Pietari Inkinen

Deutsche Radio Philharmonie, Pietari Inkinen – Dvořák: Symphony No. 7 in D Minor, Op. 70, B. 141 & Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88, B. 163 (2024)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 01:14:15 minutes | 730 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © SWR Classic

In 1884, Antonín Dvořák undertook his first concert tour to England. This was to become a highlight of his career to date and brought him international recognition and economic security. It was a time of private and professional bliss. It is interesting to note, however, that the Seventh Symphony by no means reflects a consistently pastoral, idyllic atmosphere. On the contrary, the music often has a dramatic and sombre effect. It is possible that Dvořák was coming to terms with the blows of fate he had suffered: he had lost his mother and three children. Four years after the premiere of the Seventh Symphony, Dvořák set to work on his Eighth, which differed substantially from it. In the Seventh, he still adhered to the form of the classical symphony according to Beethoven, but in the Eighth he gave preference to melody over form. It leads through the work, creating the impression of a “sequence of atmospheric poetic pictures”. Finnish conductor Pietari Inkinen has been chief conductor of the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie since 2017 and music director of the KBS Symphony Orchestra in Seoul since 2022. He has conducted many renowned orchestras, including the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra.

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Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and Pietari Inkinen – Festklänge (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 01:03:05 minutes | 650 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © SWR Classic

When typical Christmas music is played on the radio for the first time, the Christmas season begins for many people. However, the music that we like to listen to on these days was not always composed especially for the festive season. We associate Christmas in particular with early, highly emotional memories. The music we associate with these deeply imprinted feelings does not therefore necessarily have to be Christmassy: it simply has to reinforce or reflect these feelings.

In its December 2022 festive concert, the German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by its principal conductor Pietari Inkinen, performed a mix of “real” Christmas music and music associated with the holiday today. In addition to Hely Hutchinson’s “A Carol Symphony,” excerpts from Humperdinck’s “Hansel and Gretel” and Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” were heard, among others.

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Deutsche Radio Philharmonie & Pietari Inkinen – Bartók: Orchestral Works (2022)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/48 kHz | Time – 01:10:13 minutes | 680 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © SWR Classic

Bartok’s Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta (1936) enjoyed right from the beginning a roaring success, being praised by critics as a masterpiece. It was also the composer’s last work published by Universal-Edition in Vienna. A fierce opponent of National-Socialism, he stopped co-operating with his main publisher soon after. The Divertimento (1939), though definitely not a “lightweight”, does hardly give any indication of the political circumstances and events at the time it was created. The piano works on the present recording, arranged for percussion ensemble, are in their original form miniatures whose strong rhythms almost predestinate them for percussion arrangements (Bartok himself experimented extensively with percussion instruments and was familiar with them). Pietari Inkinen is one of the noted rising stars on the international conducting scene. His comprehensive experience in both opera and symphonic repertoire enable him to shape various repertoire into powerful, convincing interpretations. As chief conductor of the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie, he achieved superb performances.

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