Askenazy and the Philharmonia produced a very good 6th Symphony in their previous cycle for Decca, and not a great deal has changed, except that in the Stockholm performance the tempi are all notably faster, giving the lie to the adage that conductors slow music down as they age. This lovely symphony, often neglected in concert programmes, is regarded as a masterpiece by many musicologists. In following the exultant 5th, it is drained of heroism, and it also reserves epic glory for the 7th Symphony. Yet it has fragile beauties of its own.

The second volume of Sibelius' complete symphonies series features the 4th and 5th symphonies, the light and shadow of the composer's masterly musicality. Adding one the composer's most famous pieces, "Finlandia," this disc displays the delicate, rich expression of music through the combination of Vladimir Ashkenazy and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic.

The 2nd symphony, Sibelius' most popular, is featured in this third volume of the series. Together with orchestral gems Tapiola and The Swan of Tuonela, the conductor and orchestra show their close, deep connection to the composer as they depict beautiful scenes of nature in the Nordic countries.

English conductors, including Thomas Beecham, John Barbirolli, Anthony Collins, and Colin Davis, have an excellent track record recording the symphonies of Jean Sibelius. Thus, when Simon Rattle first took a shot at Sibelius with his 1981 recording of the Fifth with the London Philharmonia, hopes were high that the next generation of English Sibelius conductors was ready to take up the torch.

Vladimir Ashkenazy's style of conducting, not dissimilar to his keyboard style, is unmatched in the development of long climaxes, exploding in the end with a surge of precise power. Sibelius is one of the composers most suited to his style, and you can confidently pick from among his recordings of the Finnish master. His reading here of the Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Op. 39, the most purely Tchaikovskian work among Sibelius' seven symphonies, is among the very best available, with awe-inspiring control in the development of the first-movement material and the emergence of a superbly responsive instrument in the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, whose recordings of large-orchestra music in recent years have been second to none.

Conductor Nicholas Collon’s second Sibelius album together with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra focuses on works written by Sibelius during or just before World War I, and culminating in the 5th Symphony, one of the composer’s symphonic key works. Two opuses for violin and orchestra, Two Serenades and Two Serious Melodies, one of Sibelius’ most religious works, are featuring star violinist Christian Tetzlaff. Sibelius’ music for Strindberg’s Symbolistic play Swanwhite is a rarely performed gem with interesting thematic connections to other works included on this album, including the 5th Symphony.

This well recorded disc from 1985 delivers impressive readings of both of these works. Mullova takes a very individual view of these concertos and has the technical assurance to communicate her view with compelling certainty.
The Tchaikovsky concerto is played in the full uncut version that was written by the composer. This is now becoming more common but in 1985 was still unusual enough to warrant comment. By playing the notes as Tchaikovsky had intended Mullova signals a very serious intent which she carries out throughout these two concertos.

This volume concludes the complete Sibelius symphonies performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra under Santtu-Matias Rouvali. This series has already won numerous awards around the world and reaches its climax here with two of Sibelius’ greatest symphonies: Andrew Mellor writes in his introductory text that "we hear music carried by forms of gravitational energy reminiscent of those that govern the course of a river". Rouvali has also chosen to record eight extracts from Sibelius’ incidental music for Shakespeare’s The Tempest. First performed in March 1926, it is one of Sibelius's final orchestral works and is certainly his most fascinating composition for the theatre.

Both quartets on this disc are by composers who were not known for their chamber music, and in the case of Verdi, the E minor quartet stands completely outside his usual mode of composition. The Sibelius quartet, while it veers far from the well worn path of late-romantic chamber music, lies comfortably within its composer's milieu, with its angular harmonies, stark melodies, and overall enigmatic mood.

1931 was the breakthrough year for 32-year-old Hungarian immigrant Eugene Ormandy. First, he was engaged by the Philadelphia Orchestra to deputize for his idol Toscanini, who was briefly indisposed. Then, a few months later, he was asked to step in for the conductor of the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra, also indisposed – but in this case permanently. Soon Ormandy was hired to take over that rising Midwestern orchestra. At the end of his five-year tenure in Minneapolis, which produced a considerable discography for RCA Victor (available in an 11-CD Sony Classical box set), Ormandy was called back to Philadelphia, this time to become its co-conductor with Leopold Stokowski. In 1936, he began recording regularly for Victor with his new orchestra, picking up the pace in 1938 when he became its sole music director.

This massive new reissue from Eugene Ormandy’s stereo discography collects all the Columbia Masterworks recordings he made in Philadelphia between the early 1960s and early 1980s. Sony Classical’s new 94-CD box set once again demonstrates what noted critic Jed Distler, reviewing the previous instalment of this ambitious project “The Columbia Stereo Collection 1958–1963” in Gramophone’s December 2023 issue, characterized as “the Philadelphia Orchestra’s brilliance and versatility as well as Ormandy’s unflappable consistency and habitually underestimated interpretative gifts”.

This massive new reissue from Eugene Ormandy’s stereo discography collects all the Columbia Masterworks recordings he made in Philadelphia between the early 1960s and early 1980s. Sony Classical’s new 94-CD box set once again demonstrates what noted critic Jed Distler, reviewing the previous instalment of this ambitious project “The Columbia Stereo Collection 1958–1963” in Gramophone’s December 2023 issue, characterized as “the Philadelphia Orchestra’s brilliance and versatility as well as Ormandy’s unflappable consistency and habitually underestimated interpretative gifts”.

Over 40 years of collaboration between Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra is among the most dazzling and longest connections in the history of classical music. In this unique edition, all mono recordings from the period from 1944 to 1958 appear on 120 CDs for the Columbia label. They also reflect an important section of record history in the changing cover design. Ormandy, a master of orchestral brilliance and timbres and also appreciated as an excellent companion, created the famous "Philadelphia Sound" with his orchestra.

Over 40 years of collaboration between Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra is among the most dazzling and longest connections in the history of classical music. In this unique edition, all mono recordings from the period from 1944 to 1958 appear on 120 CDs for the Columbia label. They also reflect an important section of record history in the changing cover design. Ormandy, a master of orchestral brilliance and timbres and also appreciated as an excellent companion, created the famous "Philadelphia Sound" with his orchestra.

Over 40 years of collaboration between Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra is among the most dazzling and longest connections in the history of classical music. In this unique edition, all mono recordings from the period from 1944 to 1958 appear on 120 CDs for the Columbia label. They also reflect an important section of record history in the changing cover design. Ormandy, a master of orchestral brilliance and timbres and also appreciated as an excellent companion, created the famous "Philadelphia Sound" with his orchestra.