Sibelius - The Symphonies - Jarvi, Gothenburg SO [SACD]

 

 

There is no shortage of competing Sibelius Symphony sets to this one if you ignore the SACD exclusivity. Some of the top contenders would be Colin Davis on Philips, Osmo Vanska conducting the Lahti orchestra on BIS, and Paavo Berglund with the Helsinki Philharmonic on EMI Seraphim. Sibelius himself conducted the Gothenburg Symphony, and the DGG set reveals the orchestra to be right up there with the best of the world's orchestras.  The performances are full of life and expression, the equal of some of the individual recordings I have on SACD by the London Philharmonic and the London Symphony. The familiar last movement of the Fifth, with its "swinging hammer" theme, was glorious in its sweep and drama - one of my favorite moments in the whole set. Järvi's Seventh runs longer than most of the competing versions but it flows along so beautifully and makes more musical sense out of this complex work. It may be the best of the excellent complete set.--John Sunier

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Sibelius - Symphonies 4 and 7 - Ormandy, Philadelphia Orchestra

 

 

Great news! Arkivmusic.com has gotten its "on demand" hands on the Japanese RCA Ormandy Edition, making these recordings available in North America at far saner prices. Some of these performances are outstanding, nowhere more so than here--one of the greatest Sibelius recordings ever made. Eugene Ormandy's Fourth Symphony is magnificent: gaunt, direct, and unflinching, with stunning string playing and the most intelligent approach on disc to the percussion conundrum in the finale (chimes at the "sonore" climax, glockenspiel everywhere else). Some listeners might prefer a swifter tempo in the scherzo, but this interpretation is all of a piece, taking in the work as if in one sweeping gesture, and Sibelians will understand just what that means.

The Seventh also is a perfectly paced, immaculately played performance, with none of the mannerisms in the pastoral interlude that disturb Ormandy's first recording for Sony. As for the tone poems, there is no finer performance of Oceanides available anywhere, and Pohjola's Daughter is just about as good. Ormandy could come across as a somewhat stiff and unsmiling interpreter, but not here, and particularly not in music that requires an absolutely logical, indeed mathematical approach to tempo relationships between sections. Both in terms of performance quality and programming (Sibelius at his very greatest throughout), it just doesn't get any better.

The Japanese edition apparently used original unaltered sources, meaning the tapes were not remastered in any way, and so vary widely in sound quality--from very good, as here, to virtually unlistenable (Mahler Second). So until someone goes back and redoes them from scratch--and we may have a very long wait--you will have to buy selectively. These recordings, from the late 1970s, stand among the best-sounding of the lot. A magnificent release that you won't want to miss!—David Hurwitz

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Sibelius - Complete Works For Violin & Orchestra - Christian Tetzlaff

 

 

Christian Tetzlaff's effortless virtuosity, purity of intonation, and slight emotional reticence perfectly suits Sibelius, making this the finest available collection of the Finnish composer's music for violin and orchestra. In the concerto, Tetzlaff's relative coolness makes the music sound more like Sibelius and less like a violin concerto, which is all to the good. That doesn't mean he lacks anything in sheer technique: indeed, his first-movement cadenza impresses as one of the most impressively concentrated and musically satisfying on disc. Tetzlaff's slow movement sings but avoids panting and heaving, while the finale realizes the music's gentle melancholy as well as its more thrusting elements. He's nicely accompanied by Thomas Dausgaard, whose gentle support perfectly suits the overall interpretation.

What makes this disc truly special, though, is the inclusion of the charming and sadly neglected later pieces, especially the characterful Humoresques and the charming Two Serenades. There's no question that Tetzlaff's approach represents a thoroughly idiomatic realization of this curious and subtle music (whereas in the concerto some may prefer a more barn-burning perspective). Here, with no barns to burn, we can enjoy Tetzlaff's elegant phrasing, winsome tone, and sheer musicality with no qualms whatsoever. Virgin's recording is well-balanced but somewhat low-level. Turning up the volume adds considerably to the music's presence and impact.—David Hurwitz

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