Sibelius: En Saga, Op. 9

“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

“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

“Mikko Franck presides over the most intrepidly individual and pungently characterful performance of the Lemminkäinen Legends since Leif Segerstam's 1995 Helsinki PO account for this same label. Clocking in at an eyebrow-raising 53'48" overall, Franck's conception evinces an unhurried authority, a generous expressive scope and a richly stocked imagination remarkable in one so young.
Lemminkäinen and the Maidens of the Island unfolds in especially gripping fashion here. Even more than Segerstam, Franck takes an extraordinarily long-breathed, flexible view of this heady tableau, imparting an unashamedly sensual voluptuousness to the secondary material in particular. It's a risky, impulsive approach, but one that pays high dividends in terms of intoxicating sweep, brazen ardour and, well, sheer daring. Both The Swan of Tuonela (which, in a refreshing change from the norm these days, Franck places second, according to Sibelius's final wishes) and Lemminkäinenin Tuonela combine dark-hued grandeur with tingling atmosphere, the latter's haunting A minor central episode handled with particular perception.
True, Lemminkäinen's Return lacks something in animal excitement, but its unruffled sense of purpose, rhythmic spring and sinewy, clean-cut textures serve up plenty of food for thought none the less.
The Legends are preceded by an uncommonly fresh En Saga, brimming with watchful sensitivity and interpretative flair, and once again studded with revelatory detail. Throughout, the Swedish RSO responds with heartwarming application and genuine enthusiasm, audibly galvanised by Franck's fervent, always invigorating direction. The engineering, too, is very good, without perhaps being absolutely in the top flight.
An auspicious recording début, then, from a young artist of clearly prodigious potential.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“the perspectives are close, but thrillingly so, revealing every iota of color and textural interest. Just listen to the detail that Davis conjures in the big central development of Pohjola's Daughter, solo winds and harp especially, or to the menacing brass crescendos in En Saga (with the bass drum effectively but naturally in balance). These are magnificent performances all, the conductor and players totally inside the composer's special idiom. Even the relaxed but buoyant Karelia Suite has a very special "fairy tale" atmosphere that's entirely appropriate, full of freshness and innocent fun. In short, what you have here are Sibelius' three greatest tone poems (En Saga, Pohjola's Daughter, and Tapiola) in outstanding interpretations and great sound, along with two popular favorites done every bit as well. Need I say more?"” Classics Today 10/10