Support us financially by purchasing from

Ludvig Norman (1831-1885)
Concert Overture in E-flat major Op 21 (1856)
The Funeral March in B-flat minor Op 46 To the Memory of August Söderman (1876)
Overture to Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra Op 57 (1881)
Symphony No 3 in D minor Op 58 (1881)
Oulu Symphony Orchestra/Johannes Gustavsson
rec. 2021, Madejota Hall, Oulu Music Centre, Oulu, Finland
ONDINE ODE1391-2 [57]

I suspect I am not alone in barely having heard the name of, let alone a note of music by Ludvig Norman. So perhaps some brief biographical information all courtesy of this CD’s liner note might help. Born in Stockholm in humble circumstances, early exceptional musical talent drew support from luminaries including Jenny Lind which allowed him to tread the familiar path of a conservatory training in Leipzig where teachers included Moscheles for piano and Rietz for composition. He returned to Stockholm becoming a pillar of Sweden’s musical society. He appears to have been a musical polymath active in every possible field but was best remembered as the chief conductor of the Royal Opera for eighteen years from 1861. Curiously – much like Mahler – he avoided the genre he worked in to compose absolute music including three symphonies of which No.3in D minor recorded here is considered the finest.

Other recordings of his music have been available on the Sterling label (Symphonies 1 and 3 and Concert piece for piano and orchestra) and Musica Sveciae for Symphony No 2 and the two overtures presented on this new disc. All of the music here is well crafted and attractive but for me it is resolutely in the second tier. The Symphony is undoubtedly the most interesting work but even that is at about the level of the early Dvořák symphonies before he was able to throw off the creatively limiting influence of Brahms. And therein lies the problem for so many talented composers who beat the path to Leipzig. The Germanic models remained the ultimate ideals throughout their composing lives. Undoubtedly the principals and values that the German conservatory ingrained raised standards in all of the countries around Europe where they were promoted but this came at a price of artistic individuality.

The disc opens with the Concert Overture in E-flat major Op 21. This work written when Norman was in his mid-twenties shows off the virtues of both the composer, the performance and the recording. The Oulu Symphony Orchestra is alert and energetic and caught in attractive unfussy sound. Just occasionally the string ensemble is not absolutely perfect but this is minor and passing and certainly the spirit of the music is well conveyed. “Traditional structure” states the liner and indeed traditional in scope and ambition is true of all the works here. The overture starts with a solemn introduction with primary and secondary material clearly laid out. Two minutes into the eight minute work the main allegro is reached. Norman makes no thematic allowance for anything of a nationalistic bent. But all that said and done this is an attractive work and one that does not deserve complete neglect simply because it is not the best of the best. The Funeral March in B-flat minor Op 46 is likewise well-crafted and sincere. This was written in memory of Norman’s colleague at the Royal Opera – composer and conductor August Söderman and is an impressively sombre and heartfelt piece which occupies a very similar emotional landscape to Grieg’s march for his friend Rikard Nordraak although the Norman is on a smaller more personal scale.

According to the liner, the Overture to Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra Op 57 “was written for the first performance of the eponymous drama...in Stockholm on 28 March 1881.” What is not clear is whether this was part of a suite of incidental music or simply a parallel work inspired by the staging of the play. I assume the latter since the score of the work and instrumentation would seem too substantial for a theatre pit. The style is very much along the lines of similar Shakespeare inspired overtures by the likes of Tchaikovsky or again Dvořák which seek to evoke moods and broader themes associated with the plays rather than illustrating specific scenes. Attractive though Norman’s score is that kind of comparison again shows up the relative limitations of his score; the themes are not as memorable, not as skilfully developed and the story – as far as it exists – not as compellingly told. Of course, the basic narrative and characters do allow for musical depiction; noble Antony, beautiful Cleopatra, their love, Antony’s defeat in battle and their ultimate deaths.

This Shakespeare Overture work and the symphony that is the main work on the disc share adjacent opus numbers but it is the symphony where Norman’s most individual musical voice emerges. Sadly he did not live to hear it performed – contemporary commentators considered it his finest symphony. Certainly across its traditional four movement form – the slow movement is second – Norman impresses with the handling of the musical material. The first movement is dramatic and well-written, certainly the influence of Brahms is clear if not overwhelming. Again the Oulu Symphony Orchestra is energetic and committed allowing the music to have the sweep and drive it surely requires. The second movement Andante Cantabile is a flowing serenade which is developed in an attractive if somewhat predictable way. If the slow movement is relatively fast the scherzo placed third is relatively slow. The result is a central pair of movements that feels somewhat as if they are simply interludes between the main musical arguments of the outer movements. The sweeping upward gesture of the finale’s opening is reminiscent of Schumann’s Spring Symphony as indeed is the chattering string writing that follows it – again the playing of the Oulu players is impressively neat yet dynamic. The Symphony as a whole runs to just 30:05 with the finale occupying just 5:21 which is in proportion to the whole work but underlines the relatively modest musical goals of the work.

Relatively modest musical goals probably sums up the entire disc. There is no doubting the skill and craft of Norman’s writing – which is certainly shown in its best possible light by this new recording – but ultimately none of these works are of any great significance although they are enjoyable within their own limited frame of reference. Something for “Lost Romantics” or Swedish music specialists.

Nick Barnard