Pehr Henrik Nordgren

Symphony for Strings op. 43

Pehr Henrik Nordgren (1944-2008) completed Symphony for Strings op. 43 in 1978. Kimmo Korhonen writes: "The work is in five movements, of which the first, third and fifth are slow; their grave pathos provides the framework on which is hung the expression for the entire work. The fast second movement is musically the most diverse, already in terms of the different playing methods employed and the broader colour-spectrum. The main theme bursts forth at several points throughout the movement - and in places its message is put across very insistently indeed - being set against a collage of whining glissandos, extremely high sounds played behind the bridge of the instrument, earsplitting clusters, or mysterious trills and tremolo fields. The finale is the dramaturgical climax of the work. Its anguished, tortured harmony is resolved at a number of strategically important points by major and minor triads; one of such is left playing in the closing bars, tranquil and reassuring."