Tchaikovsky: Symphonies Nos. 4, 5 & 6 Arctic Philharmonic & Christian Lindberg

• Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1804-1893): Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 36, TH 27:
• 1I. Andante sostenuto - Moderato con anima17:55
• 2II. Andantino in modo di canzona09:44
• 3III. Scherzo: Pizzicato ostinato - Allegro05:32
• 4IV. Finale: Allegro con fuoco08:26
• Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 74, TH 30 Pathétique:
• 5I. Adagio - Allegro non troppo16:17
• 6II. Allegro con gracia07:42
• 7III. Allegro molto vivace09:01
• 8IV. Finale: Adagio lamentoso08:27
• Symphony No. 5 in E Minor, Op. 64, TH 29:
• 9I. Andante - Allegro con anima13:10
• 10II. Andante cantabile con alcuna licenza12:16
• 11III. Valse: Allegro moderato06:02
• 12IV. Finale: Andante maestoso - Allegro vivace12:16
• Total Runtime02:06:48

Info for Tchaikovsky: Symphonies Nos. 4, 5 & 6

Tchaikovsky’s final three symphonies form an emotional roller-coaster ride with the most desperate lows (the first movement of the Fourth) and hectic highs (the Finale of the Fifth) before arriving at the resigned lament that is the closing Adagio of the Sixth. As the composer himself readily admitted, he had little interest in writing ‘abstract’ music – to his colleague and friend Taneyev he wrote: ‘I should not wish symphonic works to flow from my pen that express nothing, and which consist of empty playing with chords, rhythms and modulations.’ This has given rise to numerous speculations and attempts to interpret Tchaikovsky’s works, and especially these symphonies, in terms of events in his personal life. While the fruitfulness of such an approach is debatable, it is certain that the immediate appeal of the music itself has caused these symphonies to become favorites with musicians and listeners alike.

On the present release, it is Christian Lindberg and his Arctic Philharmonic, based in the far north of Norway, that perform the symphonies. While the recordings of the Fourth and Sixth appear for the first time on disc, that of Symphony No. 5 has been previously released (on BIS-2018) on a release that earned international praise: ‘a superb performance’ was the verdict of the critic in International Record Review, while the French magazine Diapason accorded it top marks.

Arctic Philharmonic
Christian Lindberg, conductor

Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra
Based well north of the Arctic Circle, the Arctic Philharmonic is the world’s youngest and northernmost orchestra, located in the two Norwegian arctic cities, Bodø and Tromsø – and with the whole northern region as its home.

Daily life at the world’s northernmost professional orchestra is both diverse and fun. We are spread over two cities with locations at the cultural centres in both Bodø and Tromsø. We have orchestra rehearsals there most days between 10am and 2pm. Outside scheduled rehearsals, you are likely to find us in the rehearsal room, round the coffee machine or on route to other duties such as teaching, management of various ensembles and solo performances. We are committed to being a resource for the region, both jointly as an orchestra and individually as musicians.

Of the team at the Arctic Philharmonic, 38 of us are artistic employees and play two to four (or more!) concerts per week. Admission is free of charge to roughly half our concerts, such as our lunch concerts at the concert halls in Tromsø and Bodø every week. We use smaller ensembles for these concerts and we enjoy variation. The fact that these popular concerts provide many with their first taste of classical music provides real inspiration for us. We generally play new material each week so as a consequence we spend a lot of time each week practicing on our own.

The remaining 13 of us are administrative employees, and deal with tasks that you don’t see in the concert hall but which are important to keep orchestral life functioning. Without Frode and Børre there wouldn’t be any sheets on our music stands on a Monday morning. And if Vidar and Nils don’t ensure there are tickets for sale, the concert hall will be sadly empty. If you ring us to find out about something you’re wondering about, chances are that Sigrid will answer the phone. That’s something you should be happy about because she will try her utmost to help you.

Christian Lindberg
is the Principal Conductor of the philharmonic orchestra. Alongside a successful career as a trombone soloist and composer, Lindberg is internationally sought-after as a conductor. He regularly conducts orchestras around the world, including in places such as Prague, Malmo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Aarhus, Helsinki, Rotterdam, Milan, Nuremberg, Iceland, Athens and Taipei. Lindberg has previously been the Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Swedish Wind Ensemble and the Nordic Chamber Orchestra.

Together through these years, Christian and the Arctic Philharmonic, have received stunning reviews for their recordings and their performances all over the world and extended recording projects on BIS-records including a box of Tchaikovsky Symphonies as well as Nordic music from the Arctic Region.

Christian and the orchestra, have during few years performed at venues like Mariinsky Theatre St. Petersburg, Beethovenfest Bonn (2014), Grosses Festspielhaus, Salzburg (2015) and Musikverein Vienna (2015), in addition to a tour of China in 2011 (Wu Promotion). Future invitations include a European tour organized by Mark Stephan Buhl Management and a Japan tour organized by Genroh Hara, Pro Arte Musicae.

Lindberg was voted “The Greatest Brass Player in History” by the world's largest radio station Classic FM in 2015, and he was awarded "Artist of the Year" by 16 international chief editors of classical music magazines, in International Classical Music Awards 2016.

We are excited to have prolonged the collaboration with the always enthusiastic and inspiring Christian Lindberg! For the future, Lindberg and the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra are planning several national and international tours together, as well as releasing further albums with the renowned BIS Records.

This album contains no booklet.