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"... playful, chivalrous, impulsive and ending in a grand symphonic glow. This is a pleasing collection and bodes well for later volumes." - MusicWeb International "... Holten and the ASO produce what seem to be entirely idiomatic readings, with the rhythms fully sprung ... the recording is clear, capturing the full range of the orchestra ... very good fun ... worth your time." - International Record Review "... performances are first-rate and so is the engineering ... Holten and his players clearly relish the music's colour and energy ... I can only welcome this release with great enthusiasm and high hopes for the series as a whole." - ClassicsToday.com "None of these pieces is exactly easy to play, the more so since none is in any orchestra's repertoire (nor, to be realistic, ever likely to be). The ASO acquits itself bravely under Holten's firm direction and, as usual from this source, recording quality (is) first-rate." - Gramophone This world premiere recording of Dansh composer Knudåge Riisager's complete cycle of symphonies opens with the virtuosic Symphony No. 1 and also includes four lively and humorous orchestral pieces, presented here by Bo Holten and the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra as a series of Danish Pictures in accordance with Riisager's original intentions. These performances illustrate why Riisager, who studied composition in Paris in the 1920s, is now considered a pioneer of the sparkling Neo-Classicist style in Danish music.