Sibelius: Finlandia, Op. 26

“Gibson was a much under-recorded conductor, so this reissue of his tight-reined, yet sweepingly intense way with early Sibelius is especially welcome. The RPO responds to him in classy style.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2011 ****

“Massive, craggy performances which testify to Karajan's exceptional rapport with Sibelius. Many may prefer the less ponderous, airier tempos of Vänska, Beecham or Gibson, and En Saga's build-up is rather calculated, but Tapiola's storm gathers with unequalled power.” BBC Music Magazine, January 2006 *****

“Superlative performances and the excellence of the recording, extraordinarily vivid and realistic, cannot be too strongly emphasised.” Gramophone Magazine

“Of all the cycles of Sibelius's symphonies recorded in recent years this is one of the most consistently successful. Ashkenazy so well understands the thought processes that lie behind Sibelius's symphonic composition just as he's aware, and makes us aware, of the development between the Second and Third Symphonies.
His attention to tempo is particularly acute and invariably he strikes just the right balance between romantic languor and urgency.
The Philharmonia plays for all it's worth and possesses a fine body of sound. The recordings are remarkably consistent in quality and effectively complement the composer's original sound world.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Very impressive indeed. Somehow one feels that one could stretch out and touch the players, so vivid is the sound here. In the Peer Gynt movements, there's much greater range and separation.
Peer Gynt is most beautifully done. At times you might think the wind could have been a shade more distant, particularly in the 'By the seashore' movement but there's no want of atmosphere here – quite the contrary! Not to put too fine a point on it, this is a marvellous recording. In the Holberg Suite, the sound has marvellous clarity and definition as well as exemplary range. For some tastes it may be a little too sophisticated but one's admiration for it remains undimmed. The playing throughout is beautifully cultured and there's wonderful lightness and delicacy.
The present issue is Karajan's third account of 'The Swan of Tuonela' and it's regrettable that he never committed to disc the four Legends in their entirety. It's as powerful and atmospheric an account as ever recorded, and the remaining two pieces, 'Valse triste' and Finlandia, reinforce the feeling that this partnership has never been equalled. The stirring account of Finlandia is incredibly wide-ranging – the orchestral playing is really in a class of its own.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Ashkenazy makes a superb job of Finlandia, which boasts some of the most vibrant, powerful brass sounds on disc.
More than 30 years separate En Saga and Tapiola, yet both works are quintessential Sibelius.
The latter is often praised for the way Sibelius avoided 'exotic' instruments, preferring instead to draw new and inhuman sounds from the more standard ones; and the former is, in many ways, just as striking in the way the orchestration evokes wind, strange lights, vast expanses and solitude. Both works suggest a dream-like journey: En Saga non-specific, though derived from Nordic legend; Tapiola more of an airborne nightmare in, above and around the mighty giants of the Northern forests inhabited by the Green Man of the Kalevala, the forest god Tapio (the final amen of slow, bright major chords brings a blessed release!). Ashkenazy's judgement of long-term pacing is very acute; the silences and shadows are as potent here as the wildest hurricane. And Decca's sound allows you to visualise both the wood and the trees; every detail of Sibelius's sound world is caught with uncanny presence, yet the overall orchestral image is coherent and natural.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010