This disc is a charmer. Wilhelm Peterson-Berger’s Fourth Symphony, subtitled “Holmia”, evokes the sites and sounds of his native Stockholm. It’s a light, carefree work mixing hearty Germanic and Swedish folksong with touches (very light touches, mind you) of “American” urban jazz. Premiered in 1930, the symphony attracted much criticism due to its perceived lack of seriousness, but I find its unpretentious simplicity and sense of fantasy entirely in keeping with the subject matter. A city couldn’t ask for a more affectionate tribute.
The Sleeping Beauty Suite and Frösöblomster (Flowers of Frösö) also represent the best in Romantic light music. Their inconsequentiality may sound somewhat faded today, but only if you insist on holding them to a standard of depth that they neither claim nor aspire to. What really matters is that all of this music revels in tunefulness, boasts attractive instrumental sonorities, and avoids dullness at all costs. As with all the discs in this series, Michail Jurowski and the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra play the pants off these delightful works, keeping them moving and communicating their innocent joy in music well made. CPO’s recording sounds marvelous, too.
