Olsen: Symphony No. 1 - Trombone Concerto - Asgaardsreien Arctic Philharmonic & Christian Lindberg

• Ole Olsen (1850 - 1927): Asgardsreien, Op. 10:
• 1Olsen: Asgardsreien, Op. 1010:38
• Trombone Concerto in F Major, Op. 48:
• 2Olsen: Trombone Concerto in F Major, Op. 48: I. Allegro moderato04:00
• 3Olsen: Trombone Concerto in F Major, Op. 48: II. Molto andante03:10
• 4Olsen: Trombone Concerto in F Major, Op. 48: III. Allegro moderato07:09
• Symphony No. 1 in G Major, Op. 5:
• 5Olsen: Symphony No. 1 in G Major, Op. 5: I. Allegro maestoso08:59
• 6Olsen: Symphony No. 1 in G Major, Op. 5: II. Scherzo07:31
• 7Olsen: Symphony No. 1 in G Major, Op. 5: III. Andante08:32
• 8Olsen: Symphony No. 1 in G Major, Op. 5: IV. Finale. Andante quasi adagio – Allegro assai12:53
• Total Runtime01:02:52

Info for Olsen: Symphony No. 1 - Trombone Concerto - Asgaardsreien

Born in Hammerfest, situated some 450 km north of the Arctic Circle, Ole Olsen was wont to describe himself as the ‘World’s Northernmost Composer’. A contemporary of Grieg and Svendsen, he also regarded himself as holding third place among Norway’s musical elite, with little patience for any competitors’ claims to the same position. Son of the local carpenter and baker (as well as violinist and organist), Olsen went to Trondheim as an apprentice clockmaker at the age of 15, but when his musical gifts were noticed it was arranged for him to study at the conservatory in Leipzig, where Grieg had preceded him some 10 years earlier. Returning to Norway in 1874 Olsen completed his Symphony No. 1, which was premièred in Oslo and which he later himself conducted in Leipzig as well as in Vienna and Copenhagen. From early on he had been influenced by the major works of Wagner and Liszt, and it is possible that Liszt’s symphonic poems were the inspiration for Asgaardsreien (The Ride of Asgaard). In the work, Olsen vividly depicted the mythical ‘Wild Hunt’ that has inspired musicians from Liszt (Transcendental Etude No.8) and Schoenberg (in Gurrelieder) to heavy metal bands. This fascinating composer and his colourful music are portrayed here in the first recording by what must surely be the northernmost of symphony orchestras, the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra, based in the region of Tromsø-Bodø. This recently established orchestra has already performed at the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg and made a tour to China. The orchestra’s flamboyant chief conductor, Christian Lindberg, also appears in his guise as trombone virtuoso par excellence in the first ever recording of Olsen’s Concerto for Tenor Trombone and Orchestra from 1886.

"Lindberg’s phenomenal account of the concerto makes this BIS very special. Haller" (American Record Guide)

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.