HERMAN D. KOPPEL
Orchestral Works Vol. 3
Aalborg Symphony Orchestra

Herman D. Koppel, composer
Moshe Atzmon, conductor

About
Herman D. Koppel’s wartime symphonies are highly ambitious works. There is no doubt that the composer is exploring the limits of his own music, striving towards emotional, melodic and structural extremes. With these two symphonies Koppel also liberated himself from the heritage of Carl Nielsen, who had been his teacher and his idol both as a composer and as a human being.

During the German occupation of Denmark in World War II, the Jewish Herman D. Koppel and his family had to flee to Sweden, where they met a childhood friend of Koppel who had become a baroness. In her house Koppel could compose in peace and quiet. He dedicated his Third Symphony to her, but in spite of the safe surroundings, Koppel’s experience of the war, and of the execution of his Polish-Jewish family in German concentration camps, had a profound impact on his works from this period.

The Aalborg Symphony Orchestra and conductor Moshe Atzmon have won international acclaim for Vols. 1 and 2 in this series, and Dacapo Records is proud to present them in another great performance of one of the most important Danish composers of the twentieth century.

Reviews
An essential disc
(Fanfare Magazine)

Moshe Atzmon and the Aalborg Symphony provide brilliantly executed and highly persuasive performances of both scores ... If you've yet to experience any of Koppel's music, this disc offers a great place to start.
9/9 (Classics Today)

On the whole, the recordings are very well balanced. Recommended.
(International Record Review)

Credits
Recorded at Symfonien, Aalborg on June 13-15 and October 6 2001 (Symphony No. 3) and August 22-26 2000 (Symphony No. 4)
Recording producer: Henrik Sleiborg
Sound engineer: Knud Esmarch
Editing engineers: Knud Esmarch and Henrik Sleiborg
Mastering: Clemens Johansen
Graphic design: Elevator

Dacapo Records acknowledge, with gratitude, the financial support of Sonning-Fonden
This CD has been recorded in cooperation with the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR)