# Inextinguishable



## tahnak (Jan 19, 2009)

The broad philosophical theme behind this dark symphony is what Nielsen called the indestructability of the life force. He wrote, " This symphony is meant to express the appearance of the most elementary forces among humans, animals and even plants. In case, all the world were to be devastated by fire, flood and volcanoes, all things being destroyed; then, nature would still begin to breed new life again. Soon, the plants would begin to multiply, the breeding and screaming of birds would be seen and heard, the aspiration of humans would be felt. These forces, which are 'inextinguishable' , are what I have tried to present".
It is a musical drama in which the key of E Flat Major representing life wins an ultimate victory over an unstable D Minor tonality representing chaos and destruction. In the finale, we come across two timpanists who steam in from both sides of the orchestra thundering furiously. Their cannon fire is in strict canon.
Notable recordings are those by Michael Schonwandt conducting the Danish National Radio Symphony, Leonard Bernstein conducting the New York Philharmonic and Sir Simon Rattle conducting the Birmingham Symphony.


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## Sarabande (Nov 26, 2010)

Yeah Nielsen's 4th really is a great symphony I like it a lot.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

Yes, a great symphony. I have the recording conducted by Zubin Mehta with the Los Angeles Phil. The finale is awesome, but the slow movement also grabs me a lot. It's such a bleak and almost mournful statement. I'd love to see it live, but I am fortunate that I will be seeing Nielsen's 5th symphony mid next year here in Sydney with the Australian Youth Orchestra. I will be getting a recording of this work soon, I want to get to know it before the performance...


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

I know there must be inspiration for composing, but I wish they would keep it to themselves. I'm not interested.

Blomstedt for me.


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## Rondo (Jul 11, 2007)

Vaneyes said:


>


 One of the best CDs I own. This represents some of the finest performances by the SFS.

(And saying that Blomstedt's conducting skills are limited to only Nielsen and Hindemith is like saying Karajan's skills were limited to only Beethoven and Tchaikovsky.)


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

Rondo said:


> (And saying that Blomstedt's conducting skills are limited to only Nielsen and Hindemith is like saying Karajan's skills were limited to only Beethoven and Tchaikovsky.)


Right on, as evidenced by...


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## starry (Jun 2, 2009)

Rondo said:


> One of the best CDs I own. This represents some of the finest performances by the SFS.
> 
> (And saying that Blomstedt's conducting skills are limited to only Nielsen and Hindemith is like saying Karajan's skills were limited to only Beethoven and Tchaikovsky.)


Karajan was actually good in this piece, made me like it back in the 90s.


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