Nielsen: Where to Start?

[Karl Henning]

Similarly, the only Nielsen I am aware of having been programmed by the BSO is the Helios Overture, which was part of Paavo Berglund's program when he guest conducted.

[lunar22]

well Nielsen is much more frequently performed over here, I would say. At any rate the 4th and 5th. I went to a Nielsen 5 not long ago. However, the other symphonies-- in particular 3 and 6 which in my book are just as interesting -- don't often make it. Sibelius, on the other hand, seems less popular in Germany than the UK, for instance.

[DaveF]

Similarly, the only Nielsen I am aware of having been programmed by the BSO is the Helios Overture, which was part of Paavo Berglund's program when he guest conducted.

I wonder, cynically, whether that's anything to do with rehearsal time, since Helios is one of the easier Nielsen pieces - the only one my (amateur) orchestra has ever felt capable playing, for example.