Conductor Joseph Swensen aims to embody the composer's mindset, feeling like a different person when conducting Debussy compared to Tchaikovsky.
Performer Biography
Joseph Swensen, the conductor, is also a composer and orchestrator, with several of his orchestrations and original compositions published and recorded.
Compositional Technique
The string orchestra arrangement of Debussy's Quartet uses the original parts, but offers a wider and deeper palette of color, dynamic range, and emotional expression.
Interpretation
The Debussy String Quartet is performed here in a version for string orchestra, an idea the conductor believes the revolutionary composer would have loved.
Recording & Production
This album was recorded in the Main Hall of the Witold Lutosławski National Forum of Music in Wrocław, Poland, on January 9-10, 2019.
Performer Biography
Joseph Swensen, the conductor, is an American of Norwegian and Japanese descent, born in Hoboken, New Jersey, and raised in Harlem, New York City.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Joseph Swensen, the conductor, believes that Debussy and Tchaikovsky, though seemingly opposite, share a core musical language of melody.
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