Jean Sibelius
Finnish Composer
1865-1957
Famous Work: Finlandia
Biography Links:
Wikipedia
The Finnish composer Jean Sibelius is best known for Symphonies 2,4 and 5 along with his work 'Finlandia' . Fortunately, there are several complete sets of the symphonies to choose from, all at bargain prices. Basically you can pick and choose which couplings you prefer.
Mazell and the Vienna Philharmonic on London come in a nice box set with great performances, and on MP3 Album. These were originally recorded in the 1960's but the sound is fine, and edges out the competition ever so slightly. The only disadvantage is that there are no other works in this 3CD set, but the price is irresistible.
Mazell and the Vienna Philharmonic on London come in a nice box set with great performances, and on MP3 Album. These were originally recorded in the 1960's but the sound is fine, and edges out the competition ever so slightly. The only disadvantage is that there are no other works in this 3CD set, but the price is irresistible.
Colin Davis on Philips has his recordings with the Boston Symphony Orchestra spread over 2 Philips Duo sets. Set One contains the essential works Symphonies 1,2,4 and 5, while the Set Two contains the remaining symphonies along with other works such as 'Finlandia' and 'Tapiola' and the Violin Concerto. Both sets are also available as MP3 Albums: Set One / Set Two
Ashkenazy has a similar set of Two 2CD sets, also on London. Set One contains Symphony 1,2 and 4, while Set Two has 3,5,6 and 7. The first set also has a wonderful performance of 'Finlandia' and his excellent Symphony 4 recording. This is the set to get if you just want to get one recording. The MP3 versions, like the Davis set are value-priced at about half of the CD versions: Set One / Set Two
Sibelius also composed numerous Tone Poems, some of which are included in the above sets. For a comprehensive collections of these works, Jarvi on DG has a 3CD Trio release that is about as good a selection as you would ever need. Also on MP3 Album. For a single disc collection of these orchestral works, Karajan has a compilation on EMI with all of the most popular works, also on MP3 Album.
The other major work by Sibelius is the Violin Concerto, and you really have to get the set by Heifetz on BMG. The 2CD set contains some excellent works by Glazunov and Bruch, among others with various orchestras that adds to the value. Also on MP3 Album.