Suite: Karelia (1 Intermezzo. 2
Ballade. 3 Alia marcia)
Symphony No. 3, in C played by BBC Orchestra
(Section A), Leader, Paul Beard
Conducted by Clarence Raybould
Sibelius's Suite 'Karelia', Op. 11, was published in 1906 and like ' Finlandia' has a strong national flavour. Karelia forms the extreme south-eastern province of Finland, and is the source of most of the popular national legends. The Karelians have been described by a Finnish writer as representative of the livelier and more sensitive type as opposed to the steadier Tavast or Western Finn. It is the Karelian, ' a bqrn poet and a born trader', that Sibelius portrays in his overture.
Third Symphony
In its remoteness Sibelius's Symphony No. 3 certainly has an affinity with the No. 4, but whereas the latter is sombre and tense in character, the former is almost light-spirited. If it had been intended to be programme music one might imagine a story of some character like a Quilp, or even a Till, of Finnish mythology. Consisting of only three movements, the work is a masterpiece of orchestral technique, especially the string writing.