Dag Wirén - Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3 (Thomas Dausgaard)

Information

Composer: Dag Wirén

• Symphony No. 2
• Symphony No. 3
• Concert Overture No. 1, Op. 2
• Concert Overture No. 2, Op. 16

Norrköping Symphony Orchestra

Thomas Dausgaard, conductor

Date: 2000

Label: CPO

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Review

Wiren composed five symphonies (the First was withdrawn) between 1931 and 1964. The best-known is No 4 (1952), written at the height of his powers and currently available with No 5 (10/98). The Second (1938-39), dedicated to his wife of four years, Noel, is an engaging, romantic work, with a rather pastoral character. The influence of Sibelius is felt throughout, but – as with Klami’s near-contemporaneous First Symphony (Ondine, 3/96) – it’s the Sibelius of the tone-poems and theatre suites that comes to mind, not the abstract master of Nos 6 and 7. The first movement is vigorous and dramatic in places without compromising the essentially sunny and outgoing character of the whole. The succeeding Adagio confirms Wiren’s melodic genius, with a principal theme of great charm. The finale is less successful, its formal structure somewhere between fantasia and potpourri; though long, it does not really overstay its welcome.

The Third (1943-44) is broadly on the same lines if less prolix: three movements, the first dramatic (indeed it whips up quite a storm), followed by another fine slow movement. The finale is more purposeful – indeed there is a compelling thematic unity running through all three movements – but the tension is dispelled rather than resolved by the coda’s dwelling on the lyrical concluding theme. None the less, as with No 2, this is a symphony that deserves repeated hearings. The performances by the Norrkoping orchestra are top-notch, as is the sound. The two Concert Overtures are lively fillers, light but not slight music. Warmly recommended.'

— Guy Rickards

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Dag Wirén (15 October 1905 – 19 April 1986) was a Swedish composer. He studied at the Royal College of Music, Stockholm from 1926 to 1931, then with Leonid Sabaneyev in Paris, where he also met Stravinsky. Wirén's music, known for its quality and listener-friendly style, spans from popular to serious works. His early pieces in Paris, like the Piano Trio and the Sinfonietta, are in a neoclassical style. Returning to Sweden, he went on to compose five symphonies, concertos and other orchestral works, as well as instrumental and chamber music. His style became more serious, perhaps under the influence of Sibelius.

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Thomas Dausgaard (born 4 July 1963 in Copenhagen) is a Danish conductor. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music in Copenhagen, with Norman Del Mar at the Royal College of Music in London, and in masterclasses with Franco Ferrara, Leonard Bernstein and Hiroyuki Iwaki. Dausgaard was chief conductor of the Swedish Chamber Orchestra (1997–2019), the Danish National Symphony Orchestra (2004–2011), the Seattle Symphony (2019–2022), and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (2016–2022). He has recently been appointed as Principal Guest Conductor of the RTVE Symphony Orchestra.

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