Sibelius: Andante Festivo

Západočeský symfonický orchestr Mariánské Lázně
West-Bohemian Symphony Orchestra Marienbad
Pátek 10. října 2008
Friday October 10th 2008
Michael Roháč - dirigent

[@alessio94232]

This is the most similar version to Sibelius's one I have ever heard.

[@notaire2]

The sound of strings is exquisitely beautiful.

[@MusicBeautyLove]

Absolutely gorgeous. Brought tears to my eyes. The most moving I've heard. Bravo. By the way, I love your conducting.

[@nerdypoodle]

how he conducts the second violins at 2:21 is beautiful. gets your attention in such a gorgeous way. so moving!!

[@ellandelachapelle]

Oh I forgot to say: this is the best modern interpretation of this piece I´ve ever heard. And just the right pace! (not to speak of the spooky feeling I STILL have. Of looking at Sibelius himself.)

[@nickb9470]

I love how you conduct this piece. The recording with Sibelius conducting was actually the first I heard so now almost any modern recording just seems fast to me. I've always seen this piece as the Finnish equivalent to something like 'O God Our Help in Ages Past' for the British. By this I mean solemn and steadfast music to be played at times of national crisis and soul searching. Given that I think the slower tempo entirely appropriate. Also you have such an elegant conducting manner.

[@cefer2179]

Best interpretation

[@1967born]

One of my favourite pieces from Northern composers. Thank you.

[@elenahntalavera]

El director es muy guapo y joven, tiene buenas maneras a mi entender. Muchas gracias, paso a ior la interpretación

[@Steinbach1984]

Thanks a lot for your quick reply. I am very happy that you made your point about your performance. Surely we disagree about the nature of the piece and how it should be played, but you strongly convinced me of your belief in Sibelius and love for the piece. This is the sole condition that can ever make a performance satisfying.

[@Szabo517]

That's the exact tempo I want to hear AF in... Dekuji

[@Kurkikohtaus]

I have found a link to the recording of the performance with Sibelius conducting that I refer to in my original post 4 years ago, you can listen to it by searching KZbin for "Jean Sibelius conducts Andante Festivo". Slow, majestic, uncompromising.

[@Tapkaara]

Great video of a great piece. Good job, Kurki!

[@shireenpowell6726]

Haunting beauty..

[@ellandelachapelle]

@Kurkikohtaus In my view this singular recording done by Sibelius himself (and broadcast live on New Year´s Day 1939, when every Finn was bound to hear it) was a gigantic summing up of the Finnish people. (or they spoke through him, if you will.) Best ever preparation for the coming hardships! (the Winter War in Nov.)

[@nickajeglin]

Practice practice practice. My conductor tells a story of an orchestra he used to play in. When the didn't like a conductor, they would wait an inordinately long time before coming in after his first beat, and continue holding a note after his cutoff only to cutoff when they wanted to. Though now that I look again, this would be really extreme. It's possible that there is a slight lag in the audio.

[@ethansaltmere]

the piece is superb... with all the romantic features of subdominant minor chords and seconded interuppted cadences... yet i feel u have stuttered to much in ure performance... i have read the score... and understand sibelius didnt put a pause above every note... but saying that... youre orchestra is superb and i never got bored.. thanks.

[@ChewbaccaateGandalf]

IMO, the most emotionally moving one is the 1939 version, conducted by Sibelius himself.

[@technichy3633]

what makes it even more amazing is that they sight read it

[@jeandeblaize4175]

Et l'exemple le moins suivi par tous les chefs depuis 1939

[@ayolistenup4149]

2021 ❤️

[@LeRoiDelaRue]

@nickajeglin Well they all stopped on time when that bloke stopped wavin his arms at the end of the music

[@adaugo123456789]

we played this song in my high school orchestra and our conductor always yelled at us for not keeping up with the tempo. It got pretty scary lol

[@JurkoPetlura]

it`s amazing:)

[@Kurkikohtaus]

A few words in my own defence here... The challenge with this piece that conductors face with respect to tempo is that Sibelius' own performance of it, the ONLY recording of Sibelius conducting his own music, chimes-in at about 6 minutes. Most performances one hears are about 4-and-a-half. While 6 minutes is almost unatainable, it is certainly a towering pinaccle of the composer's intentions that a conductor should at least take into consideration. As for rubato... not here, no way.

[@lafayette253]

i love the song we gotten first place on it ( quartet)

[@chris93703]

Why do people play this so fast? The tempo here is perfect.

[@skidekwe1]

I do agree with all comments, though I there is little musical respons to the sentences itself. This had a little to do with the romantic feelings about dynamics; every phrase has its own intensity. I would have loved a more of this in order to make it easier for the listener to keep listening to the colours of sound. This performance makes it had to keep concentrated when listening.

[@36tharmoredinfantry]

Oh yeh, very nice indeed.

[@Kurkikohtaus]

To further the above point made about rubato: This isn't emotion-laden romantic music, that's a mis-reading of the score and of the character of the piece. Also, Sibelius himself indicates very few dynamic differences, the ones I did were "pencilled-in" and very carefully at that. I believe the charm of this piece lies in its straightforwardness and its calm solemnity. Too many liberties with dynamics and tempo in my opinion would turn it into post-romantic schlock. We have Mahler for that.

[@StrawberrySong]

I thought the story with Sibelius' own recording was that he only got one partial run-through with the orchestra before recording for the radio station, so the extremely slow tempo was more of a precaution. I think this tempo is great for the hall you played in though.

[@surfininalaska]

yes, but how do they know how soon to start playing after his gestures have been made?

[@jihanskate]

hmmm in my freshmen orchestra im the concert master and mann i got blown away playing this piece its just amazingg by far the hardest piece my orchestra has played yet but still its super pleasing to the ear when we play it right

[@1967born]

I think your impression is caused by an elapsing time between the video and the audio track.

[@Steinbach1984]

The tempo is surely not too slow, I agree with rocmarin here. it makes the piece solemn and chorale-like. But the performance has a slight lack of schwung: there are too few variations in tempo and the dynamics are rather flat. Emotion-laden romantic music like this absolutely needs a strong rubato. Too bad that the timpani at the end are absent. But anyway, thanks for posting this moving piece!

[@notaire21]

Der Ton der Streicher ist aussergewoenlich schoen.

[@noriemeha]

Where can one get copy of Sibelius conducting it?

[@ceckviolinist]

I am in love with this piece. Many of Sibelius' piece can go towards the pretty ugly music. But this piece is just pure beauty. I want to play this so badly because it just is amazing

[@chris93703]

Who is conducting? Anyone know the name?

[@Kurkikohtaus]

Name is in the video description 🙂

[@chris93703]

@@Kurkikohtaus Where is the name in the description? Which words are his name?

[@Kurkikohtaus]

@@chris93703 dirigent = conductor

[@nickajeglin]

Good orchestras play behind the conductor, sometimes quite a long ways behind the conductor. It allows him more flexibility with his interpretation. The orchestra has more reaction time to his gestures.

[@ellandelachapelle]

@Kurkikohtaus We have Mahler for that hahaha. (I love him too. But Sibelius didn´t .)

[@ruwenengelmann7620]

I didn't know Zlatan Ibrahimovic could conduct an orchestra

[@愛の次に美しい]

1:50 1:49

[@gaetanomariapiscopo5637]

He borrowed a jacket from a friend taller then him...

[@gorankatic40000bc]

Neeme Järvi