphere.
+Maxime Le Heiget Yeah, I don't understand Jarvi so far on Atterberg. Here he gets the 1st and 3rd movements perfectly fine, the 2nd completely wrong, and the 4th inconsistent. His interpretation of the Symphony No. 2 is horribly fast and ludicrous.
That moment is absolutely spectacular. Icing on the cake: this is the beginning of the recapitulation, so first and second themes are inverted. That first movement is something else.
@@dragondaemonis3801 How is atterberg so damn underrated😭 I mean, the first theme, fire, the second theme, absolutely beautiful, the development, incredible, and then the recapitulation does THAT. Holy moly he was on another level fr
@@ScriabinistheGOAT24 He's underrated because his style was outdated at the time. His symphonic language was still late-Romantic in a modernist world. But frankly, I don't give a damn; his music is beautiful. The ending of his 3rd symphony is one of the most powerful symphonic moments that have ever been written.
Gran sinfonía.Increíble que se escuche tan poco este compositor.Tiene un concierto para piano y otro para cuello que en calidad armonía y belleza compite con cualquiera de los clásicos que nos hacen escuchar en el concierto para vello de Dvorak que es muy bello pero el de Atterberg no lo es menos.Gran compositor
The swells of ascending notes that start out the symphony gives me a similar vibe to the second movement of Rachmaninoff's first piano concerto. Though it is much quieter and quicker which makes sense because it flows perfectly well with the fast section that soon takes over.
As a child and teen, I memorized most of the Major Works of the Western Canon, as well as much of the Germanic Workaholics. Sadly, discovered that Beethoven/Mozart and their cohorts (whom I loved) went beyond love and became too repetitive. Darnit. Now I move on and discover these works, so not tiresomely overdone. I am such an outlier. I enjoy any comments you all post regarding these lovely compositions. Carry on!
Atterberg uses the folk melodies quite effectively here, with some especially lovely counterpoint; as a dramatic work, however, this symphony isn't as impressive as his 6th or 2nd Symphony, the only other works of his I've heard (so far). The 'adagio' here is quite reminiscent of Grieg, with an Eastern flavor beginning at 11:51.
