Jean Sibelius: The Sibelius Edition - Theatre Music (SECOND-HAND 6 x CD BOX-SET)

This six-CD box set presents the full spectrum of Jean Sibelius’s theatre music chronologically, opening on the first disc with the complete incidental music for the play King Christian II, performed by conductor Osmo Vänskä and the Lahti Symphony Orchestra featuring baritone Raimo Laukka, alongside the original 1903 music for Arvid Järnefelt's play Kuolema (Death), which features soprano Kirsi Tiihonen and includes an early version of the iconic Valse triste. The second disc is dedicated entirely to the incidental music for Maurice Maeterlinck’s symbolist drama Pelléas ja Mélisande, highlighting mezzosoprano Lilli Paasikivi as the guest soloist. On the third disc, Vänskä and the Lahti Symphony Orchestra bring August Strindberg’s fairy-tale play Swanwhite to life, while conductor Jaakko Kuusisto leads the same orchestra through Mikael Lybeck’s play Ödlan (The Lizard), supplemented by the melodrama Ett ensamt skidspår (A Lonely Ski-trail) narrated by Lasse Pöysti and accompanied by Harri Viitanen on the harmonium. The fourth disc contains the original incidental music for Hjalmar Procopé's play Belshazzar’s Feast, featuring Lilli Paasikivi, followed by a captivating performance of the tragic pantomime Scaramouche by Neeme Järvi and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. The fifth disc returns to Vänskä, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, and the Lahti Opera Chorus for the score to Everyman (Jedermann), paired with a rare theatrical composition for Zachris Topelius's The Surgeon's Stories performed by Jorma Panula and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. The collection culminates with the sixth disc, featuring Osmo Vänskä, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, a full chorus, and vocal soloists in a monumental and complete performance of the incidental music for William Shakespeare’s The Tempest.