COMPOSERS: Sibelius
LABELS: Beulah
WORKS: Symphony No. 1; Symphony No. 7; Karelia Overture
PERFORMER: LSO/Anthony Collins
CATALOGUE NO: 1PD8 ADD mono (distr. Priory) (1952/54/55)
There have been outstanding performances of Sibelius’s symphonies, in modern stereo, since the Fifties but many still hold Collins’s cycle (originally on Decca) in special esteem. (Beulah are releasing all seven symphonies in four volumes.) The First Symphony was recorded in just one three-hour session, with few edits. Collins’s readings are intense – full of energy and passion, with the big tunes beautifully realised. The CD format allows the quieter passages to reveal their special magic. Ian Lace
Sibelius: Symphony No. 1; Symphony No. 7; Karelia Overture
There have been outstanding performances of Sibelius’s symphonies, in modern stereo, since the Fifties but many still hold Collins’s cycle (originally on Decca) in special esteem. (Beulah are releasing all seven symphonies in four volumes.) The First Symphony was recorded in just one three-hour session, with few edits. Collins’s readings are intense – full of energy and passion, with the big tunes beautifully realised. The CD format allows the quieter passages to reveal their special magic. Ian Lace
Our rating
4
Published: January 20, 2012 at 2:32 pm