SEATTLE SYMPHONY MEDIA RELEASES ELECTRIFYING PERFORMANCES OF DANISH COMPOSER CARL NIELSEN’S TWO MOST UNFORGETTABLE SYMPHONIES
SYMPHONY NO. 3, “SINFONIA ESPANSIVA”
SYMPHONY NO. 4, “THE INEXTINGUISHABLE”
Worldwide Release November 10, 2017
Available for Pre-sale October 27 on Amazon and iTunes
Seattle, WA – Thomas Dausgaard and the Seattle Symphony present electric performances of two thought-provoking symphonies by Dausgaard’s fellow countryman, Danish composer Carl Nielson. One transports to an expansive inner realm where the scope of the mind is boundless, while the other rejoices in the enduring spirit of man and nature. Together, they reflect our collective human experience as we navigate the internal and external worlds that surround us.
Thomas Dausgaard’s latest Seattle Symphony Media live recording of Nielsen’s Symphonies No. 3, “Sinfonia espansiva,” and No. 4, “The Inextinguishable,” marks the beginning of his long-awaited cycle of the great Danish composer’s human and majestic symphonies. The Seattle Times review of the Fourth Symphony from that performance stated, “Dausgaard underscored the drama in the mighty outbursts from nearly every section; elegant descending passages in thirds, broad unison statements, mysteriously hushed string passages and a blazing finale.”
The Seattle Symphony announced in October 2017 that Danish conductor Thomas Dausgaard will become the orchestra’s next Music Director, beginning in the 2019–2020 season. Dausgaard will succeed current Music Director Ludovic Morlot whose tenure concludes after the 2018–2019 season. Dausgaard’s previous recording projects with the Seattle Symphony include the 2016 live recording of Mahler’s Symphony No. 10 (performing version by Deryck Cooke), which was named Disc of the Year by Europadisc and nominated for a 2017 Gramophone Award with the review stating, “this exceptional issue from the Pacific Northwest ought to be a game-changer for all concerned.”
To obtain a physical or digital review copy of the release, photos, liner notes or any other information on Seattle Symphony Media, please contact Shiva Shafii at shiva.shafii@seattlesymphony.org.
RECORDING DETAILS
Thomas Dausgaard, conductor
Estelí Gomez, soprano
John Taylor Ward, baritone
Seattle Symphony
CARL NIELSEN
Symphony No. 3, “Sinfonia espansiva”
Symphony no. 4, “The Inextinguishable”
Following their recording of Mahler’s Symphony No. 10, which has been shortlisted for the 2017 Gramophone Awards and described as “a game changer for all concerned,” Thomas Dausgaard and the Seattle Symphony return with electric and superbly played performances of Nielsen’s two most famous symphonies. Dausgaard has championed the music of his countryman throughout his career — and this album marks the beginning of his long-awaited cycle of the great Danish composer’s human and majestic symphonies.
Total Timing: 70:54 // Catalog Number: SSM1017 // Producer: Dmitriy Lipay //
Label: Seattle Symphony Media
The Seattle Symphony is grateful to Joan Watjen for her generous support of SEATTLE SYMPHONY MEDIA CDs in memory of her husband Craig.
Recorded in the S. Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium, Benaroya Hall, Seattle, Washington.
Symphony No. 3 was recorded live in concert on June 8, 9 and 10, 2017. Symphony No. 4 was recorded live in concert on November 12 and 14, 2015.
The performances of Symphony No. 3 and Symphony No. 4 were presented as part of the Delta Air Lines Masterworks Season.
Digital downloads and CDs are available through iTunes, Amazon, Qobuz, Primephonic, Acoustic Sounds and HD Tracks. Recordings can be streamed through Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, Google Play, Rhapsody and Microsoft Groove.
ABOUT SEATTLE SYMPHONY MEDIA
Launched in 2014, Seattle Symphony Media is the Seattle Symphony’s independent in-house record label. The Symphony has an extensive catalogue of nearly 150 recordings, which have brought forth three Grammy Awards, 21 Grammy Award nominations and two Emmy Awards throughout its history. Under the direction of Music Director Ludovic Morlot, and President & CEO Simon Woods, the Symphony's in-house record label features both “core repertoire” and some of the eclectic and contemporary programming for which the Seattle Symphony has become recognized. The label includes both studio recordings and performances captured live in concert, allowing the organization an unprecedented breadth of repertoire choices.
All recordings are made in the acoustically superb Benaroya Hall and engineered by the Grammy Award- winning recording engineer Dmitriy Lipay. Using the Symphony’s own state-of-the-art in-house recording studio, recordings have been engineered to audiophile standards and aim to capture as realistically as possible the sound of the orchestra performing onstage with naturalistic imaging, depth of field and dynamic range. Distributed by Naxos of America, the recordings are available in both physical and digital formats from a variety of retailers. Digital content is available in stereo, “Mastered for iTunes,” 96k 24-bit high resolution and 5.1 surround sound.
THOMAS DAUSGAARD
Thomas Dausgaard is renowned for his creativity and innovation in programming, the excitement of his live performances, and his extensive catalogue of critically acclaimed recordings.
He regularly appears with the world’s leading orchestras, including in recent seasons in Europe the Munich Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Staatskapelle Dresden, Bavarian Radio Symphony, Berlin Konzerthaus Orchestra, Vienna Symphony, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. He began his North American career assisting Seiji Ozawa, and has since appeared with The Cleveland Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Washington National Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony, Houston Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Toronto Symphony and the Montreal Symphony. He is also a regular visitor to Asia and Australia, appearing in recent seasons with the Singapore, New Japan Philharmonic, Hong Kong Philharmonic, and the Sydney and Melbourne symphonies. Festival appearances have included the BBC Proms, the Edinburgh International Festival, the Salzburg Festival, Mostly Mozart, the George Enescu Festival and Tanglewood.
As a recording artist, he enjoys long-standing relationships with the BIS and Da Capo labels and has made over 70 CDs, including complete cycles of symphonies by Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann and Rued Langgaard, and the works of Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen with the BBC Symphony Orchestra for Da Capo. “Opening Doors,” his ongoing series for BIS with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, has consistently won praise for performances of 19th-century repertoire more usually associated with symphony orchestras. His most recent release is a critically acclaimed recording of Mahler’s Symphony No. 10 (Deryck Cooke version) with the Seattle Symphony. Currently, with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, he is completing a Brahms cycle and a project that combines J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos with a set of six newly commissioned companion works — both for BIS.
He has been awarded the Cross of Chivalry by the Queen of Denmark, and elected to the Royal Academy of Music in Sweden. His interests beyond music are wide-ranging, and include architecture, landscape and a fascination with the life and culture of remote communities. He lives in Denmark with his family.
ABOUT THE SEATTLE SYMPHONY
The Seattle Symphony is one of America's leading symphony orchestras and is internationally acclaimed for its innovative programming and extensive recording history. Under the leadership of Music Director Ludovic Morlot since September 2011, the Symphony is heard from September through July by more than 500,000 people through live performances and radio broadcasts. It performs in one of the finest modern concert halls in the world — the acoustically superb Benaroya Hall — in downtown Seattle. Its extensive education and community engagement programs reach over 65,000 children and adults each year. The Seattle Symphony has a deep commitment to new music, commissioning many works by living composers each season. The orchestra has made nearly 150 recordings and has received three Grammy Awards, 21 Grammy nominations, two Emmy Awards and numerous other accolades. In 2014 the Symphony launched its in-house recording label, Seattle Symphony Media.
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