Search - Jean Sibelius, Colin Davis, London Symphony Orchestra :: Sibelius: Symphony No. 2; Pohjola's Daughter [Hybrid SACD]

It may be the best Second that I have heard.

A. Grishin | Los Angeles, CA USA | 05/16/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Together with the Violin Concerto, the Second is the most performed of large scale Sibelius works. There are over 100 recordings in existence; 7 of them available on SACD. Many conductors willing to venture into Sibelius have chosen the Second, for a reason. It is quintessential, a manifesto of Sibelius' style. Cold yet herart-wrenching, mysterious yet passionate, exquisitely crafted yet defying the canons of symphonic writing. The symphony has so many faces that there is no single performance that would give it full justice.



Colin Davis is one of the most dedicated Sibelius conductors. He has recorded two complete symphony cycles, one with Boston, the other with LSO. In addition, he has a recording of the Second with Staatskapelle Dresden. Currently, he is recording his third cycle, with LSO, as the previous one; 3,5,6 and 7 have already been released.



This Second was recorded in October 2006. It is remarkable. It is not like anything else. Sir Colin strived to achieve the impossible: to reveal in a single performance the seemingly irreconcilable aspects of this music. He largely succeeded. Entrancing, hypnotizing mystery is there from the beginning to the end. The passion and vigor are there too: although generally tempos are on the slower side, the expressiveness is achieved by firm line and calculated yet hair rising crescendos. The chilling despair of the second movement is utterly convincing. Needless to say it has all the requisites of Sibelius style: crystal clear detail, transparency, balance, synthetic sonorities. This performance is closest to the ideal of all I have ever heard (I have 90 different recordings of this work).



The engineering by Jonathan Stokes of Classical Sound is above praise. Although this is a live performance, there is no audience noise. The ambience in 5 channel playback is incredible. Enchantment, sonic bliss.



On a side note, it goes to show how recording scene is changing to the benefit of music lovers. LSO and other orchestras, Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, or Concertgebouw, to name a few, issue their records on their own labels. Live recordings can be made as good as studio ones. Big labels with their tendency to create personality cults are no longer necessary. However, what's necessary is performances that are not like anything before. The ones with new insight and superior execution. The ones that customers will buy despite them having past recordings of the same work.

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