Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 11

Felix Mendelssohn managed the rare feat of composing twelve symphonies by the age of 15. However these string sinfonias were never published with their own opus numbers and thus regarded as ‘substandard’. The first ‘real’ symphony dates from 1824 and was published as no.1, a few years later he composed his fifth. This live recording offers superb interpretations of the two works, whose origins are so close to each other and allows fascinating insights into the musical world of the young Mendelssohn.

Mendelssohn was only fifteen when he composed his First Symphony by which time he had already written twelve string symphonies. His Symphony No. 4, widely known as the 'Italian' is one of Mendelssohn's most loved compositions. The Ruy Blas overture was written for a play by Victor Hugo.

The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra and Andrew Litton began their cycle of Mendelssohn’s symphonies with Symphony No. 2 ‘Hymn of Praise’ which was described as ‘suitably glowing’ by the reviewer in Financial Times, and ‘alert and vigorous’ in BBC Music Magazine.

Piano duo Tal & Groethuysen returns with a recording of works by Mendelssohn which he adapted himself from the large-scale chamber and orchestral versions they are usually heard in.

The 19th century was the heyday of the four-handed piano duet, a form of music-making that provided music-lovers with the opportunity to perform orchestral and vocal works in their own home that they could otherwise only hear in the concert hall or on stage. Released in the 200th anniversary year of his birth, Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) was a gifted pianist himself and very fond of domestic music-making. He only wrote a handful of original works for piano duet, but the catalogue of his works contains no fewer than 18 arrangements of his own pieces for four-handed piano, among them two symphonies, a string quartet, several overtures and the entire score of his incidental music for Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Thomas Fey and the Heidelberger Sinfoniker present the first volume of what will become the definitive Mendelssohn cycle of the new century! Thomas Fey has been a long-term advocate of the orchestral music of Mendelssohn – a composer he understands. These performances capture the brilliance and fire of the young composer’s imagination at its most luminous. Utilizing the full range of the Heidelberg ensemble’s unique sound, Maestro Fey has assembled several rare and fascinating ALTERNATE versions of Mendelssohn’s String Symphonies that the composer himself later orchestrated. This program has NO competition in the current catalogue of classical music releases!