Although born in Lucerne and trained there at the conservatory - Willem Mengelberg was one of his teachers - Fritz Brun (1878-1959) was mainly a German by his musical nature and much less a typical Swiss. Swiss music culture had always been characterized by a mixture of German, French and Italian influences, but Brun's focus was permanently on the northern neighbors. He wrote symphonies in total,
… which, although differing in structure and size, essentially all conform to the German ideal of the symphony as the orchestral work of the grand style. A clear specimen of this is Symphony No. 3, which was baptized by the composer in 1919. The three-part work lasts about an hour, and is characterized by the solemn, tone striving for monumental weightiness from the outset. Brun undoubtedly mastered his craft, but this symphony is now and then in danger of collapsing under its own weight. The most successful is the relatively light-footed and varied middle section, a series of variations on a Swiss-Italian Christmas song. Those who like to enjoy the heavier symphonic fare, will certainly not get bored with this CD. (JvG)more
