Customer Reviews

Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7

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The immense music of Jean Sibelius, while maybe a little too rich for some, has clearly always been a favorite with audiences of big bold 20th century music. Obviously, it has also been a favorite of British conductor Sir Colin Davis, who has recorded the Sibelius symphonic cycle twice, the most recent being as music director of the London Symphony Orchestra.

The recordings here of Sibelius' 5th and 7th Symphonies date from Davis' first Sibelius cycle with the Boston Symphony, one of America's finest. Both orchestra and conductor were at their best in these recordings, which date from the winter of 1974-75. They are bold without being bombastic.

Philips was right to re-release these two symphonies onto CD in their original LP form, with vastly improved sound. Next to the more recent recordings by Herbert Blomstedt and the San Francisco Symphony, the Davis/BSO recordings are the best available ones of these two 20th century symphonic giants.

Since I consider the BSO my home orchestra, I've always rooted for their Sibelius cycle from the seventies under Colin Davis. It was a long stretch after Koussevitzky's legendary Sibelius Second on 78s -- still an astonishing example of orchestral playing -- and until Davis appeared as a frequent guest conductor, Boston went through three regimes (Munch, Leinsdor, and Steinberg) when Sibelius counted for little. So I loved these recordings when I bought them on LP.

There are still wonderful things about them. The skittering string playing in the finale of the Fifth has never sounded so mercurial and perfect. The phrasing and overall proportion of the Seventh is very satisfying. But there are minuses. Even with the recent remastering, Philips' sound in the Fifth isn't impressive; the orchestra sounds thin, the winds pinched. Davis plays for elegance over power, and for me the Fifth demands power. But the main factor that demotes this cycle is that the competition has grown so fierce. In the light of Karajan (on both EMI and DG) and the Berliners' overwhelming virtuosity, Bernstein from New York (Sony) and his impetuous energy, and Segerstam from Helsinki (Ondine), who conducts with a composer's originality and insight, Davis doesn't sound as special as before.

Anyone who wants to disprove what I'm saying should begin with the Seventh on this CD -- it's the greatest Sibelius performance in Davis's three cycles.

Despite the fact that Philips has one of the best reissue programs in all classical music, the 2 CD "Duo" series, they must have gotten an inferiority complex lately. To compete with recent reissue success stories like DG Originals, Decca Legends and EMI's Great Recordings of the Century, Philips has now come up with the Philips 50 series, featuring 96 kHz, 24 bit remastered recordings of classic albums from the analog era. In fact, these exact two Sibelius performances are already part of what is probably the crowning jewel in Philips Duo series, Volumes One and Two of "The Complete Symphonies" by Colin Davis and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. These Sibelius performances are indeed the gold standard, but do we really need a single issue of Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7? Personally I would rather have more music for my money than a reissue that matches the original vinyl. So in conclusion, the music's great no question, but I would opt for the earlier Philips Duo release.