RECORDING OF THE MONTH     CHOPIN Waltzes and Impromptus Vladimir Feltsman £11 post free World-wide VIVALDI The four seasons London Mozart Players/Juritz £12 post free World-wide BEETHOVEN Symphonies 4 and 5 LSO/Yondani Butt £12 post free World-wide

BUY NOW  Crotchet   AmazonUK   AmazonUS

Jean SIBELIUS (1865-1957) Symphony No.3 in C major, op.52 (1907) [29:57] Symphony No.5 in E flat major, op.82 (1919) [33:49] Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra/Leif Segerstam Recorded at the Finlandia Hall, Helsinki, 3 June 2003 ONDINE ODE 1035-2 [63:57]

A useful coupling this, for, though Sibelius’s great 5th is one of the most recorded symphonies of the 20th century, the 3rd has been much less fortunate, probably because of its relatively small stature and midway position in Sibelius’ output. It can also seem like a lightweight piece, though this is very misleading, as in many ways it holds the key to the great works that were to follow. There is a great deal to enjoy and commend in these Sibelius performances from Segerstam and the fine Helsinki Philharmonic. The conductor certainly takes no prisoners, and has a refreshingly personal approach to the scores. His tempi are chosen with great care, and he throws new light on some passages, such as the remarkable fragmented development of the finale of Symphony no.3, or the bridge which joins the two parts of the first movement of the 5th. Nevertheless, I ultimately found the disc a disappointment. Though certain movements work well, Segerstam overplays the contrasts, highlights instrumentation too much, and makes at least one disastrous misjudgement. This is at the final climax of the 5th, where, as the crux is reached, he throws away all his good approach work by massively overdoing the slight acceleration that Sibelius asks for (this is around 9:12 on track 6). Such a pity; a similar tendency to drive the music forward urgently is felt at the end of the 3rd, but is there held in check, which I found bracing. The orchestra plays well, though for me Segerstam’s voicing of the textures is overly bright, with flutes and trumpets often simply too loud. It is vital in this music not to lose that understated, reserved quality that characterises the composer. It’s very possible that all of this arises from Segerstam’s earnest desire to ‘sell’ the music to listeners who are less familiar with Sibelius; if so, that is admirable but misguided, for Sibelius can speak for himself with unique power. Gwyn Parry-Jones Advertising Rates Visitor stats MusicWeb International has over 40,000 Classical CD reviews on offer Discs received Having a problem Donating? Gerard Hoffnung Concerts & The Bricklayer Story   New Releases New Releases   MusicWeb sells the Polish catalogue CDAccord £10.50 post free W-W MusicWeb sells the Arcodiva catalogue £12.00 post free W-W £11.75 post-free world- wide MusicWeb can now offer you discs from the following catalogues: Prices include postage [Acte Préalable £13.50] [Arcodiva £12.00] [Avie from £6.25] [British Music Society £12.00] [CDACCORD from £13.50 ] [ClassicO £12.50] [Hallé from £11] [Heritage £10] [Hortus £14.99 ] [Lyrita ONLY £11.75 ] [Nimbus Special prices] [Northern Flowers £13.50] [REDCLIFFE £11 ] [Sheva £11] [Tactus £11.50 ] [Talent from £12.00 ] [Toccata Classics £10.50 ] Musicweb Special Offers Monthly Best Buys     Google Ads - for information about privacy matters, click here.  Amazon Musicweb International is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com

Return to Index

Reviews from previous months Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.