“Most of this disc is very enjoyable. Järvi is always in absolute control, and one or two moments of unscheduled rubato in La valse can be forgiven, such was the tact and intelligence with which they were managed. Any conductor must balance the impulse to lilt à la viennoise against what appears to be Ravel's implicit instruction not to vary the tempo until around halfway. Järvi does it well and, notably, his speed for the return of the opening is spot on the original, not faster as so often happens. His Boléro is on the quick side, but there's no feeling of scramble, and the only things to miss are the extra trombone slides from Ravel's disc, which unfortunately have never found their way into the score. The Pavane is lovely in all respects – steady but not stodgy – and the Daphnis suite has all the colour and warmth one could ask for. Just occasionally in Ma mère l'oye the balance isn't ideal: in the first movement the cor anglais momentarily obscures the clarinet, and in 'Laideronnette' the piccolo, too, is lost in its lower reaches. The only moment where Järvi's identification with the music seems to falter is with his handling of the 'Retenu/A tempo' marking leading into the final peroration of 'Le jardin féerique'. But these are small points to set against the quality of the whole.”
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