Quotes from BBC Radio 3 radio review of Sibelius box set
BBC Radio 3 “Record Review”
24.02.2019
Symphony No. 1: “A thrilling, crisp and vibrant account of this work. Amazing, excellent playing from the Orchestre de Paris and I think that Paavo Järvi brings out the exceptional imagination of these works and how the lyrical is constantly invaded by the dramatic.”
Symphony No. 2: “Again here, Järvi emphasizes the organic aspect of Sibelius – how you build shapes that are curved rather than square and geometrical ...”
Symphony No. 3: “Järvi and the players are really good at highlighting the freshness of the thinking and bringing it to life as though the ink is still wet. There are all sorts of instrumental details that I’ve heard in other performances a bit underplayed or perhaps disregarded or not seen as very important, but here, again, they are brought into very considerable focus and I think that adds to the quality of everything. And then there’s the amazing delicacy with which everything is carried out here.”
Symphony No. 4: “There is a thrilling sense of resonance in the opening lower strings and the wonderful sound he gets from the hand-stopped horns. With Järvi I feel that the music really does seethe and convulse like something almost organic. Its really dark, if you want its Bergmanesque, if that’s not too much of a cliché, butthe sound is rich, its resonant and its thrilling … the orchestra is coming to it as if its new music and I think that is the best way to approach anything really.
Symphony No. 5: “Järvi and the Paris orchestra pace this so beautifully, bringing out all kinds of picquancy and the ways that Sibelius plays tonalities here.
Symphony No. 6: “ Cold Spring water was Sibelius’ own description of his 3rd Symphony from 1923. I think this concert performance from the Paris orchestra and Paavo Järvi does bring that shock, that freshness, that extraordinary explosion of energy … Its wonderful playing. Its very colourful, again – all of this extraordinary attention given to all the details in a way in which Sibelius’ music – although it looks very simple in some ways on the page – its highly complex in the layering of ideas and melodies and themes … highly original in terms of just the syntax of the music here. In some ways, whereas other composers write poetry, he writes a very elaborate and detailed prose and that’s what I think is brought out very effectively in all of these performances.”
“These are very strong recordings and I, myself, would recommend the entire box set … vividly clarified performances that really sieze on the unconventional and originality in Sibelius’ musical thinking.”
24.02.2019
Symphony No. 1: “A thrilling, crisp and vibrant account of this work. Amazing, excellent playing from the Orchestre de Paris and I think that Paavo Järvi brings out the exceptional imagination of these works and how the lyrical is constantly invaded by the dramatic.”
Symphony No. 2: “Again here, Järvi emphasizes the organic aspect of Sibelius – how you build shapes that are curved rather than square and geometrical ...”
Symphony No. 3: “Järvi and the players are really good at highlighting the freshness of the thinking and bringing it to life as though the ink is still wet. There are all sorts of instrumental details that I’ve heard in other performances a bit underplayed or perhaps disregarded or not seen as very important, but here, again, they are brought into very considerable focus and I think that adds to the quality of everything. And then there’s the amazing delicacy with which everything is carried out here.”
Symphony No. 4: “There is a thrilling sense of resonance in the opening lower strings and the wonderful sound he gets from the hand-stopped horns. With Järvi I feel that the music really does seethe and convulse like something almost organic. Its really dark, if you want its Bergmanesque, if that’s not too much of a cliché, butthe sound is rich, its resonant and its thrilling … the orchestra is coming to it as if its new music and I think that is the best way to approach anything really.
Symphony No. 5: “Järvi and the Paris orchestra pace this so beautifully, bringing out all kinds of picquancy and the ways that Sibelius plays tonalities here.
Symphony No. 6: “ Cold Spring water was Sibelius’ own description of his 3rd Symphony from 1923. I think this concert performance from the Paris orchestra and Paavo Järvi does bring that shock, that freshness, that extraordinary explosion of energy … Its wonderful playing. Its very colourful, again – all of this extraordinary attention given to all the details in a way in which Sibelius’ music – although it looks very simple in some ways on the page – its highly complex in the layering of ideas and melodies and themes … highly original in terms of just the syntax of the music here. In some ways, whereas other composers write poetry, he writes a very elaborate and detailed prose and that’s what I think is brought out very effectively in all of these performances.”
“These are very strong recordings and I, myself, would recommend the entire box set … vividly clarified performances that really sieze on the unconventional and originality in Sibelius’ musical thinking.”
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