10/10 Kurt Atterberg's richly romantic, colorful orchestral vistas require excellent recorded sound and a no-holds-barred performance to make their best effect, and both of these symphonies previously have been well served in this regard, the Third by Sixten Ehrling on Caprice, and the Sixth by Jun'Ichi Hirokami on BIS (earlier versions of this latter work by Beecham and Toscanini remain mere historical curiosities). This new recording, though, sets a new sonic and interpretive standard in both works.

Einar Englund is one of the greatest composers–besides Jean Sibelius–the 20th century has produced. Englund's range of work, especially as seen in his symphonies, has evolved enormously since the end of the Second World War. His later symphonies–the ones on this disc–show the introduction of modern elements into his orchestral pieces. This is evident in Symphony No. 3 (1971) with its mild atonality–the same kind Shostakovich used–that never quite lets go of its Finnish roots, again, like Shostakovich. The Symphony No. 7 (1988) is a stark work about as far from Sibelius as you can get. Recommended highly.

The piano concerto in D minor was composed between 1931–1935 and premiered on November 23, 1935, by the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Toivo Haapanen, with Ernst Linko as the soloist. The concerto is preserved only as a piano reduction and instrument parts, but the original score is lost. The piano part contains several cuts and facilitations by the 1935 soloist, while the instrument parts show no omissions. The most probable result was that the orchestra played some passages without the soloist. For this recording, Leiviskä’s original solo part was restored. Several reviews, mostly under pseudonyms, discussed the symphony after its first performance.

World premiere recording of the Piano Concerto and Symphony No. 1 by the Finnish composer Helvi Leiviskä. Oliver Triendl has brought the works out of oblivion and made them known to a broad public.