Mendelssohn: String Symphony No. 10 in B minor

“Mendelssohn’s youthful Symphonies show a remarkable freshness and spontaneity. While their aspect is simple, they are, in fact, very subtle, in particular by their richness and articulations. This disc is the result of research and reflexions guided by Sir John Eliot Gardiner, who I would like to warmly thank” Laurent Quénelle.

The Heidelberger Sinfoniker and Thomas Fey are already well-known for their critically acclaimed Haydn recordings and this is a stunning recording of Mendelssohn’s symphonies.

The Helsinki Strings, formed of students from the East Helsinki Music Institute and the Sibelius Academy, has fifty members from the ages of 10 to 20. The orchestra was founded by its conductors Csaba and Géza Szilvay in 1972. A substantial number of Finland’s active professional musicians and music teachers have played as members of the Helsinki Strings over the years, and a number have achieved international reputation. Throughout their existence, the Helsinki Strings have demonstrated how an extensive music education and a high-level performance schedule can complement one another. Through concert tours and demonstrations the orchestra has made Finland, Finnish music and string pedagogy known all over the world.

The work started by the Helsinki Strings in the development of string pedagogy and the cultural development through youth orchestras is known and appreciated practically world-wide. The teachers of the young artists believe that a child musician can create real art open to assessment according to absolute artistic standards. The outcome of the concerts and demonstrations by the Helsinki Strings has been that youth orchestras of many countries, which had earlier mainly enriched programmes of school celebrations, are being invited to appear in concert halls as a new class of performers.