On this newest endeavour, the Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra, under the direction of Joachim Gustafsson, turns its attention towards Danish composer August Enna (1859-1939) with renderings of two of his charming orchestral works. Traces of several elements from Enna’s musical life converge in the Violin Concerto: his background as a violinist and his deep connection to opera meet the tradition of Nordic national romanticism. While Symphony no.2 may be considered conservative for its era, it is abundantly rich in its continuous melodic flow, creating an immediately impactful experience.

No Danish composer had such great international success around the turn of the 20th century as August Enna, who was famous for his operas in an international style inspired by Verdi, Wagner and French music.

His works were performed as far away as the USA and Australia , but Enna struggled to establish his standing at home in Denmark, partly because of his foreign musical style and his unruly personality.

Time was short for Danish romantic music: this did not just affect Enna Enna, but many other Danish composers who were almost completely neglected for the rest of the 20th century.

His charming orchestral works failed to receive the attention they deserved, though they share the richness of melody and colour of his operas.

One of his most successful orchestral works is the Violin Concerto, in which his background as a violinist and his deep connection to opera meet the tradition of Nordic national romanticism with pastiches of folk music.

Enna wrote his Second Symphony at the age of 48. The symphony is conservative for its time, as well as being extremely generous in its constant melodic flow, with an expanded orchestration.