# Lindberg, Lutoslawski and Bruckner



## ZombieBeethoven (Jan 17, 2012)

I was thinking that I would try to expand my musical envelope by attending a concert featuring these works. 
Lindberg: Chorale
Lutoslawski: Symphony No. 4 
Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 "Romantic" 
http://www.laphil.com/tickets/lutos...-conducts-bruckner-and-lutoslawski/2012-12-02
I have listened to them but I don't really know the context of the first two composers and their works outside of what is included in the link above and the wikipedia entries. I have listened to some 20th and 21st century classical music, but it is probably my weakest era. I am curious if some of you could help me put this program into some context. What were the artists trying to convey and what are some of your impressions? My wife will be coming with me. She is a more casual classical music listener. Fortunately, she is also very patient with my hobbies including this one! The first two works are stretching my musical boundries, hopefully they won't go beyond hers.  We may attend the pre-concert talk, but it might be fun to read your thoughts first.


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## Jeremy Marchant (Mar 11, 2010)

I don't know the Lindberg, but I strongly recommend the Lutoslawki. I don't think you'll have any trouble with its idiom. It's a late work and is a perfect example of how to write original music which is clearly rooted in the symphonic tradition of centuries. Lutoslawski was his own man and you won't be mistaking this work for an imitation of someone else, yet the idiom is sufficiently familiar that it will make sense on one hearing. It has a slow, dark opening, contrasting material, and powerful climaxes just as you might hope - but they are assembled and developed in entirely novel ways. I would have thought it is an excellent piece with which to extend your knowledge of music of this era.

I've just reviewed the Chandos CD under Edward Gardner for _Fanfare _and unhesitatingly recommend this, not just for the symphony, but for the three other Lutoslawski works on it which give a broad overview of this composer.


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## Prodromides (Mar 18, 2012)

_Chorale_ by Magnus Lindberg is also on an Ondine album:

















It's a short piece about 6 minutes in duration, so any concert attendees who don't care for _Chorale_ won't need to endure it for long. 

Lindberg makes allusions/referrences to Bach (according to this CD's liner notes), but - to me - _Chorale_'s vernacular is couched very much in contemporary Finnish modernism.


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## ZombieBeethoven (Jan 17, 2012)

Just a quick follow-up. We went to the concert today. They changed the program a bit, apparently to meet requirements for recording the concert for DG.

Beethoven: King Stephen OvertureBeethoven: King Stephen Overture
Lutosławski: Symphony No. 1
Lutosławski: Fanfare for Los Angeles Philharmonic
Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 
I would have liked to have heard the excluded pieces, but it was a great concert. Also, it was the first time that I had been to the Disney Concert Hall. Loved the hall, both for architecture and acoustics. As the fellow sitting next to me mentioned, "it is like having your ears cleaned out". The acoustics were that impressive. The fact that I found Lutoslawski easier to understand at the performance may partially come from the ability to more clearly hear the layers of musical information. As familiar as Beethoven's second may have been, it was fun to hear this interpretation in this space.
Thank you, Jeremy and Prodromides for your advice.


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## GraemeG (Jun 30, 2009)

Changed the program "a bit"? The only common thing is the name Lutoslawski. If I hadn't the chance for a ticket refund with changes of that magnitude I'd have been highly miffed.
GG


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

The Lindberg CD is one of his more accessible/melodic recordings. But seek it out for the clarinet concerto, which is a great work, imo.

Esa Pekka Salonen recorded Lutoslawski's symphonies 3 & 4 for Sony.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Wow! They excluded the other pieces, why? Because the world needs _yet another_ recording of Beethoven?

Sorry, I'm off to take a chill pill. (I'm blaming my reaction on my head cold.)


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## idomeneo (Oct 2, 2012)

Man looking at the original lineup I was thinking what an incredible concert that would be, seeing what was actually performed is a bit sad. More Beethoven? really...


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