Search - Sibelius, Ormandy, Po :: Symphonies 2 & 7

Buried treasure

Ray Barnes | Surrey, British Columbia Canada | 04/07/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Both of these symphonies have been lucky to have been so well represented on record. It would be easy to pass over this CD, particularly in the face of competition in the US from Colin Davis in Boston and Bernstein with the NYPO, among others. This performance ranks along side them in artistic quality and is more competitively priced than either. Those who like Sibelius to have a opulent, magisterial sound (instead of the so-called lean, taut sound) will enjoy this disc, especially at its very modest price. Its nearest competitor in this price range would be Adrian Leaper on Naxos, and I would suggest that the Philadelphia Orchestra's playing would probably be the better of the two. The Seventh here is one of my favourite recordings of this enigmatic work, and it is distinguished by very noble brass, particularly the solo trombone writing. The finale is very powerful and dramatic too. The Second is distinguished by the string playing and very sensible tempi; the second movement is not allowed to drag on too long and the transition between the third and final movements is managed superbly. The finale is big without being overblown. The sound engineering is very good, making no allowance at all for the age of the performances. The documentation is excellent. Overall, this is a very satisfying issue and deserves the widest circulation. Strongly recommended."

Sibelius + Ormandy = Essential!

John | New York, NY USA | 12/15/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Essential Classics brings us one of the great bargains in the Classical catalogue.
This 1957 recording is far better sounding than you might think. The strings
and brass are a great deal more extravagant and open than they seem to be in
Modern recordings these days. The Sibelius 2nd symphony gets a commanding
performance and mainly in the finale and the structural design of the symphony is
held together well all throughout. The 7th symphony recorded three years later,
is very impressive indeed. It is wonderfully paced, as well as very intense.
They seldom make recordings like this anymore. The world was a different place."