Finnish Tone

Sibelius Tone Poems performed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra under Osmo Vanska. This combination have completed a fine cycle of all of Sibelius's orchestral music but with my policy of avoiding unnecessary duplication of material, this is the only cd of theirs that I have. There are seven tone poems included, the most substantial of which are En Saga, Pohjola's Daughter, Night Ride and Sunrise and The Oceanides. They cover a period from 1892 to 1914 in terms of composition, which is from the beginning of Sibelius's orchestral writing to the height of his early success. Several of the pieces take their inspiration from Finnish folk tales, although Sibelius always manages to evoke a certain Finnish feel without quoting directly from folk tunes, in a similar way to Dvorak with Czech themes. The Oceanides is the exception since the story is taken from classical mythology and the music has more of an impressionist feel. Despite the title, there isn't anything particularly nautical in the representation and any temptation to compare with Debussy's La Mer should be resisted. The Lahti Symphony, as would be expected, are totally at home in this repertoire.