Oulu Sinfonia; Rumon Gamba - Pictures from Finland CD

Following their successful album Overtures from Finland (CHSA 5336), Rumon Gamba conducts the Oulu Symphony Orchestra in another programme of works from their native land. The album takes its title from Selim Palmgren’s four-movement suite, which was written in 1904 and comprises richly atmospheric character pieces celebrating the changing seasons. Several of the works here take inspiration from the natural world, not least Sibelius’ Kurkikohtaus (Scene with Cranes), originally composed as incidental music for a play by his brother-in-law, Arvid Järnefelt. Robert Kajanus is often considered the father of Finnish music. As a young man, Kajanus was one of the standard-bearers in the drive for Finnish independence, and he developed a keen artistic interest in Finnish folklore and vernacular traditions. His Second Finnish Rhapsody (Suomalainen rapsodia), Op. 8, dates from 1886 and is the oldest work here. The album also features works by two other key Finnish composers: Väinö Raitio and Leevi Madetoja – a native of Oulu. Taken as a whole, the album presents its own fascinating picture of Finnish orchestral music.