If I didn’t already know this was Sibelius, I would know it, if you know what I mean. There’s a certain shimmering quality about his music, and so northern sounding.
@@Cuthbert25 -- If you enjoy this, then you should pursue Basil Poledouris' score to 1982's "Conan The Barbarian" -- the actual movie soundtrack. It is like a whole symphony of En Sagas!!! ;^>
Sibelius is so underrated. Been listening to Jean a lot in 2021 and he´s becoming my favorite Romantic composer. ByeBye Russian armada, ive got a new idol.
Sibelius underrated? By whom? He is anything but underrated, his music is Internationally admired and frequently performed. For many, myself included, he is one of the greatest composers of all time.
I got my name "Satu" = fairytale because my brother Tapio loved this orchesterpiece and Jean Sibelius was well-known by the family. I love the melancholy of this orchesterpiece.
He was born 1937 under the very nationalromantic era in Finland; his name Tapio comes from Kalevala, a written nationalromantic opus. The same with my elderly sister, Marjatta, born 1944.
Yes, I have read it. Marjatta rather spoiled things for the old bard in the final Cantos. But as he sped off in his copper boat he reminded us that one day we'll need him again to fix a new Sampo. And so it will be!
@@satuolsson8094 -- "Tapiola" is one of Sibelius' VERY-finest works, coincidentally. ;^> "En Saga" is the best of orchestral action-movie music long before such movies came into being. It would fit perfectly within the world of LOTR, for example.
This has to be the Vänskä, Lahti recording. And it is very good indeed. I learned to play Clarinet because of this pieces ending, as one of the main reasons.
@@rebekkahdruck1392 Another one is Shostakovich 11, last movement has a wonderful oboe solo. Love to play it with my clarinet. czcams.com/video/Lu09CWT41NE/video.html
I had that Gibson/Scottish disc too! It was the best performance of this work EVER! Like in the Gibson/Scottish recording, the strong tympani playing at places like 4:05 sets this one apart from the others.
I know the photo is static, but if you look on the sun on the horizon, especially around 14:45 and feel the music, you kinda expect the sun to rise. And you focus and you may even imagine the wind moving the clouds and the trees towards you a little. Magical.
Yes, it is. Looking at his tone poems, It seems that this piece has been somewhat eclipsed in recent years by Tapiola, which is a wonderful piece also. I wish it had as high a profile among his works as it used to.
it's the rage these days. on the radio, they'll play something, then not say who did it. I have actually quit listening to the radio because of it. upsets me too much.
@@barney6888 I'm afraid in these circumstances the reasons are entirely different. It's called copyright. If the up loader publishes whose playing it they can be prosecuted for not paying performance rights. Just consider yourself lucky you can hear this music for free. Meanwhile the greed of the music industry prevents us from hearing so much more.
2nd ever written work? What are you talking about? His 2nd ever written work is an Allegro for 2 Violins which he wrote in 1881. What you meant to say was that it was his 2nd published Orchestral work. However the version that is now widely performed was not finalized until after the 1st Symphony had its final revision as well and first performance in Finland.
A very fine performance, indeed! In my opinion only the final allegro (starting at 13:30) is a teeny bit too fast, being restless more than dramatic. The gran cassa also is a bit rude at times towards the end, having also a tendency to accent the last note in the "du - dudu - du" crescendo rhythm (while the emphasis being on the note before that) (starting at 4:03 and so on). Puny details, I know. The pianissimi of the orchestra are exquisite.
Some people have commented that the performers are not listed. I guess, then, that the words "music in this video" and "learn more" were added after it was posted, for when I click on "show more" I see, indeed, Lahti Symphony Orchestra, the album title, and the makers of the album, Naxos, famous for their classical recordings.
En Saga (Swedish) = Satu (Finnish) = A Fable (English) = Une Fable (French). Beautiful but a little somber to my taste (even though I'm a Finn i.e. supposed to be melancholic...)
I too would like to know the name of the conductor and which orchestra plays this. I love this translation of the work, so different from the 1963 version by the Sir Malcolm Sergeant lead, Vienna. Not that I criticise that work.
This is the final, revised 1902 version of En Saga. For comparison, here's the original 1892 version, also performed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Osmo Vänskä: czcams.com/video/U_rCidehBn0/video.html .
It is a stupidity to say that Dibelius did not acy ually evolve during his musical life. On one hand, we must seperate symphonies (plus concerto and string quartet), which are in his mind ( see his famous diallog with Gustav Mahler) quite severe works, which a have to give a new birth to classical forms and architectural logics, ans tone poems, which are more liberated from these constraints and allow the composer to express his feelings more directly. Considering the symphonies, what a differnce for uintance between 12 and 2, or 6 and 7 !!! And now considering the tone poems, here in " En saga", we can find a quitesevere but not so dramatic style, who sharply contrast with j his "mliddle period tone poems, which in turn are quite diffrerent from the conclusive Tapiola.
@@johnnelson3665 Dear John. I fam a bit reluctant about your statement. For sure, we fuuly agree with the idea that Diveluis evolved a lot during his life. We could even make efforts to s find "periods" in his style, which in amy mind would be quite academic, somehow artificial and probably a wate of time. Rather that looking for artificical bounaries in this work, I think thet ir would me much more useful and clever to find way males the specific unity of this work, not by a superficial psychlogic attirude, but bt more rigorous approaches which the musicology has developed for about 50 years -the present appoach of "aesthetics". I read a lot a of analytic excellent effortsabout ONE single work, but not srouis efforts in that global dimension. I also fully agrre with the fact that he is by no ways a "modernist". I am more reluctant about considering him as a late romantic composet, even in his first symphony in e minor op. 39. The aesthetic paradigms of the romantism (led by Geman romantism) is reasonably cleae nowadays, and it does not appear to me to convincigly apply to Sibeluis' ones. In my mind ,this quite clear when comparing two 'similar" orks as Schubert's 14th string quartet in d mainoe and Sibluis' simlar wprk; "Voces intimae" in the same mode and tonality. Bot composes were severely i, which led rhes mo a form of depressive pychpathology. In my maind, we could fruitfil compar Sibeluis' and Nielsen's evolution, keeping i maind that the first one had depressive trends, while the second had a cult for willingness philosophy, quiite coman in his time.
Sorry, but "best performance" is an entirely subjective opinion, and when you 1) state out front that this is the "best performance" you've already erred fatally because NOW you have to prove it. But worse yet, this "best performance" is obviously performed by SOME orchestra under SOME conductor, and your inability to provide that information results in not only a second strike, but - in my opinion: a strike OUT.
The orchestra is listed above, under Show More. At least that's where I found it. And you must be new to CZcams, because "best performance" is claimed all over the place. Nobody really has to "prove" anything. You just have to shrug that off--and, frankly, not be so petty as to strike out the work for someone else's failure to post what you feel is more essential than the work itself. Take a deep breath and listen and if the work isn't so good, in your esteemed view, then tell us another which is better and tell us why, with your vast knowledge of the musical repertoire.
@@MontyVierra - the personnel involved in this recording are listed NOW, but were not listed at the time of my comment. It was posted with no reference to the Lahti Orchestra or Vanska. Take a look at other past comments by posters who were attempting to guess whose interpretation this is. I did suspect it was Vanska's Lahti take - that is, his interpretation of the final (1902) version from Sibelius; you may not know that he's also recorded (also with the Lahti SO) Sibelius' ORIGINAL version of En Saga: the 1892 version. And just for the record? I consider THAT recorded version, by Vanska himself: to have the edge over this version, though whether that slightly-longer 1892 En Saga is preferred over the final version I'll leave to others. That said? Vanska's take - THIS one on BIS is very good. I have it in three of the currently-available CD pressings from Vanska and Lahti. And yes, I have a library of over 8,000 CDs, many of which are out of print and reflect interpretations which I would place either on the same plane as that of Vanska, or - better. And subjectively? I prefer Leif Segerstam's reading with the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, which my experienced ear knows well: to be better than this "best" one. Also perhaps better than the Vanska (final version) recording which was posted here as "the best"? Paavo Berglund's great reading with Bournemouth, analog recording aside. It has a seething energy that really reflects what we know of Sibelius' personal strife both in 1892 when he composed the original version and then, later - for more personal reasons, in 1902 when he offered his final revised form. Both Segerstam and Berglund capture that whirlpool of sound to a better degree - in my opinion - than Vanska in his multiple outings. And don't get me wrong: Vanska is an excellent conductor, and gets the best out of the Lahti players, but - in this case, he's just not quite at the top. Again, in my opinion. And another thing about Berglund? He's the man who pulled "Kullervo" out of obscurity and released its initial recording (the Bournemouth 1971, not the later go with Helsinki, which is good, but not quite as good as that first recording with the BSO) - which I still consider to be at the top of the pile, despite so many other conductors and ensembles THEN wishing to add it to their discography over the ensuing half-century of readings. This is a man who understands - like Segerstam - exactly what made Sibelius tick, to an astonishing degree. Though En Saga is not derived from the Kalevala, it IS directly related to Kullervo, and no one (in my opinion) understands that quite so well as Berglund. And if you need any sort of further reassurance of my creds? I first read the Elias Lonnrot "Kalevala" from which Sibelius drew so much of his inspiration and direct roadmaps for compositions: when I was a teen, decades ago. That absolutely massive tome, in its Magoun translation. And have returned to it over the years - it's the virtual bible from which Sibelius derived SO much. Understanding the Kalevala is to understand Sibelius; to truly understand Sibelius and his world is to better be able to adjudicate interpretations of his work. You? But the critical point you dismissed is the use of LANGUAGE. You note yourself the ubiquitous use of "best performance" - which shows that the word itself - "BEST " - has become tainted by mis-use. The meaning of "best" is now, in effect: meaningless, because of the sort of puppy-dog eagerness to proclaim something "the best" without truly comprehending either the actual meaning of the word, or worse: a sense of laziness for not actually researching to determine which (subjectively) IS "the best." How can something be "the best" unless all available options have been experienced? This sort of thing actually demeans both the reader AND all other interpretations unless the OP has actually heard them all. The less-sophisticated reader who may be new to the field is then perhaps swayed into believing that yes, this IS the BEST and that no other recordings, no other interpretations - are to be considered. Which is, of course: unfortunate and perhaps reflects the dumbing-down of the music field. As for my relationship with CZcams? Nope - your sideswipe comment at my experience with CZcams is way off the mark. Let's simply say I have a discerning attitude when it comes both to interpretation across the panoply of the classical rep - and to the use, or mis-use: of language. I hope that helps you.
Since when is music and art in general a matter of competition !!! The word 'best' is not at its place concerning art. And what or who gave you the right to decide what is the "best prefomance" ? You may like this prefomance the most, I can agree on, but you can not say it is [a absolute term] "the best".
You must be new to CZcams. This is done all the time. I'm not defending the poster of the piece for their assertion, but, come on, be a little more mature than the person you're criticizing. Just listen to the music. Don't let someone's words keep you from enjoying it, and if you think there's a better performance, let us know.
If the producers call it Best Performance (which in itself is extremely subjective) then you should have the decency to reveal orchestra, conductor and label. Otherwise, you are simply NOT serious.
Sinfonia Lahti is identified in the header above. They released a recording of En Saga on BIS in 2007, when their principal conductor was Osmo Vänskä. However, the timing of that performance is 22:08, whereas the performance above is 18:18. Perhaps it has been truncated here. If you like the performance, please support the small, idealistic label that released it.
It's the Sinfonia Lahti with Osmo Vänskä conducting in both performances. But the longer performance (22:08) is from the original version of En Saga (1892). This performance is from the shorter revised version (1902), which is more frequently played. My source is from searching on Spotify.
@@MontyVierra Because I am negative about one thing certainly does not mean that I am negative in every respect. This should be a solid enough performance for you. czcams.com/video/0ESX-URO1SM/video.html
If I didn’t already know this was Sibelius, I would know it, if you know what I mean. There’s a certain shimmering quality about his music, and so northern sounding.
Jean Sibelius ; one of the greats ! This piece amazingly foreshadows all of his later masterpieces to come !
So underrated ! This masterpiece have to be way more performed in concerts.
Truly increadible! Sibelius himself said this piece captured the "entirety of my youth". This piece really feels so intimate
What a beautiful piece of music
Awe inspiring. Sibelius had a perception unique amongst composers.
Great stuff--Sibelius was one of a kind.
Ben Garrison (
I have loved this work since childhood!
So have I. In fact, this is the very first piece of 'classical' music that really registered in my mind when I was about four years old.
@@Cuthbert25 -- If you enjoy this, then you should pursue Basil Poledouris' score to 1982's "Conan The Barbarian" -- the actual movie soundtrack. It is like a whole symphony of En Sagas!!! ;^>
The bass drum near the end is very formidable! BRAVO
Sibelius is so underrated. Been listening to Jean a lot in 2021 and he´s becoming my favorite Romantic composer. ByeBye Russian armada, ive got a new idol.
Sibelius underrated? By whom? He is anything but underrated, his music is Internationally admired and frequently performed. For many, myself included, he is one of the greatest composers of all time.
Not quite as good as Tchaikovsky. But nothing wrong with second best. The Nutcracker still owns all Orchestral Works.
Tchaikovsky wrote mawkish populist crap compared to Sibelius.
So why can't you like them all？
I got my name "Satu" = fairytale because my brother Tapio loved this orchesterpiece and Jean Sibelius was well-known by the family.
I love the melancholy of this orchesterpiece.
How did your brother get his name?
He was born 1937 under the very nationalromantic era in Finland; his name Tapio comes from Kalevala, a written nationalromantic opus. The same with my elderly sister, Marjatta, born 1944.
Yes, I have read it. Marjatta rather spoiled things for the old bard in the final Cantos. But as he sped off in his copper boat he reminded us that one day we'll need him again to fix a new Sampo. And so it will be!
@@satuolsson8094 -- "Tapiola" is one of Sibelius' VERY-finest works, coincidentally. ;^> "En Saga" is the best of orchestral action-movie music long before such movies came into being. It would fit perfectly within the world of LOTR, for example.
Thank you for this music.
Brillante obra de este autor finlandés.
Stunning music and performance!
Nevine Wissa
This has to be the Vänskä, Lahti recording. And it is very good indeed. I learned to play Clarinet because of this pieces ending, as one of the main reasons.
Fate picked for you a tremendous work! :^>
That is a beautiful reason to play. God bless.
I guess I am kinda off topic but does anybody know of a good website to stream new tv shows online?
@@soavemusica Yeah, the clarinet solo here is all about beauty and it is relatively easy to play for a beginner.
@@rebekkahdruck1392 Another one is Shostakovich 11, last movement has a wonderful oboe solo. Love to play it with my clarinet.
czcams.com/video/Lu09CWT41NE/video.html
Wonderful work and performance, and the lyrical, melancholy clarinet solo conclusion is a masterstroke.
Excellent rendition! Reminds me of the old LP version of Sir Alexander Gibson with his Scottish National Orchestra.
I had that Gibson/Scottish disc too! It was the best performance of this work EVER! Like in the Gibson/Scottish recording, the strong tympani playing at places like 4:05 sets this one apart from the others.
Loved that one too.
I know the photo is static, but if you look on the sun on the horizon, especially around 14:45 and feel the music, you kinda expect the sun to rise. And you focus and you may even imagine the wind moving the clouds and the trees towards you a little. Magical.
I love all of his music - even this.
Whaddaya mean "even this". It's one of his best pieces!
Yes, it is. Looking at his tone poems, It seems that this piece has been somewhat eclipsed in recent years by Tapiola, which is a wonderful piece also. I wish it had as high a profile among his works as it used to.
Superbe performance, merci beaucoup.
Saw this live today...so amazing
For me..Sibelius,Wagner...Bethoven...Angie Belgium..
個人感覺這個版本的錄音,其適度的堂音,頗能反映影片圖片中風景的環境 ! 由此給人一種雪白聖潔的印象 ! 至於本曲內容可能和很多曲子一樣,具有雙關功能,除可能在描寫芬蘭民族英雄的事蹟外,也可能另外,不例外地在描寫天色風景,在此我想就如同畫面所呈現的那樣,是在描寫日出吧!?聽到中間可看見升起的太陽大放光芒(其前就是雪白聖潔環境氣氛的呈現) ! 最後沉寂下來前的巨響樂段(13:21開始),我想可能是在描寫行雲遮擋太陽的過程!?最後當然是遮擋成功(若日出的假設無誤的話) ! 所以才會先出現雙簧管(15:07),然後緊接著由豎笛(黑管,15:29)來接手(象徵亮度由彩或黃轉至黑,變暗)至終 !?我感覺這個版本詮釋中規中矩,錄音又有氣氛(這是非常關鍵的條件),說是最佳演出,應可說是實至名歸 ! 有網友說是Vanska指揮Lahti S.O.的版本,若所言不虛,我很慶幸才剛買了這個BIS的版本,只是卻無類似的聆賞印象!? 不知是尚未聽過還是音響器材不理想😅?我想親愛的版主可否乾脆就勞駕貴手,直接公佈錄音版本,讓大家都有收藏的機會 !
I'm absolutely fucking in love with this!
I’m glad you love it. But exactly how are you “fucking” in love with it? Use proper grammar when dealing with such great music.
Nice rendition.
Wonderful music!
I think this is Okko Kamu & The Helsinki Radio Symphony Orchestra (DG recording c1974).
Not according to the listing above, which must have been added after you made your comment.
the last harmonies i want to hear before leaving this world
How much extra effort would it be to give us the essential information about who the performers are?
@classicalplus - seriously please try to add the performers' names
Exactly. Claiming "best performance' already does not make sense, all the more if the interpreters are not mentioned.
it's the rage these days. on the radio, they'll play something, then not say who did it. I have actually quit listening to the radio because of it. upsets me too much.
Lo encontré yo mismo, no fue un gran esfuerzo. Solo un par de minutos en Google
@@barney6888 I'm afraid in these circumstances the reasons are entirely different. It's called copyright. If the up loader publishes whose playing it they can be prosecuted for not paying performance rights. Just consider yourself lucky you can hear this music for free. Meanwhile the greed of the music industry prevents us from hearing so much more.
Beautiful performance; considering it was only Sibelius 2nd ever written work. I think it's quite modern and excellent
2nd ever written work? What are you talking about? His 2nd ever written work is an Allegro for 2 Violins which he wrote in 1881. What you meant to say was that it was his 2nd published Orchestral work. However the version that is now widely performed was not finalized until after the 1st Symphony had its final revision as well and first performance in Finland.
@@Quotenwagnerianer gamma diatribe alert
Fantastic!
The best performance is by Alexander. Gibson, just to let you know. This isn’t close.😊
Love it..
To me the best performance is by far Neeme Järvi/Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra (the first one).
A very fine performance, indeed! In my opinion only the final allegro (starting at 13:30) is a teeny bit too fast, being restless more than dramatic. The gran cassa also is a bit rude at times towards the end, having also a tendency to accent the last note in the "du - dudu - du" crescendo rhythm (while the emphasis being on the note before that) (starting at 4:03 and so on). Puny details, I know. The pianissimi of the orchestra are exquisite.
great performance!
Orchestra and conductor? If you don't mind!....
Shown near the top. Click on Show More.
I found in this record the right combination of instruments and it sounds really good.
Its look like ni no kuni ost ( video game) , perfect song !!!
In the history of music, Sibelius is the founder of this style.
It really is a fine performance, but I still prefer the Ashkenazy...
15:28 clarinet solo
Some people have commented that the performers are not listed. I guess, then, that the words "music in this video" and "learn more" were added after it was posted, for when I click on "show more" I see, indeed, Lahti Symphony Orchestra, the album title, and the makers of the album, Naxos, famous for their classical recordings.
Without the advertising in the middle of the music, it would be perfect...
Install adblocker onto your computer and this will be eliminated :-)
wait for it....
En Saga (Swedish) = Satu (Finnish) = A Fable (English) = Une Fable (French). Beautiful but a little somber to my taste (even though I'm a Finn i.e. supposed to be melancholic...)
Sibelius used the lowest registers of his instruments to get his dark effect.
I too would like to know the name of the conductor and which orchestra plays this. I love this translation of the work, so different from the 1963 version by the Sir Malcolm Sergeant lead, Vienna. Not that I criticise that work.
Lahti Symphony Orch, Otto Vänskä
Osmo Vanska, actually. : )
@@mydogskips2 right you are :)
@@pzbrawl Yes Peter, i have the CD and it is wonderful .Lahti do a great job under Vanska.
Which instrument is soloing from 15:35 to 17:10? Isn't it a clarinet?
'Tis
Clarinet
NPR Played this
This is the final, revised 1902 version of En Saga. For comparison, here's the original 1892 version, also performed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Osmo Vänskä: czcams.com/video/U_rCidehBn0/video.html .
Thank you!
Who is the conductor and which is the orchestra?
The epilogue......
Who is the conductor/orchestra?
It is a stupidity to say that Dibelius did not acy ually evolve during his musical life. On one hand, we must seperate symphonies (plus concerto and string quartet), which are in his mind ( see his famous diallog with Gustav Mahler) quite severe works, which a have to give a new birth to classical forms and architectural logics, ans tone poems, which are more liberated from these constraints and allow the composer to express his feelings more directly. Considering the symphonies, what a differnce for uintance between 12 and 2, or 6 and 7 !!! And now considering the tone poems, here in " En saga", we can find a quitesevere but not so dramatic style, who sharply contrast with j his "mliddle period tone poems, which in turn are quite diffrerent from the conclusive Tapiola.
He never left Romanticism. His style did evolve. Just not to Modernism.
@@johnnelson3665 Dear John. I fam a bit reluctant about your statement. For sure, we fuuly agree with the idea that Diveluis evolved a lot during his life. We could even make efforts to s find "periods" in his style, which in amy mind would be quite academic, somehow artificial and probably a wate of time. Rather that looking for artificical bounaries in this work, I think thet ir would me much more useful and clever to find way males the specific unity of this work, not by a superficial psychlogic attirude, but bt more rigorous approaches which the musicology has developed for about 50 years -the present appoach of "aesthetics". I read a lot a of analytic excellent effortsabout ONE single work, but not srouis efforts in that global dimension. I also fully agrre with the fact that he is by no ways a "modernist". I am more reluctant about considering him as a late romantic composet, even in his first symphony in e minor op. 39. The aesthetic paradigms of the romantism (led by Geman romantism) is reasonably cleae nowadays, and it does not appear to me to convincigly apply to Sibeluis' ones. In my mind ,this quite clear when comparing two 'similar" orks as Schubert's 14th string quartet in d mainoe and Sibluis' simlar wprk; "Voces intimae" in the same mode and tonality. Bot composes were severely i, which led rhes mo a form of depressive pychpathology. In my maind, we could fruitfil compar Sibeluis' and Nielsen's evolution, keeping i maind that the first one had depressive trends, while the second had a cult for willingness philosophy, quiite coman in his time.
◑ 🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊 ◐
Best performance ? By whom ?
It's Vänskä, Lahti. And indeed I prefer it as well.
Pasaje violines 2°: 08:40
I hate playing this.
14:45...
Es bella la obra, pero decir que es "la mejor version" se me hace de puro necesitado de likes
A sério
Magnifique
Sorry, but "best performance" is an entirely subjective opinion, and when you 1) state out front that this is the "best performance" you've already erred fatally because NOW you have to prove it. But worse yet, this "best performance" is obviously performed by SOME orchestra under SOME conductor, and your inability to provide that information results in not only a second strike, but - in my opinion: a strike OUT.
The orchestra is listed above, under Show More. At least that's where I found it. And you must be new to CZcams, because "best performance" is claimed all over the place. Nobody really has to "prove" anything. You just have to shrug that off--and, frankly, not be so petty as to strike out the work for someone else's failure to post what you feel is more essential than the work itself. Take a deep breath and listen and if the work isn't so good, in your esteemed view, then tell us another which is better and tell us why, with your vast knowledge of the musical repertoire.
@@MontyVierra - the personnel involved in this recording are listed NOW, but were not listed at the time of my comment. It was posted with no reference to the Lahti Orchestra or Vanska. Take a look at other past comments by posters who were attempting to guess whose interpretation this is. I did suspect it was Vanska's Lahti take - that is, his interpretation of the final (1902) version from Sibelius; you may not know that he's also recorded (also with the Lahti SO) Sibelius' ORIGINAL version of En Saga: the 1892 version. And just for the record? I consider THAT recorded version, by Vanska himself: to have the edge over this version, though whether that slightly-longer 1892 En Saga is preferred over the final version I'll leave to others.
That said? Vanska's take - THIS one on BIS is very good. I have it in three of the currently-available CD pressings from Vanska and Lahti. And yes, I have a library of over 8,000 CDs, many of which are out of print and reflect interpretations which I would place either on the same plane as that of Vanska, or - better. And subjectively? I prefer Leif Segerstam's reading with the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, which my experienced ear knows well: to be better than this "best" one. Also perhaps better than the Vanska (final version) recording which was posted here as "the best"? Paavo Berglund's great reading with Bournemouth, analog recording aside. It has a seething energy that really reflects what we know of Sibelius' personal strife both in 1892 when he composed the original version and then, later - for more personal reasons, in 1902 when he offered his final revised form. Both Segerstam and Berglund capture that whirlpool of sound to a better degree - in my opinion - than Vanska in his multiple outings. And don't get me wrong: Vanska is an excellent conductor, and gets the best out of the Lahti players, but - in this case, he's just not quite at the top. Again, in my opinion.
And another thing about Berglund? He's the man who pulled "Kullervo" out of obscurity and released its initial recording (the Bournemouth 1971, not the later go with Helsinki, which is good, but not quite as good as that first recording with the BSO) - which I still consider to be at the top of the pile, despite so many other conductors and ensembles THEN wishing to add it to their discography over the ensuing half-century of readings. This is a man who understands - like Segerstam - exactly what made Sibelius tick, to an astonishing degree. Though En Saga is not derived from the Kalevala, it IS directly related to Kullervo, and no one (in my opinion) understands that quite so well as Berglund.
And if you need any sort of further reassurance of my creds? I first read the Elias Lonnrot "Kalevala" from which Sibelius drew so much of his inspiration and direct roadmaps for compositions: when I was a teen, decades ago. That absolutely massive tome, in its Magoun translation. And have returned to it over the years - it's the virtual bible from which Sibelius derived SO much. Understanding the Kalevala is to understand Sibelius; to truly understand Sibelius and his world is to better be able to adjudicate interpretations of his work. You?
But the critical point you dismissed is the use of LANGUAGE. You note yourself the ubiquitous use of "best performance" - which shows that the word itself - "BEST " - has become tainted by mis-use. The meaning of "best" is now, in effect: meaningless, because of the sort of puppy-dog eagerness to proclaim something "the best" without truly comprehending either the actual meaning of the word, or worse: a sense of laziness for not actually researching to determine which (subjectively) IS "the best." How can something be "the best" unless all available options have been experienced? This sort of thing actually demeans both the reader AND all other interpretations unless the OP has actually heard them all. The less-sophisticated reader who may be new to the field is then perhaps swayed into believing that yes, this IS the BEST and that no other recordings, no other interpretations - are to be considered. Which is, of course: unfortunate and perhaps reflects the dumbing-down of the music field.
As for my relationship with CZcams? Nope - your sideswipe comment at my experience with CZcams is way off the mark. Let's simply say I have a discerning attitude when it comes both to interpretation across the panoply of the classical rep - and to the use, or mis-use: of language.
I hope that helps you.
Since when is music and art in general a matter of competition !!! The word 'best' is not at its place concerning art. And what or who gave you the right to decide what is the "best prefomance" ? You may like this prefomance the most, I can agree on, but you can not say it is [a absolute term] "the best".
You must be new to CZcams. This is done all the time. I'm not defending the poster of the piece for their assertion, but, come on, be a little more mature than the person you're criticizing. Just listen to the music. Don't let someone's words keep you from enjoying it, and if you think there's a better performance, let us know.
If the producers call it Best Performance (which in itself is extremely subjective) then you should have the decency to reveal orchestra, conductor and label. Otherwise, you are simply NOT serious.
That information is shown above, at least it as as of today 17 Oct 2021. Click on Show More.
Quelk chef, quel orchestre ? Dommage, aucune précision...
Sinfonia Lahti is identified in the header above. They released a recording of En Saga on BIS in 2007, when their principal conductor was Osmo Vänskä. However, the timing of that performance is 22:08, whereas the performance above is 18:18. Perhaps it has been truncated here. If you like the performance, please support the small, idealistic label that released it.
It's the Sinfonia Lahti with Osmo Vänskä conducting in both performances. But the longer performance (22:08) is from the original version of En Saga (1892). This performance is from the shorter revised version (1902), which is more frequently played.
My source is from searching on Spotify.
Ah bon, de quelle précision parlez vous ? 😠 Je simple mélomane est je me vois déambuler en pleine nature💐
sound a bit like star wars
And an earthquake sounds a bit like birdsong!
Best performance ...? Most certainly not!
I see. And you have another that is better? Too bad you could only be a naysayer and not a solid contributor.
@@MontyVierra
Because I am negative about one thing certainly does not mean that I am negative in every respect.
This should be a solid enough performance for you.
czcams.com/video/0ESX-URO1SM/video.html