Riisager, K.: Benzin / Archaeopteryx / Til Apollon

Featuring

Owain Arwel Hughes
DR SymfoniOrkestret
Knudåge Riisager

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Recording & Production

The music for Benzin on this CD is presented in its unabridged form, as Knudåge Riisager never created a suite, leaving the complete work dormant for over half a century.

Performer Biography

The Danish National Symphony Orchestra / DR, founded in 1925, is considered Denmark's leading symphony orchestra and has collaborated with many major 20th-century conductors and composers.

Composition History

The ballet Benzin, a collaboration between composer Knudåge Riisager and humorist Robert Storm Petersen, was considered one of the most original productions in Danish ballet but was a resounding flop, performed only three times.

Compositional Technique

Riisager's music for Benzin features illustrative, sound-painting instrumental ideas, including glissandi, Flatterzunge, and percussion effects, with highly detailed instructions for instruments like cymbals.

Composer Biography

Knudåge Riisager, the composer, greatly admired the Danish humorist Robert Storm Petersen, whose cartoons and stories significantly influenced Riisager's work.

Compositional Technique

In Benzin, Riisager uses grotesque illustrative effects, such as a cymbal solo for engine noise, a tuba for a cow's lowing, and a cello glissando to evoke a snoring petrol station attendant.