Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 (original version)

Featuring

Thomas Dausgaard
Svenska Kammarorkestern
Robert Schumann

Did you know?

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Critical Reception

The Leipzig premiere of Schumann's D minor Symphony (Symphony No. 4) was a 'flop,' partly because Felix Mendelssohn, who was supposed to conduct it, cancelled at the last minute.

Interpretation

Conductor Thomas Dausgaard and the Swedish Chamber Orchestra perform Schumann's symphonies with a small orchestra, similar in size to what Schumann himself would have worked with in Düsseldorf.

Composer Biography

Robert Schumann's Symphony No. 2 was conceived and written after a serious breakdown in his mental and physical health, during which he experienced constant anxiety and the onset of tinnitus.

Recording & Production

This Hybrid SACD recording offers both stereo (CD and SACD) and 5.0 surround sound playback, aiming to reproduce the natural sound of a concert venue using modern technology.

Composition History

Robert Schumann's Symphony No. 4, presented in its original 1841 version on this album, was actually the second symphony he composed.

Critical Reception

Johannes Brahms, a renowned composer and contemporary of Schumann, believed that the revised version of Schumann's Symphony No. 4 'lost in terms of charm, lightness and clarity' compared to the original.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Goethe's 'Faust' was a lifelong obsession for Robert Schumann, leading him to compose an overture in 1853 after ten years of intermittent preoccupation with the masterwork.