Flowering Jasmine Liepāja Symphony Orchestra & Guntis Kuzma

• Ādolfs Skulte (1909 - 2000):
• 1 Skulte: Uvertīra 06:37
• Jānis Ivanovs (1906 - 1983):
• 2 Ivanovs: Varavīksne 09:20
• Alfrēds Kalniņš (1879 - 1951):
• 3 Kalniņš: Pie Staburaga 05:44
• Georgs Pelēcis (b. 1947):
• 4 Pelēcis: Plaukstošais Jasmīns 07:18
• Jānis Porietis (b. 1953):
• 5 Porietis: Rīts 11:36
• Jānis Ķepītis (1908 - 1989):
• 6 Ķepītis: Liriska Balāde 09:00
• Ādolfs Ābele (1889 - 1967):
• 7 Ābele: Meditācija (Vientulībā) 09:47
• Agris Engelmanis (1936 - 2011):
• 8 Engelmanis: Zīmējums Sēpijas Tonī 06:13
• Ēriks Ešenvalds (b. 1977):
• 9 Ešenvalds: Noktirne 10:08
• Total Runtime 01:15:43

Info for Flowering Jasmine

One cannot miss the presence of Latvian nature when listening to the nine tracks selected for this album performed by the Liepaja Symphony Orchestra.

All these miniatures are revealed for a wider audience for the first time in this release - truly, a hidden treasure. They draw their inspiration from the summer dawn (Rits / Morning by Porietis), the sky (Varaviksne / Rainbow by Ivanovs) and the intensive sweet smell of flowers (Plaukstosais Jasmins / Flowering Jasmine by Pelecis). Buth they are not merely the illustration of the beauty of the nature, they serve as a bridge that determines our relationship to the world around us.

These nine miniatures span over a century of Latvian music, from early days of national romanticism (Kalnins) to the postromantic compositions of 21st century (Esenvalds, Pelecis). The modernism is not very evident in Latvian music and this selection is no exception. Nevertheless, you'll not miss the variation of colour and mood in this album as well as variety of instrumentation both for full symphony orchestra as well as music written for strings only.

The richest in tradition from all the Baltic orchestras, The LSO celebrating its 140th season in starts new series of albums in collaboration with SKANi. The world premiere releases of symphonic works inspired by the sea, the city, dance, cinema and literature will follow suit.

Liepaja Symphony Orchestra
Guntis Kuzma, conductor

The Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (LNSO)
is one of the cornerstones of Latvian national culture. Founded in 1926 as the Riga Radio Centre Orchestra, the LNSO has borne its current name since 1990.

The orchestra is a six-time winner of the Grand Music Award, Latvia’s highest honour in classical music. In May 2022, Finnish Tarmo Peltokoski became the Music and Artistic Director of the LNSO.

​ In Autumn 2021, Estonian Kristiina Poska, Chief Conductor of the Flanders Symphony Orchestra, became the Principal Guest Conductor of the LNSO.

​ The orchestra has been led by many brilliant talents and experienced significant growth under the baton of Vassily Sinaisky, Conductor Emeritus of the LNSO since 2017. More recently, notable contributions have been made by Olari Elts, Karel Mark Chichon, and Andris Poga, who was the Music Director and Chief Conductor of the LNSO from 2013 until 2021, when he became the Chief Conductor of the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra and Artistic Adviser to the LNSO.

​ In recent years, the LNSO has performed at the Alte Oper Frankfurt, the Philharmonie de Paris, the Théâtre des Champs Elysées, the Grand Théâtre of Aix-en-Provence, among many other important European concert halls. The orchestra has participated in the Festival de La Roque-d'Anthéron in France, the Bratislava Music Festival in Slovakia and has taken the stage in Germany, Switzerland, and the Baltic States. ​

Giving concerts in Latvia and abroad, the LNSO has collaborated with Ksenija Sidorova, Baiba Skride, Eva Bindere, Frank Peter Zimmermann and Vineta Sareika, Kristina Blaumane and Alexander Knyazev, Nicholas Angelich, Boris Berezovsky, Lucas Debargue, Lukas Geniušas, Daumants Liepiņš, Andrejs Osokins, Georgijs Osokins, Vestard Shimkus and Reinis Zariņš.

​ The LNSO regularly features in recordings of the Finnish label Ondine, focusing on the music by the most prominent Latvian composer of the 20th century Tālivaldis Ķeniņš, as well as the Latvian national record label SKANI. ​

In the second half of the 20th century, the LNSO collaborated with Arvīds Jansons, Kurt Masur, Yevgeny Svetlanov, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Kirill Kondrashin, Yuri Simonov, Neeme Järvi, Krzysztof Penderecki. Many maestros have guided the LNSO in recent times as well: Paavo Järvi, Mariss Jansons, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Andris Nelsons, Jean-Claude Casadesus, Gintaras Rinkevičius a.o. The orchestra has also worked with renowned young conductors such as Klaus Mäkelä, Maxim Emelyanychev, and Tarmo Peltokoski.

Guntis Kuzma
is the LNSO’s conductor since the 2014/2015 season. Successful leadership in concerts with the LNSO, multiple collaborations with the Sinfonietta Rīga and Sinfonia concertante orchestra, the Liepāja SO, the JVLMA Orchestra, and the Latvian Festival Orchestra in summer, 2018.

Guntis Kuzma and the LNSO’s performance of Ādolfs Skulte’s Symphony No. 5 received great praise in the Grand Concert of Latvian Symphony Music in January, 2018. Won Grand Music Award of Latvia for outstanding interpretation in 2018. Assistant professor and head of the Woodwind Instrument Class at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music. LNSO’s principal clarinet from 2008 to 2014. Principal clarinet of the Sinfonietta Rīga since the orchestra’s formation in 2006 until 2015.

Enjoys performing in chamber music projects; a fan of contemporary music, he has performed the clarinet in premieres of several new works. Nominated for Latvia’s Grand Music Award 2012 For Outstanding Work in an Ensemble.

This album contains no booklet.