Fartein Valen: Legende, Op.1 (Ullén)

Fartein Valen (1887–1952): Legende, Op.1 (1908) Fredrik Ullén, piano (rec. 1992) One of Fartein Valen's early works in the late romantic style. It opens with a richly harmonized chorale melody in 5/4, which is then followed by a growling octave passage for the middle section. After a thunderous climax, the chorale melody is reprised, now with a triplet accompaniment, which gets gradually more agitated, before calming down to a tranquil closing. It makes an interesting comparison with the atonal polyphony Valen adopted for his later works.