Artist: Rumon Gamba, Iceland Symphony Orchestra
Album: Wirén: Symphony No. 3, Serenade for Strings, Sinfonetta & Divertimento
Genre: Classical
Release Date: 2018
Audio Format:: FLAC (tracks) 24 bit, 96 kHz
Duration: 01:10:14
Total Tracks: 14
Total Size: 1,07 GB

Tracklist:

1-1. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Symphony No. 3, Op. 20. I. Allegro (06:38)
1-2. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Symphony No. 3, Op. 20. II. Adagio (07:35)
1-3. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Symphony No. 3, Op. 20. III. Allegro molto (10:38)
1-4. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Serenade for String Orchestra, Op. 11. I. Preludium (03:17)
1-5. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Serenade for String Orchestra, Op. 11. II. Andante espressivo (04:26)
1-6. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Serenade for String Orchestra, Op. 11. III. Scherzo (03:04)
1-7. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Serenade for String Orchestra, Op. 11. IV. Marcia (04:46)
1-8. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Divertimento, Op. 29. I. Moderato (02:59)
1-9. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Divertimento, Op. 29. II. Allegro moderato (02:19)
1-10. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Divertimento, Op. 29. III. Andantino (03:59)
1-11. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Divertimento, Op. 29. IV. Allegro moderato (02:49)
1-12. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Sinfonietta in C major, Op. 7a. I. Molto allegro ad energico (07:13)
1-13. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Sinfonietta in C major, Op. 7a. II. Andante espressivo (04:21)
1-14. Iceland Symphony Orchestra – Sinfonietta in C major, Op. 7a. III. Molto allegro (06:06)

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No, no: we would never suggest that the music of the Swedish composer Dag Wirén (1905-1986) was in the slightest bit avant-garde. On the contrary, he always strove to write music which, while certainly novel, made for pleasant listening, without either dogma, or pedagogy, or a particular method. His oeuvre, more remarkable for its quality than its quantity, contains five symphonies, of which the Third from 1944 is presented here, and above all the renowned Divertimento for strings from 1957, in which one can discern the legacy of Grieg or Dvořák just as much as Honegger, whom Wirén venerated, or other musicians from the Group of Six; or indeed Shostakovitch in his more wily moments. The writing shares more than a few family resemblances with Jean Françaix, in its impeccable harmonic, thematic and architectural conceptions, all while retaining its light and transparent spirit. During his lifetime, his rejection of the avant-garde was a black mark against his name; but thirty years on from his death, this kind of consideration is no longer relevant. We can finally rediscover Wirén for what he is: an excellent composer. To cut a long story short, it was he who wrote the score to Absent Friend which was Sweden’s entry for the 1965 Eurovision Song Contest – which was won by France Gall, under the flag of Luxembourg, and not of France, as it happens – Absent Friend was neither strictly pop, nor variety, but a piece of pure classical romance, a tragic waltz sung by a truly great operatic baritone, Ingvar Wixell, accompanied by an exclusively classical orchestra, without drums or anything of the sort!