Ture Rangström - Symphony No. 2 in D minor, "Mitt land" (1919)

Symphony No. 2 in D minor, "Mitt land" (1919)
I. Sagan (Legend): Allegretto grave e fantastico [0:00]
II. Skogen, vagen, sommarnatten (Forest, road, summer night): Andante e scherzo all' improvisazione [15:12]
III. Drommen (The dream): Allegro energico e maestoso [29:47]
The second symphony by Swedish composer, conductor and music critic Ture Rangström (1884-1947), which he titled "Mitt land" ("My Country"). This work vividly depicts Scandinavian legends and landscapes as filtered through Rangström's powerful musical imagination.
Conductor: Michail Jurowski
Norrköping Symphony Orchestra

[@ntnstern]

In my opinion the best symphony of a swedish composer-I hope so so much that Segerstam will make a new recording of this masterwork!!!!

[@gabrieru1983]

he certainly knew how to end a symphony

[@Fafner888]

Wow, great work. Easily one of the best Swedish symphonies written, I like it more than Stenhammar and Atterberg. Thank you very much for the upload!

[@pamelakeightley3472]

This inspires me to hope to go there someday,or at least have an idea what it would be like!..love a good tune!

[@Glamourleichensack]

...this ist my favorite of his 4 symphonys. Nice, and underrated work and composer, I think....

[@keesklaver9153]

Waarom horen we in de Nederlandse concertzalen altijd dezelfde muziek? Altijd weer Beethoven, Schubert, Mahler, Bruckner, etc Waarom niet een keer Ture Rangström?

[@12corners]

Great stuff!

[@MedievalRichard]

Splendid stuff!

[@marcelolasta3228]

Super!!!!!!!

[@paxpaxart4740]

Fantastic, powerful symphony. Has a true Scandinavian feel to it. Can't agree with Colin on the banality. If good tunes translates as banal, so be it!

[@batchkurs]

The Swedish state radio service played this symphony on 14th september. The announcer failed to mention its title "Mitt land" (My country). I wonder why.

[@MScJorgePoveda]

Que forma musical de expresarse tiene este lamentablemente desconocido compositor digno de mejor suerte.

[@fulviopolce1884]

Impressionante....

[@ronaldbwoodall2628]

His manner of composition, with lean textures and sparing though effective use of counterpoint, gives Rangtroem's music a panoramic breadth like that of a rich painting converted into a finely-wrought filigree of sound. This symphony is powerful and evocative, but it does seem to meander and lose focus a bit, perhaps by design, given the varied aspects of the subject chosen. The final pages beginning at 36:01 are impressive, but on first hearing seem somewhat contrived and pretentious. My favorite parts of the work are actually the more reflective moments: the bassoon passage at 2:06, and the flute embellishment at 7:57 especially. I've heard all Rangstroem's symphonies except the First, and so far I think the Fourth is his masterpiece, then the Third. The Second is a fine work though; unlike Colin, I can find nothing banal in it, or indeed in any Rangstroem work I've heard.

[@KaptenKlaenning]

The first symphony is very reminiscent of his tone poem 'Song of the Sea'. There's a recording of it with the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra. I would however argue that what sets Rangström apart is his focus on the "song" in the music rather than pure counterpoint. Although he did study some counterpoint he was never really interested in using it as a means of expression. He, for instance, never wrote a complete fugue.

[@kuang-licheng402]

nice

[@Scion-cy6wj]

1. Sagan: Allegretto grave e fantastico 2. Skogen, vagen, sommarnatten: Adante e scherzo all' improvisazione 3. Drommen: Allegro energico e maestoso Though well versed in counterpoint and sonata principles, Rangström largely rejected these techniques in favor of his own, which emphasized content over form, and drama over development. While there’s no doubting the dramatic and narrative power of the music, the lack of true counterpoint (his themes are not harmonically interrelated or contrasted, but rather blatantly juxtaposed) makes them ultimately unsatisfying as symphonies but perfectly suitable, as, for example, film scores, or as multi-movement symphonic poems (poets were his main inspiration). Viewed in that context they are highly effective. The patriotic Second Symphony opens very much like a Scandinavian Vaughan Williams. The similarly pot-boiling Symphony No.2 shares its disc with the surprisingly restrained Intermezzo dramatico, which is a pleasant sounding suite based on modal tunes. Symphony No. 2, subtitled "My Country," followed in 1919. Each of its three movements are likewise subtitled: "The Fairy Tale," "The Forest, the Wave, the Summer Night," and "The Dream." Tunes may not be as memorable as Smetana's, who was the first to call a symphonic work "My Country," but Rangström's spirit is no less patriotic or impassioned. Symphony No.2, with its wonderful nature lyricism, was completed on 16th September, 1919, and the first performance took place the same year, played by the Stockholm Concert Society orchestra. It was performed by Stenhammer/Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra (to whom it was dedicated) on 14th January, 1920. The idea for the symphony developed "fired by your example, after the time we spent together in Stockholm," as Ranstrom wrote in a letter to Stenhammer towards the end of October, 1918. He planned the symphony swiftly "admittedly not in writing, but the essential content, the exposition of the motives and the layout of the whole work was ready." Much later the composer explained that "it was written as a musical declaration of love for the country of Sweden with its incomprehensible length and as a protest against the weakness of its hunched inhabitants. But love was the strongest!"

[@lokismig]

For me, his four symphonies are great. Not with which to stay.

[@atosov]

I thought Mitt Land was a mythical country ruled by rich Mormon venture capitalists.

[@ruramikael]

Don't trust swedish critics!

[@271250cl]

Apart from the rather stirring opening theme, this is one of the most banal symphonies I've ever heard.

[@peterbuckley265]

COLIN, YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT IS EXCELLENT WHEN IT IS IN FRONT OF YOU AND IT IS A LOT BETTER THAN ALL THE HACKNEYED FEW COMPOSERS MUSIC OVERPLAYED ON RADIO 3 UK AND IN CONCERT HALLS, INSTEAD OF THE HUNDREDS OF OTHER EXCELLENT COMPOSERS MUSIC THAT IS DELIBERATELY UNLAWFULLY IGNORED AND NEGLECTED BY CONCERT HALLS AND RADO STATIONS, WHO WRONGFULY ONLY PLAY MUSIC OF A VERY FEW COMPOSERS WHICH GETS SO BORING IN THE END BEING SO STUPIDLY OVERPLAYED ..

[@271250cl]

No need to shout Peter! I agree with you wholeheartedly that concert planners and Radio 3 programmers should be more adventurous in their selection of music for performance and I could give you a long list of composers I believe are neglected but I won't because I doubt if you'd be interested. You like this music? Fine. I happen not to and my opinion is as valid as yours.

[@peterbuckley265]

I HAVE TO USE UPPERCASE DUE TO NOT SO GOOD CLOSE UP SIGHT. COLIN, WHERE ARE YOU BASED ??, YES I AM VERY INTERESTED IN YOUR LIST. MY LIST THAT IS ONLY SCRATCHING THE SURFACE INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING WRONGFULLLY NEGLECTED COMPOSERS, 1, FRANZ LACHNER 1803 - 1890, GERMAN / 2, JOACHIM RAFF 1822 - 1882, GERMAN / 3, ADOLPHE ABRAHAM SAMUEL 1824 - 1898, BELGIAN / 4, RICHARD WETZ 1875 - 1935, GERMAN / 5, LUDOLF NIELSEN 1876 TO 1939, DANISH / 6, KARL BLEYLE 1880 - 1969, AUSTRIAN / 7, FERDINAND RIES 1784 - 1838, GERMAN / . 8, JOHN FERNSTROM 1897 - 1961, SWEDISH / 9 GERARD FINZ1, 1901 - 1956, ENGLISH / 10, STEPAN SULEK 1914 - 1986, CROATION /. PETER N E LONDON.

[@271250cl]

Sorry about the misunderstanding about the upper-case letters, Peter. I live in Cambridge, UK. The problem is, I guess, that people who programme concerts and make listings for radio stations have to put bottoms on seats or get listeners to tune in, so they give people what they want - and on the whole people want what they know. One really wonderful thing, however, is that so much unusual repertoir is now available on CD, and we can hear music by lesser known composers. I know music by some of the composers you list: Raff and Ries, for example and I very much agree with you that our own Gerald Finzi should be performed more. My list would include (in no particular order) E J Moeran (UK), Joely Braga-Santos (portugal), Walter Braunfels (German), Douglas Lilburn (NZ), Henry Cowell (USA). I also feel that, though they are programmed more than many others, there are composers whose work needs more exposure in the concert hall. I'd include Carl Nielsen and Ralph Vaughan Williams in this group, along with Gustav Holst. I particularly wish RVW was better known in Europe, where his work is hardly known at all.