Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74 'Pathétique'

“The virtues are self-evident: Dausgaard elicits some impressively accomplished and consistently bright-eyed playing, textures are sifted with watchful care...and his readings are abundantly musical, free of eccentricity and eschew any spurious expressive posturing...their innate good taste and sense of classical equilibrium never allowing the listener to forget for one moment Tchaikovsky's veneration of Mozart.” Gramophone Magazine, January 2013

“Tchaikovsky's textures are never problematically dense, but some of Dausgaard's tempi, especially his breakneck speed for the third-movement march, undermine the extra crispness the smaller-than-usual string section might have achieved.” The Guardian, 1st November 2012 ***

“it's far from just an updated clone of their earlier 'Pathétique', which was serious fiery (E4717422). This one is a touch mellower in tone and style, with no loss at all in terms of class and firepower...Capriccio italien impresses even more, since the work can often seem like a fun piece and little else...Fine material from this stellar team, complementing their previous 'Pathétique' rather than replacing it.” Classic FM Magazine, December 2011 ****

“On this evidence, Mikhail Pletnev remains one of the most intelligent and stylish Tchaikovsky conductors around...[he] possesses the happy knack of making one appreciate just how much extraordinarily novel and daringly spare much of the scoring is...The Scherzo in particular ignites, the tempo challengingly swift yet without any suggestion of breathless fluster.” Gramophone Magazine, January 2012

“If there were no further releases in the series, the composer's final symphony would make a fine valedictory effort for Mackerras, who leads the Philharmonia seamlessly through the piece's emotional roller-coaster. The opening movement alone is a masterful journey...A brilliant recording.” The Independent, 3rd June 2011 *****

“the Mendelssohn here is unmissable and the Tchaikovsky very fine indeed Everything's perfectly placed in the first movement...the march-scherzo glows with unusual clarity...A Midsummer Night's Dream follows with perfect, contrasting lightness . Mackerras gives the lovers and mechanicals all the attentive energy of a young conductor...Post-Thomas Beecham, you won't hear a better performance of the overture than this.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2011 ****/*****

“The symphony's first movement, especially, reaches a level of intensity that's seriously frightening, with astonishing virtuoso firepower from every corner of the orchestra.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2011 *****

“The symphony's first movement, especially, reaches a level of intensity that's seriously frightening, with astonishing virtuoso firepower from every corner of the orchestra.” Classic FM Magazine, September 2011 *****

“There is an immediacy and incisive, almost forensic clarity to this 2009 live performance that makes for tremendous drama at points of crisis...The late, great Sir Charles Mackerras's way with style shows itself in tiny details...So much of what Mackerras did was governed by an acute sense of what articulation can achieve - and this is a superb example.” Gramophone Magazine, October 2011