
Pingoud: Symphonic Poems / Oramo, Finnish RSO
His style as exhibited in these five tone-poems (only Fetich, 1917, and Le chant de lâespace â âThe song of spaceâ, 1931-8 â really live up to the âsymphonic poemâ billing; the others are too small in scale) is frankly not particularly distinctive, and can be summed up as a mish-mash of Strauss and Scriabin orchestrated by Prokofiev. Resonances of other composers abound, not least of Russian contemporaries but also Finns such as Melartin in Le prophete (1921) and Fetich, and early Sibelius in Flambeaux eteints (âExtinguished torchesâ, 1919). Fetich is by some way the best of them, skittish and excitable by turns but compelling overall, unlike Le chant de lâespace which is overblown and structurally flaccid. Le prophete, Chantecler (1919) and the rather engaging Flambeaux eteints lie variously in between. Sakari Oramo produces exemplary performances, faithfully recorded. One for the specialists.
-- Gramophone [2/1998]
His style as exhibited in these five tone-poems (only Fetich, 1917, and Le chant de lâespace â âThe song of spaceâ, 1931-8 â really live up to the âsymphonic poemâ billing; the others are too small in scale) is frankly not particularly distinctive, and can be summed up as a mish-mash of Strauss and Scriabin orchestrated by Prokofiev. Resonances of other composers abound, not least of Russian contemporaries but also Finns such as Melartin in Le prophete (1921) and Fetich, and early Sibelius in Flambeaux eteints (âExtinguished torchesâ, 1919). Fetich is by some way the best of them, skittish and excitable by turns but compelling overall, unlike Le chant de lâespace which is overblown and structurally flaccid. Le prophete, Chantecler (1919) and the rather engaging Flambeaux eteints lie variously in between. Sakari Oramo produces exemplary performances, faithfully recorded. One for the specialists.
-- Gramophone [2/1998]
Description
His style as exhibited in these five tone-poems (only Fetich, 1917, and Le chant de lâespace â âThe song of spaceâ, 1931-8 â really live up to the âsymphonic poemâ billing; the others are too small in scale) is frankly not particularly distinctive, and can be summed up as a mish-mash of Strauss and Scriabin orchestrated by Prokofiev. Resonances of other composers abound, not least of Russian contemporaries but also Finns such as Melartin in Le prophete (1921) and Fetich, and early Sibelius in Flambeaux eteints (âExtinguished torchesâ, 1919). Fetich is by some way the best of them, skittish and excitable by turns but compelling overall, unlike Le chant de lâespace which is overblown and structurally flaccid. Le prophete, Chantecler (1919) and the rather engaging Flambeaux eteints lie variously in between. Sakari Oramo produces exemplary performances, faithfully recorded. One for the specialists.
-- Gramophone [2/1998]























