| Royal Classics |  |
| Disc No: ROY6472 | |
| Price: Sek. 51 |
Tchaikovsky admitted that he could not write symphonies according to rules and regulations created by others. Fortunately, that did not stop him. He abided by the maxim 'to thine own self be true' and put his own soul into his symphonies. It was a tortured, self-doubting soul which created pessimistic, downward-drooping melodies such as the doleful clarinet march at the start of Symphony No 5, and, despite more positive themes later, the first movement fails to find happiness. That clarinet march pervades the whole symphony, casting a shadow over the Andante's wonderful horn melody and sabotaging the end of the otherwise relaxed and joyful Waltz. It comes in again strongly in the finale, but gradually the gloom lifts, energy overcomes doubt and, after a breath-taking halt in momentum, that fateful march is made to lead the music to a victorious conclusion. The Fifth Symphony was composed during the summer of 1888. It has features in common with the Serenade for Strings of eight years earlier: an opening theme that returns later, and a waltz replacing the traditional Scherzo, but the Serenade lacks the moody demeanour of the Symphony. Tchaikovsky was pleased with the Serenade, and for a composer who regarded even the 1812 Overture as 'valueless', that was remarkable. 'It [the Serenade] is the best thing I have composed', he wrote. A bold, proud theme proceeds to an Allegro moderato at first romantic, then playful, the proud theme returning later to remind us of its existence. A miraculously beautiful Waltz follows. This alone is worthy of the composer's assessment of the entire work. The withdrawn mood of the Elegic conveys a feeling of contentment rather than depression. The finale, based on a slow Russian folksong and a fast one, reintroduces the proud theme before entrusting the conclusion to the ebullience of the latter. Robert Dearling. Discontinued |
| Name: Tchaikovsky Symphony no. 5 | |
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| Composer | Opus | Produced | Music | Key | Performer |
| Tchaikovsky, Peter | Op.64 | 1964 | Symphony no. 5 | E minor | Hallé Orchestra - Sir John Barbirolli |
| Tchaikovsky, Peter | Op.48 | 1964 | Serenade | C major | London Symphony Orchestra - Sir John Barbirolli |