Here Nielsen, Schulz
and Jersild represent the fresh air
and lightly cooling delight of Danish
song. At the other extreme comes the
challenge of Nørholm's modernism.
It is a challenge softened by the Scandinavian
choral tradition.
In the Schulz the
choir, especially in the fourth song,
are balm to the troubled soul. Lovely
effects abound as in the little refrain
'elskede' (Beloved) in Nightingale.
Everything is laid out with scrupulous
loving care for the listener's receptive
ears.
Jersild studied
with Schierbeck (as did Schulz) and
Roussel. He writes harmonically richer
music as in the delicious light dissonance
of the call 'Nar skal jeg dig engang
i vefden' (Where in the world shall
I find you) which is like a Danish echo
of the sumptuous 'irradiation' of Hadley
or Howells. There is more fibre in this
writing that in that of Schulz.
Nørholm,
a Holmboe pupil, is a master of symphonic
expression. He is no mean composer of
concertos (both forms are to be found
on the undeservedly obscure Kontrapunkt
label). His modernistic style here is
meshed with the lyric tradition seemingly
hard-wired into the psyches of all Danish
composers. One of many highlights is
the bell-dance and dazzle of mosaic
in motion at .0.55 in tr 10, The
song of the demented priest. These
masterly songs recall the humanity and
lyrical intelligence of Geoffrey Bush's
choral settings. The solo voice in the
first and last songs is Hanne Struck-Madsen
(alto). There are two Whitman settings
here.
The Nielsen songs
are contemporary arrangements but tastefully
done in Nielsen style. The Wildest
Time is bluff fun complete with
singing of the Wedding March.
Often I'm Glad has that innocent
hymnal feel - a work of deeper emotionality.
This leads to Tonight which has
the same hymnal sense but mixes in a
Delian complexity. Must the flower
wither has a a slightly wobbly Maria
Jorgensen as the solo voice. Lower
your head O flower is rather too
conventional to be anything but sweet.
Much the same applies to How sweetly
in the summer evening. The final
Moon is Slowly Rising is much
more interesting even if marred by a
weak tenor solo.
This is a typical Danacord
product - declaring quality at every
turn. The notes are in Danish and English
and the translations are a model of
their kind both in content and user-thoughtful
layout. The only trick missed is that
the booklet should have given track
numbers against each poem.
Rob Barnett
Svend
S. Schultz (1913-1998)
Gensyn med Danmark - 4 korsange i dansk-lyrisk
stil
[ 1 ] Gensyn med Danmark(MP3 sample
) 1:27
[ 2 ] De vilde blomster 1:51
[ 3 ] Nattergalen 2:29
[ 4 ] Sidste sang 3:31
Jørgen
Jersild (1913-2004)
Tre romantiske korsange for kor a cappella
[ 5 ] Min yndlingsdal 3:23
[ 6 ] Natteregn 4:03
[ 7 ] Den kedsom vinter gik sin gang
4:08
Ib Nørholm
(f.1931)
Americana, op. 89
[ 8 ] Ikke blot tynde, bristefærdige
grene
(Soloist: Hanne Struck-Madsen, alt)
2:43
[ 9 ] Sne om eftermiddagen(MP3 sample
) 4:07
[10] Den gale præsts sang 4:49
[11] Den sidste påkaldelse
(Solo: Lisette Matzen) 2:27
[12] Charles Webster
(Soloist: Hanne Struck-Madsen, alt)
4:26
Carl Nielsen
(1865-1931)
9 sange arrangeret for blandet kor af
John Høybye
[13] Den villeste 1:47
[14] Tit er jeg glad 2:23
[15] I aften 2:34
[16] Skal blomsterne da visne?
(Soloist: Maria Jørgensen, sopran)
2:07
[17] Hun har mig glemt 2:18
[18] Sænk kun dit hoved, du blomst
(Soloists: Marie Nyborg Jørgensen,
sopran
Bodil-Marie Ellerup Gade, alt
Jørgen Pedersen, tenor
Tore Asbjørn Hansen, bas) 2:78
[19] Hvor sødt i sommeraftenstunden
2:19
[20] Solnedgang 2:33
[21] Sig månen langsomt hæver
(Soloist: Niels Stampe Langballe, bas)
Academic Choir of Aarhus/Uffe Most 