In 1889, at the age of 24, Carl Nielsen began his 16-year career in the second violin section of the Royal Danish Orchestra. Five years later he performed with an orchestra for the premiere of his Symphony No. 1. He became a Danish national hero, eventually composing six of his symphonies, which to this day remain one of the core repertoires of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, which recently appointed Principal Conductor has released a 3 CD set containing all six symphonies led by Fabio Luisi. Each day this week we’ll be featuring his one of Nielsen’s first five symphonies from this new cycle, and his June 9th No. 5 on his birthday.

“Carl Nielsen has his own personal language,” says Fabio Luisi. “Sometimes it’s very unusual, but it’s also witty and profound, and it’s clear that the Danish National Symphony Orchestra understands that very well.”

In 2015, NPR’s Tom Huizinga wrote that “quirky” could adequately represent Nielsen’s music. “If you sample almost every passage in his symphony, you’ll find Nielsen grappling with something a little odd, from the not-too-matching harmonies and melodies to the obscure phrases that seesaw from major to minor. Huizinga briefly describes Nielsen’s First Symphony:

Nielsen quickly found his voice as a composer, a style that brought out the natural sounds and powerful ideas of his childhood in the countryside. Michael Steinberg has said that Carl Nielsen’s Symphony No. 1 is Nielsen’s from the first notes where the harmonies and the opening tune do not match perfectly.

Carl Nielsen’s Symphony No. 1 from the new cycle, recorded by the Danish National Symphony Orchestra under Fabio Luisi, is today’s midday masterpiece.